Board of Directors
Ken Garazin
Pastor Garazin was born in Chicago, IL. He attended Concordia Junior College in Milwaukee, WI and received his B.A. from Concordia Senior College in Ft. Wayne, IN. He was a Vicar (intern) at First Lutheran Church in Omaha, NE and received his Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Theological Seminary in St. Louis, MO in 1972.
Pastor Garazin served parishes in Roselle, Wheaton and Lombard, IL. He also had a business career as owner of four retail stores in major malls in the Chicago suburbs. He has trained as a family mediator and has completed over 100 hours of continuing education in grief care. He has four grown children and seven beautiful grandchildren. He enjoys the beautiful beach on Marco, boating, fishing and reading.
Paul Gremel
Paul received a BS in Hospitality Management from Grand Valley State University near Grand Rapids Michigan in 1993. He later added several accounting courses at Florida Gulf Coast University upon re-locating to SW Florida. Paul has worked for Marriott International and now Marriott Vacations Worldwide since graduation in many finance capacities in 8 locations in Georgia and Florida. Previous Marriott locations include Miami (twice), Ft Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Tampa, and Atlanta. Currently, he oversees operational finance for Marco Island and Caribbean locations for Marriott Vacations.
Paul lives full time on Marco Island with his wife and son since returning to the area with Marriott in 2009. They enjoy boating, fishing, volunteering at Marco Lutheran and spending time with close friends. Paul previously served as financial secretary for Marco Lutheran. Paul's son is a proud member of the Lely High School marching band, and Paul and his wife volunteer during football games, other concerts, and participate on the board of the Lely Band Boosters.
David Karlin
David received a BS in Business Administration from Ohio State University, and an MBA in Finance from Fairleigh Dickinson University in NJ. For the past 35+ years he has worked in the Telecom industry with 17 years at AT&T, 18 years at Tellabs, and continues to work full-time as Director of Sales for a smaller telecom company.
David and his wife, Judy have spent most of the past 25 years in Naperville, IL and Columbus, OH. Both of their sons live and work in CA. After purchasing a vacation home on the island in 2010, they began attending Marco Lutheran, enjoying the fellowship it offers. In 2018, they moved full time from Columbus, OH to Naples. David joined the MLC Foundation Board of Directors in 2019 and currently serves on the Investment Committee. Outside of work he enjoys golf and travel.
Karen Kuhnly
Karen retired from her Vice President role after a 30-year career in banking. Karen and her husband Mark of over 40 years, spend winters in Fiddlers Creek and summers in Maple Grove, MN. In her retirement Karen operates a Mary Kay business and enjoys time with their six grandchildren.
She also volunteers for a second-grade class in the inner city at Trinity First Lutheran School when back in MN and at St Matthew's House when in FL. Missions is an important piece to her faith and she is looking forward to serving in her new role on the Foundation.
Lu Ann Schieferdecker
Lu Ann was raised in the small farm town of Cambridge, Illinois. She earned a BA in English and Education from Augustana College in 1983. Worked in the medical equipment industry as a District Manager. Became a stay-at-home mom for several years while working from home writing technical material. Returned to education, earning a Masters of Education from North Central College, Naperville, IL where she worked in the local schools.
She relocated with her family to Marco Island permanently in 2017. She is a substitute teacher for Collier County Public Schools, takes classes at the YMCA, is a member of the Marco Island Art League and Clay Guild, Vice Regent of the Marco Island Chapter of the DAR, and member of the Marco Island Lutheran Church. She became a Grandmother in 2020.
Lily Surber
Lili was born in Lima, Peru and immigrated to California with her family in 1960. She was raised in the small southern California community of San Gabriel. She earned a BA in Public Administration from the University of La Verne and spent 35 years in Law Enforcement, retiring as Police Chief of the City of Baldwin Park in 2013. She then started a second career in civilian oversight working for the County of Los Angeles in the Office of Inspector General in 2015.
In 2017, she and her husband, Dale bought a vacation home in Goodland. They closed on their new home two weeks before Hurricane Irma; what an introduction to Florida living!
After finally retiring in 2020, She and Dale moved full time to Goodland and started attending Marco Lutheran Church. Lili serves on the Calusa Island Homeowner’s Association; she and Dale are actively involved in the Goodland Civic Association and she is current Chair of the Outreach Board