About

Michael Tober

Executive Director & Co-Founder

Michael Tober has been married to his wife, Mary, for twenty-three years, and together they have five children. He and his family have been parishioners of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Grand Rapids, Michigan, since 2006. Michael holds a degree in Theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville and a Master Catechist Certification in the Diocese of Grand Rapids. He has served in teaching and pastoral ministry, primarily within the Diocese of Grand Rapids, for more than twenty years.

Michael spent a year with NET Ministries from 1999 to 2000 and has served the Church in a variety of roles, including parish youth ministry volunteer, Director of Youth Ministry at St. Mary’s Parish in Spring Lake, and K–12 Director of Campus Ministry at Muskegon Catholic Central. In 2006, he began organizing large-scale home repair mission projects for victims of Hurricane Katrina. After eighteen years of Gulf Coast missions, Michael, along with Jim Klaes and Fritz Kruer, founded Joseph’s Builders in late 2024 to serve low-income families through critical home repairs while fostering evangelization and young adult discipleship.

Jim Klaes

Secretary & Co-Founder

Jim Klaes is married to Jeanne, and together they have five adult children. He has been a parishioner of St. Patrick’s and St. Anthony’s Parishes in Grand Haven for twenty-eight years. Jim began his career in construction during high school and college, including a year with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps performing home repairs for low-income elderly homeowners.

After college, he taught for two years at a secondary school in Colorado before spending more than twenty years in Information Technology and Manufacturing Operations. About three years ago, he returned to the home construction field as a project coordinator.

Since his volunteer year in college, Jim has felt a strong and enduring call to serve the poor. This call deepened through mission trips to Mississippi repairing hurricane-damaged homes with Mike Tober and later Fritz Kruer. Together, they founded Joseph’s Builders in late 2024 to serve the poor, elderly, and disabled while evangelizing young adults. Jim is deeply committed to the mission and motto of Joseph’s Builders: Let’s Build.

St. Joseph the Worker, pray for us.

Fritz Kruer

Treasurer & Co-Founder

Frederic “Fritz” Kruer is married to his wife, Mari, and together they have four children and six grandchildren. He is a parishioner of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish and has worked in construction in various capacities for more than fifty years. Fritz is the president and owner of Upland Construction LLC.

In 2023, Mike Tober invited Fritz to join a mission trip to Mississippi with high school students and parents to repair homes for those in need. After his first trip, Fritz felt a strong call to use his construction skills in service to the poor. He soon shared this desire with Mike, who, along with Jim Klaes, was already discerning how to bring similar home repair missions to West Michigan.

Fritz joined their efforts, and together they founded Joseph’s Builders in 2024. He brings decades of experience, leadership, and a deep commitment to serving those most in need through works of mercy.

St. Joseph the Worker, pray for us.

Stephen Kozal

Board Member

Stephen Kozal is a Navy veteran, Catholic convert, and devoted husband and father whose life is rooted in faith, service, and love of neighbor. Guided by a strong sense of duty and compassion, he seeks to serve others with integrity, humility, and purpose, believing that acts of service grounded in love are a vital way to live out God’s law and strengthen communities.

Stephen is a parishioner at Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish and an active member of the Polish Falcons Aid Society and the Sacred Heart Benevolent Society. Together with his wife, Katie, he is raising their five children in Hudsonville, striving to instill in them a deep love of faith, family, and service to others.

Outside of his work and ministry, Stephen enjoys the outdoors, spending time with family and friends, and retreating to his family’s cabin in the Smoky Mountains. These moments of rest and reflection continue to renew his commitment to serving others with gratitude and joy.

Tom Wurm

Board Member

Thomas Wurm is a United States Marine Corps veteran and a retired special education teacher with twenty-nine years of service. He earned an associate degree from Northwestern Michigan College and both his bachelor’s degree in Special Education and a master’s degree in Education from Grand Valley State University. He and his wife, Kim, have been married for twenty-eight years and are the parents of five adult children.

Tom and his family have been active members of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish for more than twenty years. For the past decade, they have participated in the parish’s annual mission trips to Mississippi, providing home repairs for individuals and families affected by hurricanes. In 2025, Tom also volunteered with Joseph’s Builders on a renovation project for an elderly woman in Muskegon, supporting the mission to serve those most in need through works of mercy, evangelization, and discipleship.

In his free time, Tom enjoys woodworking, making maple syrup, working on cars, fishing, hunting, and reading about the Catholic faith and historical fiction.