Our Leadership
Pastor Curt was born in Hawarden, IA, graduated from Le Mars Community High School, Le Mars, IA in 1964 and then attended Concordia College in St. Paul, MN and Concordia Senior College, Fort Wayne, IN. where he graduated in 1973 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, (majoring in Biblical Hebrew) after having served three years in the United States Marine Corps from 1968 to 1971.
He accepted the Lord as his Savior on October 4th, 1968 while serving in the Marine Corps attending electronics school in San Diego, CA.
He received his Master of Christian Ministries Degree from Huntington University's School of Christian Ministries, Huntington, IN while pastoring the Buckeye Christian Church in Markle, IN.
Upon graduation he was sent to a dual pastorate, the Egan United Brethren in Christ Church in Egan, IL and the Kilburn Avenue United Brethren in Christ Church in Rockford, IL.
Next, he taught at the Rockford School of Theology and was a staff member of Open Bible Center in Rockford, IL.
Later he pastored in Swea City, IA and Pella, IA in the late 70's and early 80's and in Galesburg, IL in the late 80's and early 90's. He pastored in Tujunga, CA (Los Angeles) from 1993 to 2000.
He went to Des Moines, IA in 2000 to be the pastor of First Church of the Open Bible. He "semi-retired" in 2013 and moved to Denver, CO where he served as the Interim Executive Director of Open Door Fellowship, which ministers in the heart of the city to the homeless, the alcoholic and the broken.
Upon moving to Oklahoma he served as an unofficial staff member (Director of Prayer) at CrossPointe Church in Norman, OK and was active in their Care Center.
He and his wife, Jan, moved to Shattuck, OK in September, 2017, to serve as pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church.
While attending Concordia Senior College he met his wife Jan, and they have been married for 50 years. She graduated from Huntington University and has been a credentialed teacher and has taught in public and private schools. She founded and directed the pre-school (Small Beginnings) at the Open Bible Church in Swea City and taught there for two years. She has also directed several children's cantatas. She served in the Des Moines church as their full-time Children's Director. Jan loves children and has ministered in this area in every church where they have served. They have four adult children and nine grandchildren.
Pastor Curt loves missions, foreign and local, loves to minister to the broken, the poor and the lost! And he especially loves to minister to those struggling in their marriage.
He loves witnessing for the Lord and leading people to Jesus. His "life verse" is James 4:8a, "Draw close to God, and He will draw close to you."