TS Brumwell was born in Iowa. After high school (1988), he joined the military and graduated with honors from the USAF Security Police Academy. When his time was done, he returned home, dabbled in real estate, and in 2004, graduated from the University of Iowa with his concentration being in Ancient Civilization and Philosophy.
In 2004, he was invited to join People of the Book Lutheran Outreach (POBLO). He currently lives with and works among large ethnic communities, especially Muslims.