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4. Calvin Culpepper - ex-officio - Court Street United Methodist Church

Calvin Culpepper - ex-officio - Court Street United Methodist Church

Calvin Culpepper’s first spiritual milestone was when he was twelve years of age.  A Baptist preacher made a formal invitation to "accept Jesus into your life as personal Savior."  Calvin says: “For the first time, after hearing many invitations, this one seemed personal-- “Calvin, will you let me (JESUS) in?”   He remembers trying to stay seated, but Jesus seemed so real to him that he stood up and walked to the altar, and said, “YES” to JESUS!  He celebrated his conversion with a water baptism later that week which his mother witnessed.
Calvin’s next spiritual milestone was his marriage to Gwendolyn (Gwen) on November 19, 1975. Together they recommitted to Jesus Christ and to the life of the local Church. The couple (Gwen and Cal) made a prenuptial agreement to begin their married life on the solid foundation of faith.
1993 at Mt. Pisgah UMC Calvin made a public profession of accepting the call to ministry as a License Pastor. Cal’s next pivotal milestones were the births of their three children, Caleb, Cambron, and Vine. Calvin’s first appointment as a Licensed Pastor was Mary Chaffin UMC Lebanon, TN.
In February 1997, shortly after arriving in Elgin, the Culpeppers began worshipping at Faith United Methodist Church downtown Elgin. Pastor Don Keck enlisted Cal’s services in worship and Disciple Bible Study and the rest is history.  September 1998 till June 1999 the Elgin District Superintendent requested Pastor Cal’s gifts and graces at a rural church in Riley, IL (Riley UMC) for a short stint. Faith UMC merged with Plato Center UMC and together with a few members from other congregations, and became a new congregation known as Cornerstone UMC.  Calvin served Cornerstone UMC as a Local Pastor and then in 2004 became a full-Time Student Pastor working toward Ordination. In June of 2008 Calvin graduated from Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary (GETS) with a Master of Divinity degree. June 2009 Calvin was commissioned as a United Methodist Pastor and June 2011 Calvin was ordained as an Elder in full connection with all rights and privileges. July 2011 Pastor Cal was appointed to Court Street UMC downtown Rockford, IL where he is presently serving as Senior Pastor.
Calvin sends his solemn wishes as follows: “I pray that every person God sends my way:

• will be informed of God’s love and purpose for their lives
• will be inspired to seek God’s will for their service to the Church and the world where they LIVE!