(715) 243-5252 |
Reverend Fred William Golke was called peacefully to his heavenly home early Tuesday morning, May 14, 2024, following a brief Hospice stay at Bel Rae Senior Living Center, Mounds View Minnesota. God granted him 93 amazing years.
Fred was born on October 30, 1930, to the parents of Gottfried & Clara (Laskowski) Golke in Cleveland Ohio.
Baptized on November 9, 1930, and confirmed April 18, 1943.
His confirmation verse was the driving force behind his call into pastoral ministry. Romans 1:16- “For I have complete confidence in the gospel: it is God’s power to save all who believe, first the Jews and also the Gentiles.”
Attended Concordia Lutheran High School, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Concordia College and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis Missouri. Did two summers of missionary field work in San Jose, California. Served his Vicarage at Trinity Lutheran, Washington, DC. Earned his Theological Bachelor of Arts degree on June 3, 1955.
Married Mary Louis Eggert on June 4, 1955.
Fred and Mary embarked on a 63-year career in ministry, serving four Lutheran congregations. 1955-1973 Fairview Lutheran, Hopkins, Minnesota. A newly formed congregation. 1973-1985 Our Redeemer Lutheran, Moorhead Minnesota along with Chaplain work each summer at Lutheran Island Camp, Henning, Minnesota. 1985 Earned his Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Seminary, St Louis, Missouri 1985-1994 Messiah Lutheran, Mounds View, Minnesota 1994-2010 Trinity Lutheran, Hudson, Wisconsin 2010-2018 Pastor Emeritus at Trinity, Hudson. 2018 Delivered his last sermon at Trinity. Fred and Mary raised 4 beautiful children, Keith, David, Paul (Kristi Stenberg), and Kathi (Clyde Muneoka).
Fred is preceded in death by his parents, and siblings: Elaine (Jack Walter), Ruth (Ken Williams), and Evelyn (Ray Scibbe). Fred is survived by his wife of 69 years, four children, nine grandchildren, five great grandchildren, five foster grandkids, cherished in-laws Dave Ries and Marge Bayless, as well as many nieces and nephews.
The family would like to thank the Allina Hospice Care team and the Bel Rae Senior Living staff for their wonderful and compassionate care of Fred over his last few months.
Mary was the love of his life, and they enjoyed traveling together to such places as Hawaii, Germany, Russia, China, Greece, and Alaska where they experienced and saw the wonder of God’s Creation.
Fred jumped in with both feet with everything he did: Whether taking his children on canoe trips down Minnehaha creek, to always reading the Sunday comics to his children as they sat mesmerized on his lap, turning out amazing projects from The Workroom, taking the family on summer vacation driving trips to fish or visit the CA/AZ/OH/WI relatives with stops at all the sightseeing places along the way, to playing Stump the Pastor at Lutheran Island Camp, to yelling Skol! with every Minnesota Viking touchdown, to hunting grouse on a cool morning or bleeding out deer in the garage.
Challenges: Fred faced every challenge with optimism, humor, and putting the best spin on everything.
He worked many labor-intensive jobs at Republic Steel which allowed him to pay for his education and turned him into the consummate handyman. He took on the challenge of starting a congregation from ‘scratch’ in Hopkins as his first call. During his alcoholism recovery, he helped to form the national pan-Lutheran support group Fellowship of Recovering Lutheran Clergy (FRLC). Following a tragic hunting accident so damaging an eye it had to be replaced with a prosthetic glass eye, he adapted to the loss of depth perception both behind a steering wheel and a table saw. His family tradition of reading the Luke 2, Birth of Christ, scripture before opening presents, continued up to his last Christmas in 2023.
If you asked Fred what he would most like to be remembered for, his response would shift completely from him to whom his strength and faith came from. He spent his life proclaiming the Gospel’s truth and life saving grace that comes from Jesus Christ. He would not want us to focus on him, but on Him the creator of all.
A funeral service was held on Wednesday, May 22, 2024 at 11:00 am at Trinity Lutheran Church-West Campus (1205 6th St.) in Hudson. Visitation will also be Wednesday from 9:30-11:00 am at the church. A luncheon will follow the funeral service in the fellowship hall at Trinity Lutheran Church. Interment was held Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 1:30 pm Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis, MN. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be sent to Fellowship of Recovering Lutheran Clergy (frlc.org) or Lutheran Hour Ministries (lhm.org) or Lutheran Social Service of MN (lssmn.org) or WI (lsswis.org). Arrangements are with Bakken-Young Funeral & Cremation Services.
Click here to watch the recording of Rev. Fred’s service
13 Comments
Our condolences Mary.
We will be lifting you up in our prayer.
We are so sorry to hear of Pastor Golke’s passing. You are in our prayers.
Paul, We send our deepest sympathies to you and your family. This has been a journey for you all, and knowing your Dad is free of sickness, wholly healed and lovingly welcomed into the arms of Jesus – may that bring you comfort. He is Home! And you will one day be reunited. We love you! Gina and Wes
Mary, we have been so blessed to know Pastor Fred through the years. He was a wonderful man and a real source of comfort and wisdom for our family during tough times. Our love and prayers are with you and your family.
We have such fond memories of Pastor Fred over the years, he will be deeply missed. Our condolences to you and your family Mary, we are lifting you up in prayer.
My sister and I have our first faith formation memories from Fairview Lutheran in Hopkins. Our mom, Diana Scheff was a vocalist at the church. I remember playing at the Gohlkes house with the kids. Our faith Carrie’s us through life. Thanks to Pastor Gohlke for his faithful service!
Keith, Our sympathies on your fathers passing. Thank you for all the memories, in his Ministry to Moorhead.
Really appreciated the insights Pastor Golke shared at Pastoral Meetings, especially insights from visits to Jerusalem. May the Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ fill the hearts.of family and loved ones.
Pastor Golke is a beloved man to Jodie and I and had a huge impact on our Christian faith and preparations to become servants in the church. He served as an inspiration to us in his service as the Chaplain at Lutheran Island Camp, in his care for the kids and staff, his keen and practical theological mind (who will ever forget the Q & A’s at LIC), and most of all, his love of people because of Jesus’ love for him. He truly is a mentor. God bless the Golke family (Paul, my old friend, it’s been too long) and may the resurrection of our Lord Jesus comfort all of you as you celebrate your husband and dad and his life in Heaven. I am praying for you and my thoughts are with you.
Dear Mary and Family,
And so the number of saints above is increased by one, leaving behind an empty space that will never be filled except through the gift of memory. We celebrate with you your beloved Fred’s life and the many lives he touched.
May you miss him deeply, forgive him often, and always claim the best of him in you. Our sympathies, thoughts, and prayers remain with you in your grief even as you reflect on the promises of God to provide a reunion in heaven.
Mary and Family my thoughts are with you and Gods peace be with you. I remember learning about Our Lord from Pastor Golke during my conformation years at Fairview and later at Messiah it was always a joy to see him and Mary over the years. He will be greatly missed but my thoughts will continue to be with his family.
Mary and family, we are so sorry for your loss. It was truly a blessing to have Pastor Golke serve as our shepherd at Our Redeemer.
Dave and family, our thoughts and prayers are with you. May God’s love comfort you and give you peace.
Add Comment