Together in Mission

At the 2021 South Dakota District Convention, convention delegates adopted Resolution 2-02 to financially support Rev. Dr. Daniel Jastram, LCMS Missionary to Southeast Asia and Rev. Dr. Cory Rajek, LCMS Missionary to Eurasia.  The congregations of the district agreed that their Together In Mission offerings to the district would be evenly distributed between both missionaries.

Rev. Dr. Daniel and Joan Jastram

Rev. Dr. Daniel Jastram serves as a missionary on behalf of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod throughout Asia, based in Tokyo, Japan.  His responsibilities include developing and implementing a strategic mission plan for this area.  He coordinates theological education opportunities and supervises and evaluates theological educators throughout Asia.  When needed, Dr. Jastram teaches courses at Japan Lutheran Theological Seminary, Tokyo, Japan.  Dr. Jastram's wife, Joan, was born in Mitchell, SD, where her childhood congregation was Zion Lutheran Church, Mitchell, SD.  She received both a bachelor's and a master's degree in Communication Disorders from the University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD.  She received her Doctor of Psychology degree from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Twin Cities, MN.  To learn more about Rev. Dr. Daniel and Joan Jastram, read their LCMS Prayer Card.

Rev. Dr. Cory and Jennifer Rajek

The Rev. Dr. Cory and Jennifer Rajek serve the Lord through The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) in Riga, Latvia. In this role, Cory teaches at the Luther Academy, the seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia. He also serves as a missionary pastor to the area and leads Riga’s English-language service, which relaunched after being suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cory is originally from Merrill, Wis. He received his bachelor’s degree in Pastoral Ministry/Theological Languages from Concordia University Wisconsin, Mequon, Wis., and his Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. He also has a master’s degree in Servant Leadership from Viterbo University, LaCrosse, Wis., and a doctorate in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service from Cardinal Stritch University, Milwaukee. Before becoming a missionary, Cory served parishes in Iowa, Wisconsin and South Dakota. To learn more about Rev. Dr. Cory and Jennifer Rajek, read their LCMS Prayer Card.