Karen has lived at IRCC since 2017 and has been the Chairman of the Chapel Foundation of IRCC since 2020. She grew up attending Air Force Base Chapels, and was later confirmed into the Methodist Church as a teenager. She then attended Army Chapels as a military spouse.
One of Karen’s early childhood memories is of moving onto an Air Base and seeing the Chapel spire across the long boulevard in front of their base housing. She wandered over and found her way inside, and upon discovering the Chaplain, promptly exclaimed that she wanted to sing! The Chaplain kindly escorted her home – although she wasn’t very helpful, given she’d just moved in and every house looked unfamiliar to her. But Chapels have always been familiar and welcoming.
As the IRCC Chapel Board Chair, Karen believed that for the Chapel’s long-term sustainability, the Board needed to have a cadre of trained Lay Speakers who could step in to provide a sermon in case of the sudden illness or absence of one of the ordained Chaplains. Thus, in 2021, Chaplain Bill Otis trained Karen as one of three Lay Speakers.
Karen delivered her first sermon in late 2021. She is also a member of the Chapel Ensemble, and often serves as a Song Leader or Scripture reader.
Professionally, Karen retired as a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) and registered professional engineer, with almost 32 years of management and technical experience in several federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, the White House Office of Management and Budget, and the Department of Energy.
Teresa Ortiz
I was born and raised in the Midwest and am the youngest of 10 children (7 boys and 3 girls). My aunt and uncle took me to their church and I accepted Jesus as my savior when I was nine years old. I earned a BS degree from Indiana University (South Bend) and received a US Army commission in the Ordnance Corps in 1984. I served one tour on active duty then transitioned to the reserves and civilian service as an Acquisition specialist. I served the next 17 years in the reserves or guard and civilian service. I met my wonderful husband, Tony, in the military and when he retired, we were married in 1995. After 9/11, I was once again mobilized and served on active duty for several tours. During my years of service, I completed two Master’s Degrees (MBA-1992 and MS in Systems Management-2006). I completed my careers after 32 years and retired from both, Army reserves and DoD civilian, in 2014. I now am in full time service to my Lord, and everyday spend time seeking to know Him more; the author and finisher of my faith; to Him be the glory.
Ken Boll
Ken Boll, Lay Speaker for the IRCC non-denominational Chapel, is: Teri’s husband; an ordained deacon in the Presbyterian Church (USA); a retired U.S. Army officer; and the organizer for IRCC’s Saturday Morning Bible Study and the Military History Forum.
