Pastor Ray Ranker has loved campus ministry at the University of Maryland since he himself was a student participating in what has become known as The Humble Walk. Now, he’s been leading worship, providing pastoral care, organizing after school programs, planning international and domestic trips, and much more for the last 15 years at UMD.
In 2022, it was in the midst of a busy academic year and a wider transition back to in person programming, that he was asked to serve on the LuMin Board. With everything he already had on his plate, Ray definitely considered saying no. “However, it felt like a moment of opportunity… a really important time to build the network back up after many people were feeling so isolated,” he said.
So, he said yes. From 2022-2025, he served on the LuMin board, and he got to participate in some work that felt very meaningful and intentional. In person gatherings began again, a new director was brought on, and most importantly to Ray, the board re-envisioned some of the grant processes to make sure money was being granted to campus ministries across the country.
During this time, Ray was able to widen and deepen his relationships with fellow campus ministers. He continued, “I got to share my experience in leading trips, while I also got to learn about how others developed intentional living communities for students.” Ray saw his time on the board as an opportunity to serve a wider community, while also building connections that have strengthened the ministry at The Humble Walk.
The Humble Walk at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD is one of 179 ministries affiliated with Lumin, the ELCA Campus Ministry Network.
