LORRRAINE — From 1896 to 1909, Pastor Robert Stracke ministered the congregation of the Lorraine First Baptist Church according to longtime church member Ron Etchison. Stracke’s 13-year tenure was the longest in the church’s 145-year history.

Now, Pastor Zach Ullom’s time with First Baptist has hit a decade, and he is encroaching on Stracke’s record.

“First Baptist Church in Lorraine has been truly blessed to have had Zach as our pastor for these past 10 years, and we celebrate this milestone with him,” Etchison said. “Thank you, Zach, for your faithful and dedicated ministry in Lorraine and surrounding communities.”

Hailing from Lubbock, Texas, Ullom came to the little Kansas town by way of Virginia. He was at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, Va., pursuing his doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology. During that time, Ullom worked with youth and taught Sunday school for a small church.

“I was there about five years and it was during that time that I started volunteering at my local church,” Ullom said. “I was getting more and more involved in teaching and finally realized one day that I had fallen in love with the local church and needed to pursue that rather than business.”

He then quit his PhD program and signed up for seminary school. He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary in 2013 after four years of study.

“During that time, I got a little more clarity on what I needed to be doing,” he said.

Not one for public speaking, being a pastor was not really something Ullom had looked at in the past. However, after seeing the state of things, he found himself seriously pursuing that line of work, though not on as large a scale as some.

“I realized a lot of rural places were very neglected when it came to pastors,” he said. “Many pastors were looking towards larger churches and more public areas like television. I thought churches in rural America deserve nothing less than the best.”

That was when he found Lorraine, or Lorraine found him. In any case, he said it became clear that this was where God wanted him to go and the church and community are grateful.

“Ten years ago, Zach Ullom left the bright lights of the city and came to the tiny town of Lorraine, which had no grocery store, no McDonald’s, no Wendy’s, no Burger King and no Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, to become the pastor at First Baptist Church in Lorraine,” Etchison said. “Zach has a phenomenal knowledge of the Bible, especially considering how young he is (wise beyond his years), and his ability to explain scripture with clarity to both young and old is incredible.”

In his early 30s when he came to Lorraine, there was some skepticism about how long a younger pastor would last away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. That didn’t seem to phase Ullom, and a decade passed by in no time.

The church celebrated Ullom’s anniversary Sunday morning.

“They didn’t bring me out here to do ministry for them, but to walk alongside them,” Ullom said. “I would say my hope for the future is that we are faithful. I don’t know what God’s plan is for the future, but I hope to remain faithful. I have a heart not just for Lorraine, for the county. We want to meet the needs of our community and will continue to do so.”