Brian Thiel -- BIO
Brian Thiel -- BIO
Owner/Manager, Web Partners for Organizations, Austin,
MN.
Creating and managing web sites for over 60 organizations, professionals, small
businesses. Also did consulting and servicing of LANs, wireless systems,
firewalls, Windows servers and PCs, backup & disaster recovery planning and
implementation, assistance with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, FrontPage.
Director of Information
Technology, Crossroads College, Rochester, MN.
Upgraded LAN servers from Windows NT to Windows 2003, administered wired and
wireless networks, administered the campus PBX, researched, acquired, and
installed network intrusion defenses, managed all aspects of TCPIP network
devices and routing, created revised telephony plan for campus, serviced staff
and student PCs with Windows and Office, managed various specialized educational
applications.
Network Admin, Rochester
School System, ISD535, Rochester, MN.
Responsible for disaster recovery of 100+ Windows servers distributed among 20
sites. Managed data farm and backup of 1TB of data on IBM servers and
various NAS servers. Supported Exchange 2000 server, specialized
educational administration applications, and general server and network
administration. Fully documented system support and recovery procedures.
LAN Analyst, Minneapolis Medical Research Foundation, affiliate of Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN. Architect and administrator of Windows NT - Windows 2000, TCPIP network with various PCs and Macs as clients. Microsoft Active Directory, Exchange server, SQL servers, IIS, DNS, DHCP, WINS, and many other services active in this environment.
Information Systems Engineer IV, AG Communication Systems, subsidiary of Lucent Technologies, Phoenix, AZ, a telecom firm. In this position advanced technical support was provided for TCPIP networks, Windows NT LANs, 1000+ Windows 95 and Windows NT PCs in a large, leading-edge, multi-system, computing environment which also included environments of Sun and HP workstations, AS/400 and other minicomputers, and IBM mainframes, all on an ATM-based, TCP/IP intranet with multiple wide area network connections and internet links.
Memberships
Institutional sales of ethical pharmaceuticals for Stuart Pharmaceuticals (predecessor of Astra-Zeneca) comprised 70% of a decade of sales experience. Other activities included personal sales of insurance and investments for Bankers Life of Des Moines. Finally, a brief time of computer sales led directly to changing to technical roles in the field.
After graduation from MN Bible College a 2-year ministry with a country church in Sugar Grove, Wisconsin was conducted doing the typical full range of pastoral duties. Next a move to First Church of Christ at Phoenix AZ as Associate Minister focused on youth and educational areas of a medium-sized and older downtown church. Later this congregation relocated and renamed themselves Lincoln Heights Christian Church. Following that a two-year span in E. Tennessee included Master of Religious Education studies at Emmanuel School of Religion along with part time ministry as the pastor with Buffalo Christian Church a rural congregation near Blountville, TN. Then it was back to Phoenix, AZ and the Mountain View Church of Christ as Minister of Education for just over a year. A brief interim back at First Church of Christ, Phoenix followed during their search for a new Senior Minister. After that all involvement with the churches has been as a non-employed person.
For about the next nine years membership at First Christian Church in Phoenix included service in a number of areas: choir, participating in athletics and a term of leading the multi-church league, starting and teaching an adult singles class. The next ten years were at Chaparral Christian Church in Scottsdale where similar involvements were continued, choir, athletics, adult classes.
Following a move in 2000 from Arizona back to Minnesota, new involvements and leadership in the church took place during brief stays in Red Wing and Rochester. But during the next 6 years in the Austin, MN area and after retirement from the computer-technical career, he had a deep involvement with the Austin MN Church of Christ as Elder, Chairman of the Board, occasional preaching, plus many other activities. In January of 2009 Brian and Sharon were called to the Grace Christian Church in LeRoy, MN (about 30 miles from Austin) where Brian will is the pastor.
Continuously since his baptism (by immersion) at age 10 in Ames, Iowa, Brian has been active in the Christian Church - Church of Christ. His brother, Michael D. Thiel, DMin, served many years as a pastor in Christian Churches and is now retired in Spirit Lake, IA.
During the 2008 election year, Brian ran for the Minnesota House of Representatives as an endorsed candidate of the Republican Party. After a 6-month-long campaign the result was he lost to the incumbent. Obviously, it was not a good year for Republicans all across the country, but many well-wishers praised Brian for running a good and fair campaign, making the case for fiscal responsibility in the face of a serious economic recession that also maintains the top priority of concern for the needs of the people. Respect for our Creator and all his creation with a stewardship of all His endowment to us is the highest priority. A number of people who had seldom voted for any Republican made a point to tell Brian they had voted for him.
Looking to the future, no more runs for office are likely. But continuing to advocate for respect for life and to keep community morals from degradation will not be forsaken. That will be be matched with a never ending call for responsible government that uses common sense about money. As a longtime numbers guy, that is a natural focus for Brian.
Sharon Thiel was also significantly involved in the campaign along with her ongoing service in many aspects of the life of the church where she had various leadership and service roles. Among these were: a Katrina relief trip (to the Louisiana delta to work on rebuilding), a ministry to shut-ins, and a range of women's activities. Her entire professional career was with regional Bell companies from which she retired as a mid-level manager. She began as a "number please" operator and progressed through a series of promotions, finally serving as a state/federal lobbyist. She was active in various civic and political groups in Phoenix, and has become just as involved in southern MN.
Updated Sep 2009