Margaret G. Kibben

Margaret Kibben
Margaret Kibben
61st Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives
	Incumbent
	Assumed office; January 3, 2021

Last updated November 15, 2023

Margaret Grun Kibben (born 1960)^[1] is a U.S. Presbyterian minister who is the chaplain of the United States House of Representatives. She served as the 26th Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from 2014 to 2018; she was formerly the 18th Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps (CHMC) and the Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from 2010 to 2014. Kibben was the first woman to hold each of these positions.

Early life and education

A native of Warrington, Pennsylvania, Kibben entered active duty in the U.S. Navy in 1986.^[2] She earned a B.A. degree from Goucher College in Towson, Maryland in 1982. Kibben received both her Masters of Divinity (1986) and her Doctor of Ministry (2002) degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, New Jersey. She also earned an M.A. degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in 1996.^[3] Kibben was a senior fellow at the United States Institute of Peace.^[4]

Military career

Kibben's Marine Corps assignments have included Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, where she served with Headquarters and Service Battalion, Security Battalion, the Brig, Marine Corps Air Facility and the president's Helicopter Squadron, HMX-1. She also served with the Marines of Second Force Service Support Group Camp Lejeune, N.C., making deployments to both Turkey and Norway. Later she was assigned to the Marine Corps Combat Development Command in Quantico as the doctrine writer for Religious Ministry.^[4]

Kibben's Navy assignments include the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland as the first female chaplain. She was the Navy Chaplain Corps historian at the Chaplain Resource Board and the command chaplain, USS San Diego (AFS-6), in Norfolk, Virginia. As U.S. 3rd Fleet chaplain, Kibben was responsible for the training and certification of all carrier strike group and expeditionary strike group religious ministry teams. She completed a deployment as the command chaplain, Combined Forces Command Afghanistan as an individual augmentee.^[4]

Kibben was detailed to the Office of the Chief of Navy Chaplains, first serving as the director for Force Structure and Community Management and then as the executive assistant to the chief of Navy Chaplains.^[4]

Kibben was the 18th Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps (CHMC) and the Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy. She was the first woman to hold this office.^[5]^[6]

The Chief of Navy Chaplains is the Senior Chaplain in the Navy, the Head of the U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps, and the Director of Religious Ministry Support for the Department of the Navy.^[7] He or she advises the Secretary of the Navy, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Chief of Naval Operations, and the Commandant of the Coast Guard "on all matters pertaining to religion within the Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard."

After retirement from the Navy, Kibben became a lecturer in Leadership and Ethics at the School of Engineering of the Catholic University of America.^[3]^[8]

Chaplain of the House of Representatives

On December 31, 2020, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed Kibben as the next House chaplain, making her the first woman to serve as chaplain in either chamber of Congress.^[9] Her third day as House chaplain was marked by both the 2021 United States Electoral College vote count and the accompanying violent protests, during which she offered prayers upon the evacuation of House members.^[10] She was reelected Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives on January 7, 2023, after Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker.^{[ citation needed ]}

Awards and decorations

1st row	Navy Distinguished Service Medal	Legion of Merit with one gold award star ^[4]	Bronze Star ^[4]
2nd row	Meritorious Service Medal with two award stars^[4]	Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with two award stars^[4]	Joint Meritorious Unit Award ^[4]
3rd row	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation with two bronze service stars ^[4]	Navy "E" Ribbon ^[4]	Fleet Marine Force Ribbon ^[4]
4th row	National Defense Service Medal with service star^[4]	Southwest Asia Service Medal with service star^[4]	Afghanistan Campaign Medal with service star^[4]
5th row	Global War on Terrorism Service Medal ^[4]	Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon ^[4]	Kuwaiti Kuwait Liberation ^[4]

Personal life

Kibben is the daughter of William Allen Grun^[11] and Jean Marie "Micki" (McFall) Grun. She has one sister. Her father served in the Naval Reserve during World War II, retiring from service as a lieutenant commander.^[12]

Kibben is married to Timothy J. Kibben, a retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. The couple have a daughter.^[2]

Related Research Articles

In the United States Navy, officers have various ranks. Equivalency between services is by pay grade. United States Navy commissioned officer ranks have two distinct sets of rank insignia: On dress uniform a series of stripes similar to Commonwealth naval ranks are worn; on service khaki, working uniforms, and special uniform situations, the rank insignia are identical to the equivalent rank in the US Marine Corps.

