Carl Elwood has lived in places near and far. Carl has lived in Marion, where he presently resides, in Minnesota, Chicago, Puerto Rico, Alaska, and many other places. His father was a US Navy Chaplain, which resulted in the family moving many times. His siblings were all born in different states. Carl followed in the footsteps of his father by making a career in Christian ministry. He is now a retired pastor residing in Marion with his wife, Marica. They attend Chapel Hill Wesleyan Church (previously known as Pisgah Height), where Carl fills the pulpit when the pastor is away.
Marion Press: Carl, give us some information about yourself.
Carl:
My Dad was in the U.S. Navy, so we moved every year or two. I was born in Illinois, my brother was born in Virginia, and my sister was born in California. We just traveled around a lot, so from kindergarten through high school we moved every couple of years. The longest was three years and that was in Puerto Rico. That was a wonderful experience when I was in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grade.
The idea of childhood friends was foreign to me, I just can’t relate. I understand it and I think it must be wonderful, but it’s also wonderful to have been moving around and meeting all kinds of other people. I developed a certain flexibility to adjust to a variety of settings more easily. When Dad retired from the Navy Chaplaincy he moved to Chicago. I graduated from high school in Chicago.
MP: Being a retired pastor, please tell us about your church background.
Carl: My family was a member of the Augustana Lutheran Church of America, which is now a part of the ELCA. My grandfather was also a pastor with this denomination, which makes me the third-generation pastor. When my dad retired from the Navy he moved to Chicago and took a church with ELCA in the intercity. It was a different experience living in inner-city Chicago. It is much different than living in Puerto Rico or suburbia. My time in Chicago was interesting, and a good learning experience.
After high school, I attended Augustana University in Rock Island, Illinois.
I eventually attended the University of Minnesota in Duluth and graduated with a degree in speech and political science. Following graduation, I worked as a manager of a senior living center, worked in a jewelry store, and construction. I worked in sales which took me to California, Oregon, and Washington. I got a job in Topeka, Kansas in a savings and loan institution for five years.
At that juncture, I decided I wanted to spend my time preparing for something that would bring satisfaction and a sense of purpose to my life. Therefore, I decided to attend North Park Theological Seminary to prepare for the Christian Ministry. North Park Seminary is the denominational school of the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) with Swedish roots. I became a Christian in Oregon while attending a Four-Square Gospel church. I later found a church home in the ECC. It was at this point I decided to attend the seminary. After finishing seminary Marcia and I moved to Alaska, took a church, and continued my internship with the ECC. We served the church in the Village of Elim, Alaska. During this whole process, I became licensed and ordained. After spending 2 years there, we served in Minnesota and eventually at the Covenant Church in Cadillac, Michigan. When our kids were all out of high school, we went back to bush Alaska (meaning fly-in only) and served a second time for 10 years. For those 10 years, we served in Mountain Village, Alaska. We retired from there after serving for 10 years. Marcia and I have pastored for a total of 28 years. While in Alaska, one could almost call it a missionary assignment, but the church does not title it that way. However, the culture is completely different from that in the lower 48.
MP: When did you retire?
Carl: Marcia and I retired in 2011 while we were in Alaska. We continued to reside in Alaska and had a wonderful retirement. Marcia and I built a cabin in the woods. Marcia had one major requirement for building that cabin, the location for the cabin had to be on a “road system.” The two of us built it, but our boys came a few times to help. We continued to maintain residence in Alaska but with the sale of our house there, we are now residents of Marion. We have lived in Marion for one year.
MP: How did you meet your wife and tell us about your children?
I was attending school in Duluth, Minnesota as well as working a part-time job. I was offered a ride from a friend and Marcia was in the car. We met in a carpool.
MP: How many children do you have?
Carl: We have three, a girl and two boys, the girl is in the middle. Our oldest boy lives in Minnesota and our two youngest live in the Cadillac area.
We have 10 grandkids, eight of them are in Michigan so we’re around most of our grandkids.
MP: What is most important to you at this point in your life?
Carl: My relationship with God, the relationship with my family. God’s working on every culture and there is not a culture out there that God doesn’t want to change. Every culture can be difficult for Christians to live in. We got to spend two years in Asia and that was what I’m not going to call in the mission field because we weren’t preaching. We were teaching in an international school.
We were dorm parents in Cameroon, Africa so we got to go to Cameroon and be in Africa for a year.
We had an opportunity to visit several Asian countries including Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan. We also visited about half the European Countries but didn›t spend much time there.
The way God has blessed us in our retirement has been amazing to us. I’ve seen much more of the world than I thought possible. I was a small-town pastor in a small community with not much money coming in. God has provided for Marcia and me, travel, and experiences that I thought impossible.
MP: When one thinks of Alaska, one thinks of hunting and fishing. Were you able to do that in between your ministerial duties and responsibilities?
Carl: I like hunting and fishing. In Alaska, I have caught a lot of fish. I have shot three moose. When the fish were running, we would fill our freezer in a day. Those salmon are no small fish.