Alvin B. Koeneman

Alvin Berthold Koeneman (July 1, 1933 – February 21, 2018) was a rear admiral in the United States Navy. He was Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from June 1988 to August 1991.

Early life and education Koeneman was born in Omro, Wisconsin, in 1933. He earned a B.A. from Wartburg College in 1955 and a B.Div. from the Wartburg Theological Seminary in 1959. Koeneman married Emelie Ruth Jackson on June 3, 1956. He was ordained an Evangelical Lutheran priest on June 6, 1959, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Koeneman served as a pastor in Santee, California, from 1959 to 1962 and then as an assistant pastor in Santa Ana, California, from 1962 to 1967.

Military career Koeneman was commissioned in the United States Naval Reserve on September 2, 1962. He reported for training at the chaplain school in Newport, Rhode Island, in April 1967. Koeneman was assigned to Yokosuka, Japan from July 1967 to December 1968, Koeneman was also conferred an honorary LL.D. degree by Wartburg College in 1988. He received the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, are buried in Arlington National Cemetery.