| Meet the Pastor |
The Rev. Dr. Charles Alkula was appointed to serve at the new pastor of
First United Methodist Church in Sidney, NE effective 1 July 2007.
Following eight years as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy, he and his wife
Belinda settled into their new parsonage home on Alvarado Road. The 49-
year-old pastor is a native of Geneva, Ohio, but moved to Largo, Florida,
when he was seven. He attended Birmingham-Southern College for three
years and then transferred to Texas Christian University (TCU), where he
received his bachelor degree in 1982.
Following his time at TCU, he served in the U.S. Army as an officer,
earning a commission through the ROTC program at TCU. His first
assignment was in the Washington, D.C., area and then as a company
commander at Fort Jackson, S.C. While in the Army, he completed
airborne training.
Following his years in the Army, Pastor Alkula taught in a home for boys in
Orangeburg, S.C., before attending Converse College in Spartanburg, S.C.,
where he received a Masters Degree in Education in 1988. He taught for
two years and then moved to the Washington, D.C., area, where he
worked in a bank for three years. In 1992, he decided to enter the ministry,
and in 1997, he received a Master of Divinity degree at Wesley Theological
Seminary in D.C.
In June 1996, Pastor Alkula was ordained as a minister in the Nebraska
Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He enjoyed two
parish assignments in Pierce and Wayne Counties in the northeastern part
of the state.
In 1999, he was endorsed by the United Methodist Church to serve in the
U.S. Navy as a chaplain. After attending the Chaplain Corps School in
Rhode Island, the Alkula’s were off to Iwakuni, Japan, just south of
Hiroshima, where he was assigned to work with the Marines. After nearly
two years, it was back to the States, where he was assigned to the Naval
Hospital at Camp Lejeune, NC. After three years in the hospital setting, it
was time to move on to the final assignment in the Navy, a three-year tour
with the joint British-American command in Newquay, Cornwall, United
Kingdom. While in the Navy, Pastor Alkula earned a Doctor of Ministry
degree at the Theological School of Drew University, completing the
program in 2005. At Drew, he learned how to create web sites; the latest of
which can be seen at www.sidney-firstumc.org.
As a hobby, Pastor Alkula collects slogan badges and buttons. He has
pursued this hobby since high school and has about 7,000 “buttons” in his
collection. He likes all kinds of music, but especially loves big band music
and Gregorian Chants. An avid golfer, he has already been around the
Sidney's Hillside links! Belinda Alkula has a collection of pitchers that she
has collected in her travels around Europe and the States. Having had the
opportunity to travel with the military, The Alkula’s have an interesting
collection of artwork from Asia and Europe. They are always happy to give
a tour of the parsonage and recount tales of their travels including their
22,000 miles journey around the USA this spring as they waited to come to
Sidney. Of course, they also enjoy hearing about others’ stories!
First United Methodist Church in Sidney, NE effective 1 July 2007.
Following eight years as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy, he and his wife
Belinda settled into their new parsonage home on Alvarado Road. The 49-
year-old pastor is a native of Geneva, Ohio, but moved to Largo, Florida,
when he was seven. He attended Birmingham-Southern College for three
years and then transferred to Texas Christian University (TCU), where he
received his bachelor degree in 1982.
Following his time at TCU, he served in the U.S. Army as an officer,
earning a commission through the ROTC program at TCU. His first
assignment was in the Washington, D.C., area and then as a company
commander at Fort Jackson, S.C. While in the Army, he completed
airborne training.
Following his years in the Army, Pastor Alkula taught in a home for boys in
Orangeburg, S.C., before attending Converse College in Spartanburg, S.C.,
where he received a Masters Degree in Education in 1988. He taught for
two years and then moved to the Washington, D.C., area, where he
worked in a bank for three years. In 1992, he decided to enter the ministry,
and in 1997, he received a Master of Divinity degree at Wesley Theological
Seminary in D.C.
In June 1996, Pastor Alkula was ordained as a minister in the Nebraska
Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He enjoyed two
parish assignments in Pierce and Wayne Counties in the northeastern part
of the state.
In 1999, he was endorsed by the United Methodist Church to serve in the
U.S. Navy as a chaplain. After attending the Chaplain Corps School in
Rhode Island, the Alkula’s were off to Iwakuni, Japan, just south of
Hiroshima, where he was assigned to work with the Marines. After nearly
two years, it was back to the States, where he was assigned to the Naval
Hospital at Camp Lejeune, NC. After three years in the hospital setting, it
was time to move on to the final assignment in the Navy, a three-year tour
with the joint British-American command in Newquay, Cornwall, United
Kingdom. While in the Navy, Pastor Alkula earned a Doctor of Ministry
degree at the Theological School of Drew University, completing the
program in 2005. At Drew, he learned how to create web sites; the latest of
which can be seen at www.sidney-firstumc.org.
As a hobby, Pastor Alkula collects slogan badges and buttons. He has
pursued this hobby since high school and has about 7,000 “buttons” in his
collection. He likes all kinds of music, but especially loves big band music
and Gregorian Chants. An avid golfer, he has already been around the
Sidney's Hillside links! Belinda Alkula has a collection of pitchers that she
has collected in her travels around Europe and the States. Having had the
opportunity to travel with the military, The Alkula’s have an interesting
collection of artwork from Asia and Europe. They are always happy to give
a tour of the parsonage and recount tales of their travels including their
22,000 miles journey around the USA this spring as they waited to come to
Sidney. Of course, they also enjoy hearing about others’ stories!
The material presented on this web site does not constitute endorsement of the information, products or services contained
therein by The United Methodist Church or The Nebraska Annual Conference. The appearance of external hyper-links does not
constitute endorsement by the Webmaster of this site or of those institutions listed above of the linked web sites, or the
information, products or services contained therein.
therein by The United Methodist Church or The Nebraska Annual Conference. The appearance of external hyper-links does not
constitute endorsement by the Webmaster of this site or of those institutions listed above of the linked web sites, or the
information, products or services contained therein.
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