Pastor Arne Carlson

Arne Richard Carlson, age 93, died peacefully in his home at Eventide in Moorhead on May 30, 2017 with family at his bedside.
He was born July 27, 1923 in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar to American missionary parents Olaf Christian Carlson and Ragna Hansine Lauvold Carlson, who emigrated originally from Gaasvar, Norway and Tonsvik, Norway.

At the age of 13, his parents returned to Madagascar after furlough, leaving sons Oliver and Arne to complete high school in the states. After one year in Billings, MT with his uncle K.O. Carlson, he joined other missionary kids (MKs) at Augustana Academy in Canton, SD, graduating in 1942.
He entered the US Army in 1943, shipping overseas in Jan 1945, serving with the 42nd Infantry 'Rainbow' Division in France and Germany as a radio operator for an armored reconnaissance unit, and in Austria, as assistant to the division chaplain in the Army of Occupation. He held a deep respect for the men and women of the U.S. military.

During his last months in Austria, he attended Rainbow University at Zell am See. After discharge in May of 1946, Arne went year around to college, attending summer school at Luther and Augustana, and graduating from St Olaf College in 1949 and Luther Seminary in 1952. He married Nadine Stenshoel of Crookston, MN in 1950. They served small town and rural parishes in Black River Falls, WI 1952-1956 (Little Norway Lutheran and Squaw Creek Lutheran); LaMoure, ND 1956-1960 (Zoar Lutheran, St. Ansgar Lutheran and Marion Lutheran); Park River, ND 1960-1967 (Our Saviour's Lutheran, Pleasant Valley Lutheran and Golden Valley Lutheran); Fisher, MN 1967-1981 (Fisher Lutheran and Bygland Lutheran) and in his last call as chaplain to Lutheran Memorial Nursing Homes In Twin Valley and Halstad, MN (1981-1987). He was committed to the people of the small towns and rural churches he served, visiting them often in their homes and riding along with the farmers to check on their fields.
In 1958, he and Nadine purchased land at Kabekona Lake, where they worked and played together as a family, in close fellowship with other Lutheran pastors, especially his brother Roald and family. Arne coordinated the planting of thousands of trees around Kabekona over several decades. Retirement years were spent travelling and wintering in Sun City, AZ, and returning to Kabekona for the summer.
Eventually they moved to Fargo-Moorhead to be closer to family.
He was passionate about the authority of the Word of God, helping in his retirement years with the Word Alone movement and praying for renewal in the Lutheran Church.
Pastor Carlson served his Lord until the end, praying daily for family members and those around him to know and trust in Jesus Christ as he did.
He is survived by his wife Nadine, children Reed (Amy) Carlson, Terry (Joe) Melby, Miriam Dakutak, and Kurt Carlson (Rhona Baron); grandchildren Sarah (Mike) Liljestrand, Sonja Olson, Bethany (Jerome) Ryan, Jesse and Kirstin Dakutak and Polina Carlson; and greatgrandchildren Chloe, Natasha, Brooke and Elliott Ryan and Zach Liljestrand; his brother Oliver (Gene), and sister Laila Rogers.

He was preceded in death by his parents and siblings E. Roald, Audrey and Haakon Carlson.
Memorials are preferred to the Kabekona Lake Foundation, Global Health Ministries and Lutheran CORE.