Duane Harold Carlson

Pastor Carlson was born in Jamestown, New York, a community in western New York State. He graduated from Jamestown High School in 1944 and immediately entered the United States Navy during World War II. He served as Storekeeper 3rd Class for two years and was honorably discharged in 1946. He attended Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, Minnesota under the G I Bill of Rights, transferring to Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York for his junior year. He returned to Gustavus for his senior year and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1950. He then chose to enter Augustana Theological Lutheran Seminary, Rock Island, Illinois (now the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Chicago) in 1950 and graduated with a Masters Degree of Divinity in 1954. The Board of American Missions of the Augustana Lutheran Church assigned Pastor Carlson to the new mission congregation in Springfield, Virginia to begin in August 1954. The mission, St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, grew to become the largest Lutheran congregation in the state of Virginia with nearly 2,000 members.

Pastor and Alice Carlson were married on August 25, 1950 after meeting while students at Gustavus. Three children were born to them Steven (Patty) Carlson of Springfield, Virginia, Barbara (Karl) Wood of West Lafayette, Indiana, and Janet (Jim) Hagan of Clifton, Virginia. There are now seven grandchildren – Jennifer (Taylor) Atkins, Emily Carlson, Kevin Wood, Scott (Cara) Wood, Katie (Patrick) Miller, Kristin (Ehren) Ehmann, and Sara (Vince) Plaxico – and two great-grandchildren – Paige Miller and Cooper Wood.

During his ministry, Pastor Carlson chaired the Examining Committee of the Virginia Synod, was the driving force behind the creation of the Ecumenical Community for Helping Others (ECHO) in Springfield, and chaired the executive boards of the Lutheran Children’s Home of the South in Salem, Virginia, and the National Lutheran Home in Rockville, Maryland.

Following retirement as Senior Pastor of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in 1991 after 37 years of ministry, Pastor Carlson was associated with Kairos and Associates, a national Christian resource team that assists congregations across the country in ministry development, capital fund drives and stewardship consultation and continued to preach at area churches, including Patmos Lutheran Church in Woodstock, Virginia.

A memorial service to celebrate Pastor Carlson’s life will be held on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00 PM at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 5800 Backlick Road, Springfield. Interment at a later date at Arlington National Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in his memory to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, ECHO of Springfield, or Lutheran Family Services of Roanoke.