Rev. Dr. John H. Krahn, Prep ’61 and Junior College ’63, believes that there is nothing quite like a great story. His most recent book, Special Stories Along Life’s Journey, contains 65 of them, including several about his time at Concordia. We are delighted to have him as this month’s Alumni Spotlight:
We were the dumbest freshman class to enter Concordia Prep School in its 90-year history. And we were all proud of it! At least we were known for something... even if it was negative. This is what Principal Carl Weidman told us, but we later discovered that he told every entering class this. So much for our unique claim to fame.
I grew up in Fork, Maryland. It was named after a fork in the road. The folks were not too creative in Fork. In confirmation, I questioned much of what the pastor taught me. To this day, I wonder why he felt I was clergy material. Being a pastor was nowhere on my radar. After his encouragement and a lot of prayer, I was open to the idea. He approached my parents about my attending Concordia Prep School. At the time, my parents did not attend church. The tuition, room, and board was $600 a year. They told the pastor they did not have the money to send me. He told them to pray about it, and God would provide. Somehow, they agreed for me to attend. Two months later, my father got a raise. You guessed it, $600.
Quickly, I discovered that my schooling to date did not prepare me for Concordia. My average for the first marking period was 68%. I flunked one course...religion. And I was a pre-theological student no less. With fine and dedicated teachers, I continued to improve over the four years and finished high school as a B student. In college, I even made the Dean’s list. After graduating from Concordia, I became a Lutheran pastor and have now served in that capacity for nearly 50 years. One of the best things that Concordia provided me was my future wife, Doris, who was my classmate. She went on to become a Lutheran teacher.
Building on the excellent educational foundation laid for me at Concordia, I now have three earned Master’s degrees and a Doctorate. I am not bragging but simply thankful. Thanks to my English teacher, Ralph Dorre, I am a published author of 10 books. The latest one, Special Stories Along Life’s Journey,as well as others can be found on Amazon. Simply type my name, John Krahn, in the search engine if you are interested. From a shaky beginning, by God’s grace and my Concordia education, I have come a very long way.
Currently, I am officially retired but continue to serve the Church as a parish consultant. I am particularly interested in helping our struggling churches. This problem I have addressed in my recent book, From Surviving to Thriving – A Practical Guide to Revitalize Your Church.”
Contact Rev. Dr John Krahn