Peter Muschinske is a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

pastor and a Rear Admiral in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

Personal life and education

Peter Muschinske is a native of

Sun Prairie, Wisconsin Sun Prairie is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 35,967 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the most populous suburb of Madison, Wisconsin, Madison and is part of the Madison metropolitan area. ...

. He graduated from

Rice Lake High School Rice Lake High School is a four-year public high school located in Rice Lake, Wisconsin. Rice Lake High School is a part of the Rice Lake Area School District. School overview The history of Rice Lake High School can be traced back to 1882. ...

Rice Lake, Wisconsin Rice Lake is a city in Barron County, Wisconsin, Barron County in northwest Wisconsin, United States, on the shore of Rice Lake (Barron County, Wisconsin), the lake with the same name. The city is a commercial and tourist center for the surround ...

. His father George was an officer in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

. Muschinske's brothers followed in their father's footsteps served in the Air Force. He earned a bachelor's degree from the

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

, where he studied communications and psychology. Later, Muschinske graduated from

Luther Seminary Luther Seminary is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is the largest seminary of the ELCA. It also accepts and educates students of 41 other denominations and traditions. It is accredited ...

with a Master of Divinity and underwent further education at

Eden Theological Seminary Eden Theological Seminary is a Christian seminary based in Webster Groves, Missouri. It is one of the six official seminaries of the United Church of Christ (UCC). History The seminary was established in 1850 by German pastors in Marthasville ...

. In civilian life, Muschinske has been a pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church in Rice Lake and Living Water Church in

Cameron, Barron County, Wisconsin Cameron is a village in Barron County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 1,872 at the 2020 census, and 1,783 at the 2010 census. History A post office called Cameron has been in operation since 1882. The village was named for ...

. He has three children with his wife Katie.

Military career

Peter Muschinske joined the U.S. Navy during the early 1990s and was eventually admitted to the Chaplain Corps. His assignments have included time with the

5th Battalion, 14th Marines 5th Battalion, 14th Marines (5/14) is a reserve artillery battalion of the United States Marine Corps comprising four firing batteries and a headquarters battery. The battalion is based in Seal Beach, California and its primary weapon system i ...

and

Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 25 Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 25 or NMCB 25 is a United States Navy Reserve, Navy Reserve Seabee unit that is headquartered at Port Hueneme, CA. Its World War II predecessor was one of three CBs transferred to the Marine Corps ...

, as Staff Chaplain of

NORAD North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ; , CDAAN), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and pr ...

, Deputy Fleet Chaplain of the

United States Third Fleet The United States Third Fleet is one of the numbered fleets in the United States Navy. Third Fleet's area of responsibility includes approximately fifty million square miles of the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean areas including the Bering ...

and the

United States Pacific Fleet The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor� ...

and Deputy Region Chaplain of Navy Region Hawaii. Along the way, he was deployed to serve in the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

. In 2023, Muschinske was promoted to Rear Admiral (lower half) and named Deputy Chief of Chaplains for Reserve Matters of the Navy. Decorations he has received include the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: Singapore *Pingat Jasa Gemilang, or Meritorious Services Me ...

with three

service stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or service period. T ...

, the

Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fift ...

, the

Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to rece ...

and the

Humanitarian Service Medal The Humanitarian Service Medal (HSM) is a military service medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created on January 19, 1977 by President Gerald Ford under . The medal may be awarded to members of the United States military (incl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muschinske People from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin People from Rice Lake, Wisconsin Religious leaders from Wisconsin Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Navy chaplains United States Navy rear admirals (lower half) United States Navy personnel of the Iraq War Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States) 21st-century American Lutheran clergy 20th-century American Lutheran clergy University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire alumni Luther Seminary alumni Eden Theological Seminary alumni 1962 births Living people