The United States Navy Chaplain Corps is the body of military chaplains of the United States Navy who are commissioned naval officers. Their principal purpose is "to promote the spiritual, religious, moral, and personal well-being of the members of the Department of the Navy," which includes the Navy and the United States Marine Corps. Additionally, the Chaplain Corps provides chaplains to the United States Coast Guard.

Margaret DeLuca "Peg" Klein is a former United States Navy officer who held the rank of rear admiral at the time of her retirement in March 2017. She currently serves as the dean of the College of Leadership and Ethics at the Naval War College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis Iasiello</span> American Roman Catholic priest and naval officer, former US Navy Chief of Chaplains

Louis V. Iasiello, OFM, USN is a Catholic priest retired US Navy officer who served as the 23rd Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from 2003 to 2006.

The Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) is an agency of the United States Department of the Navy that manages health care activities for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. BUMED operates hospitals and other health care facilities as well as laboratories for biomedical research, and trains and manages the Navy's many staff corps related to medicine. Its headquarters is located at the Defense Health Headquarters in Fairfax County, Virginia. BUMED has 41,930 medical personnel and more than a million eligible beneficiaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy Elizabeth Brown</span>

Vice Admiral Nancy E. Brown is a retired vice admiral in the United States Navy who most recently served as the Director, Command, Control, Communications and Computer Systems, The Joint Staff. She was the principal advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on all C4 systems matters within the Department of Defense. Her service spanned 32 years. She retired in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy J. Lescavage</span> American rear admiral

Nancy J. Lescavage is a retired American rear admiral who served as the 20th director of the Navy Nurse Corps and was the commander of Naval Medical Education and Training Command, Bethesda, Maryland.

Rear Admiral Alan T. Baker, USN, is a retired American Navy officer who served as the 16th Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps from 2006 to 2009. Chaplain Baker was the first graduate of the United States Naval Academy and former Surface Warfare Officer to serve as a Chaplain Corps Flag Officer. Following his military career, Baker served as Directional Leader at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, a 4,000-member, multi-campus church in the San Francisco Bay Area, from 2010 to 2012. He is currently principal of Strategic Foundations where he teaches, coaches and catalyzes organizations valuing the intersection of faith, learning and leadership.

Carey Hall Cash is a United States Navy rear admiral and chaplain who serves as the 21st Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps and Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy since May 2022. An ordained minister, Cash serves in multiple positions as a military chaplain, including as the command chaplain to USS San Jacinto (CG-56), USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74), and Carrier Strike Group 3, as well as chaplain to former president Barack Obama at Camp David, the U.S. presidential retreat.

The Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy (CHC) is the highest-ranking military chaplain in the United States Navy and head of the United States Navy Chaplain Corps. As part of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and Department of the Navy, the CHC is dual-hatted as the Director of Religious Ministries (N097) under OPNAV. In these capacities, the CHC is the principal advisor to the secretary of the Navy, the chief of naval operations and, where appropriate, the commandant of the Marine Corps and commandant of the Coast Guard "on all matters pertaining to religion within the Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard." For administrative and personnel matters, the CHC reports to the chief of naval personnel.

The Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps (CHMC) is a position always filled by the officers serving as Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy as a "dual hatted" billet since 2000. The CHMC oversees religious ministry in the Marine Corps which one Commandant of the Marine Corps defined as "a vital function which enhances the personal, family, and community readiness of our Marines, sailors, and their families. Chaplaincy supports the foundational principle of free exercise of religion and helps to enrich the spiritual, moral and ethical fabric of the military."

Rear Admiral Karen Ann Flaherty assumed duties as the Deputy Surgeon General of Navy Medicine at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery as of August 6, 2010. Flaherty served as the 22nd Director of the United States Navy Nurse Corps as well as the Deputy Chief, Wounded, Ill, and Injured at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery from 2009 to 2010.

