Chaplain Ben Pflederer
Colorado Rapids Academy
SINCE 2024
Biography
Ben was born and raised in Indianapolis and proudly reps the Midwest.
Ben grew up playing soccer and quickly developed a passion for the game at a young age and continued playing competitively for various clubs and his high school team. Moving south, Ben attended Vanderbilt University and graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and Religious Studies. There he developed his love for ministry through Young Life, serving as a leader for seven years. Ben played club soccer all 4 years and also volunteered with the high school soccer team at Overton High. After graduation he served as Assistant Youth Director for the High School Youth Group at Covenant Presbyterian in Nashville.
The US Men’s Team has always been his favorite team, and he was fortunate to spend the whole summer in South Africa in 2010 serving with a sports outreach ministry in Cape Town and attending all the USA team’s games along the way. His face even appeared on the front page of ESPN.com the day after their big win over Algeria in stoppage time.
Ben met wife, Stephanie, while working at a camp in British Columbia in 2011. After several years of distant friendship that shifted to a dating relationship Ben moved to Denver in 2016 to follow Stephanie as she began Law School at the University of Denver, and shortly after got engaged and married. At the same time they started attending Denver Pres and enjoyed the rich community. After a stint in substitute teaching, Ben worked for nearly seven years as a client trainer for FareHarbor, a tour software company. And after several years volunteering Ben took on a paid position with the church to coordinate the program for Middle and High School students.
Ben and Stephanie live in Park Hill, with their five chickens and are certified foster parents. In recent years, Ben began his pursuit of a Master of Divinity degree at Denver Seminary in Littleton and is set to graduate in the Fall of 2024 or Spring of 2025. He enjoys watching and playing soccer, gardening, pinball, snowboarding, yard work, and desires to see kids know God more deeply, understand the beauties of Scripture, and establish rich relationships within the church.
Ben serves as volunteer chaplain to the Colorado Rapids Academy, since 2024.
Education
BA, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Vanderbilt University, 2013
Master of Divinity, Denver Seminary (2024 anticipated)
Additional Certifications and Training
Conversational Spanish