Black Cloister Brewing Company

Tom Schaeffer

CEO / President / General Manager

Tom’s love of craft beer began in the 1980’s, and he wrote about beer for the Examiner.com as the Perrysburg Craft Beer Examiner. He has acted as a judge for homebrew competitions throughout Ohio and Michigan, and he is an award-winning homebrewer. He was the co-founder and president of The Glass City Mashers, a homebrew club in Toledo. He is also a Certified Cicerone®, and has organized multiple beer and food pairing events.

With a BS in Business Administration and a Masters of Divinity, Tom has served as a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for over 25 years. He has successfully redeveloped a congregation, and served at churches with over 1,000 members. Most recently, Tom started an entirely new congregation called Threshold Church.

Mike Kennedy

Vice President of Sales, Project Manager, Safety Officer

Michael is a 30 year veteran of providing customer service through a deep understanding of sales and project management. As one of the Founders of Black Cloister he served as Project Manager for the brewery and works days at a local engineering firm. Michael now oversees capital investments at the brewery as well as those of facility siting and construction projects in Northwest Ohio. He continues to work with our operations through multiple planned expansions of the brewery. Michael is also a self -professed "Beer-Snob" and loves to share the passion Black Cloister has poured into every one of its craft brews. A long-time friend of Tom Schaeffer it is not lost on the Founders that each was brought together with specific skills that have helped make the brewery a success. As if it were part of a plan....Hmmm. Michael holds several leadership roles in his Church, as well as the local Habitat for Humanity chapter. When he’s not at the brewery, you might find him four-wheeling off-road in the mountains of Tennessee blowing off steam (and mud) while enjoying an amazing craft beer (just not necessarily at the same time).

Bob Hall

VP of Manufacturing, Research and Design

Bob began brewing in the early 1970's with ingredients from the baking aisle of a local grocery, equipment gleaned from farm auctions and lots of curiosity. He has since become an award winning brewer and vintner who has toured production facilities across North America, Europe and Japan while increasing his knowledge of the brewing process by attending national conferences and completing the Brewing Microbiology Workshop at the University of California-Davis. Apart from brewing, Bob is a retired educator who holds a doctorate from the University of Toledo and is a veteran of the United States Navy.