Mark Luzerne Tidd is a former United States Navy officer who served as the 25th Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from 2010 to 2014.

Gregory Curtis Horn is a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. He retired in 2013 as 17th Deputy Chief of Chaplains for Reserve Matters and Director of Religious Programs, Marine Forces Reserve.

Daniel L. Gard is a retired rear admiral in the United States Navy Reserve and was Deputy Chief of Chaplains for Reserve Matters of the United States Navy Chaplain Corps. He was also the president of Concordia University Chicago.

Ross Henry Trower was a rear admiral and Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy.

Gregory N. Todd is a United States Navy rear admiral and chaplain who serves as the 28th Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy. He previously served as the 20th Chaplain of the Marine Corps. He also served for four years as the tenth Chaplain of the Coast Guard. Over a thirty-two year career, he has served in a variety of Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard assignments, including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and chaplaincy work at Ground Zero in the wake of the September 11 attacks. He is a Lutheran.

Brent William Scott is a retired United States Navy rear admiral and chaplain who last served as the 27th Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy. He previously served as the 19th Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps and the Deputy Chief of Navy Chaplains.

Robert DuBois Workman was the U.S. Navy chief of chaplains during most of World War II from 1937 to 1945 and oversaw an increase of chaplains from less than 90 to more than 2800. He was of the Presbyterian faith. Workman was the first Chief of Chaplains to be promoted to rear admiral while still on active duty.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Navy .

↑ Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy on Active Duty. Bureau of Naval Personnel. October 1, 1990. p. 315. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
1 2 "Rear Admiral Margaret Kibben". Wellesley College. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
1 2 "Rear Admiral (retired) Margaret Kibben". The Catholic University of America School of Engineering. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Rear Admiral Margaret G. Kibben, USN". Biographies. United States Navy. Archived from the original on September 20, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2010.
↑ www.marines.mil, retrieved May 12, 2011. Archived October 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
↑ marinesmagazine, retrieved May 13, 2011. Archived January 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
↑ "SECNAVINST 1730.1B" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 17, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2011.
↑ "Requirements". The Catholic University of America School of Engineering. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
↑ "OPNAVINST 1730.1D" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 14, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
↑ How House chaplain calmed tense hours in besieged Capitol with prayers for ‘God’s covering’, Religion News Service
↑ "'Birdhouse' Bill Grun, 98, certainly didn't act his age". Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Synod of the Trinity. March 27, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
↑ Gianficaro, Phil (November 10, 2013). "World War II vet fanning freedom's flame". The Intelligencer. Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

External links

Media related to Margaret G. Kibben at Wikimedia Commons

Military offices
Preceded by Mark L. Tidd	Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps 2010–2014	Succeeded by Brent W. Scott
	Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy 2010–2014
	Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy 2014–2018
Religious titles
Preceded by Pat Conroy	Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives 2021–present	Incumbent

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy on Active Duty. Bureau of Naval Personnel. October 1, 1990. p. 315. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

[Wellesley-2] 1 2 "Rear Admiral Margaret Kibben". Wellesley College. Retrieved December 2, 2020.

[Catholic-3] 1 2 "Rear Admiral (retired) Margaret Kibben". The Catholic University of America School of Engineering. Retrieved January 18, 2020.

[NavyBio-4] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Rear Admiral Margaret G. Kibben, USN". Biographies. United States Navy. Archived from the original on September 20, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2010.

[5] www.marines.mil, retrieved May 12, 2011. Archived October 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine

[6] rinesmagazine, retrieved May 13, 2011. Archived January 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

[SECNAVINST-7] "SECNAVINST 1730.1B" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 17, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2011.

[8] "Requirements". The Catholic University of America School of Engineering. Retrieved January 18, 2020.

[9] "OPNAVINST 1730.1D" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 14, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.

[10] How House chaplain calmed tense hours in besieged Capitol with prayers for ‘God’s covering’, Religion News Service

[11] "'Birdhouse' Bill Grun, 98, certainly didn't act his age". Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Synod of the Trinity. March 27, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

[12] Gianficaro, Phil (November 10, 2013). "World War II vet fanning freedom's flame". The Intelligencer. Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Retrieved June 21, 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]