John grew up in northwest Washington State and has three younger sisters who still live there. He was a camp counselor at a Lutheran camp in Bellingham, WA, and served full-time as a Challenge Course Coordinator. In 2015, after being in camp ministry for nearly five years, John decided to pursue a position as a youth director in a congregational setting, so he moved to rural Iowa to serve as a Children, Youth and Family Director. He was married in August 2017 to his wife, Kelsey, and in 2020, they welcomed their first child, Adalynn. John holds an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Houston-Downtown in Humanities with a concentration in Religious Studies. He is attending classes at Wartburg Theological Seminary and pursuing a Masters of Divinity. He currently serves as a Pastoral Intern at Faith Bellaire Church.