Sunday will mark two milestones for the Rev. Bill Nelson — he will assume the duties of pastor at Trinity United Methodist Church, 228 S. Kentucky, and he will also be entering his seventh year as a minister.
“I wanted to be a pastor from the time I was a teenager, but as we all know, life has a way of taking unexpected turns,” Nelson said in a telephone conversation.
Nelson, 43, has had a variety of careers including being an automobile mechanic, working in airplane salvage and as a warehouse worker, but in his heart he knew his calling was to the ministry.
He received his education at Saint Paul Theological Seminary of Kansas City, Mo.
Nelson, who is also pastor of Welda United Methodist Church, received his official appointment to serve at Trinity on Thursday from the Kansas East Conference of the United Methodist Church.
Nelson’s only dilemma serving the two churches was that they both meet at 11 o’clock on Sunday mornings. Following numerous discussions, Trinity changed its service time to 9 a.m.
It will be a new experience for Trinity members to get to church so early. In the church’s 105 years, services have always begun at 11.
Nelson and his wife, Debbie, live in rural Osawatomie. They have two daughters, Teresa and Dannielle, and a 4-year-old granddaughter, Sabrina.
Nelson to fill Trinity’s pulpit
