Joshua Turk, Pastor

Joshua Turk has been involved in the ministry from his birth. His father, Louis A. Turk, was a pastor at the time and his grandfather, Louis R. Turk, was also a pastor. Shortly thereafter, Joshua's father surrendered to be a missionary to Indonesia and at the age of three his family moved to Indonesia where they lived for about ten years. While on the mission field, around the age of five, he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour.

On returning to the United States he completed high school and then attended Oklahoma City University where he obtained a B.S. in Mathematics. Upon graduation he became a teacher in the Dallas, TX area and attended Rodgers Baptist Church. It was during this time that he surrendered to preach and was given a Certificate of License to preach the Gospel Ministry on May 4th, 1997. While at Rogers Baptist Church he was involved in the van ministry, children's church, vacation Bible school, and the choir.

In 1998 he moved to Fayetteville, AR and worked on his Master of Information Systems at the University of Arkansas and was part of the campus ministry at Mission Boulevard Baptist Church. He then returned to Oklahoma City to work with his father in the mission work sponsored by Bible-Way Missionary Baptist Church in Hamilton, OH and was the treasurer for the mission. This mission work eventually merged with Midway Baptist Church in Del City, OK and he then became the campus director for Midway Baptist Church.

In 2004 he was called to be the Associate Pastor for Clearview Baptist Church in De Soto, KS and served in that role for three and a half years. In 2008, his grandfather retired and the church called him to be their pastor. He was ordained to the Gospel Ministry on August 3, 2008 and serves as the pastor of Clearview Baptist Church.

Louis R. Turk, Pastor Emeritus

Louis R. Turk, Sr. was born on March 24th, 1921 in Warren, Arkansas. He has three brothers and one sister.

On December, 7th, 1942 at the age of twenty-one he enlisted in the US Marine Corps and saw combat action in the Battle of Marshall Islands, where he was wounded the first time. He saw continued combat action in the Battle of Saipan, the Battle of Tinian Island, the Battle of Iwo Jima, Weslock Incidence and Pearl Harbor. At the Battle of Iwo Jima he was in the first wave to hit the beach and was under constant fire for 16 days being wounded by grenade shrapnel in his left thigh and received a gunshot wound through his right knee. Pastor Turk received two Purple Hearts for his wounds.

On July 29th, 1945, during the final days of the war, he married Naomi Stroud at Weatherford, TX. Then, Easter Sunday 1948 Pastor Turk was saved at First Baptist Church, Bethel, TX (he was a Catholic up to this time) and later surrendered to preach the same year.

After he returned from the war he began working at General Motors as a tool and die maker and worked for GM 30 years, then with R. C. Can Company for eight years.

Through the years he has faithfully served in planting and organizing new churches. Churches the Lord used him to plant are: Haven Baptist Church, Bethel, KS; Lighthouse Baptist Church, Kansas City, KS; Trinity Baptist Church, Merriam, KS; and Clearview Baptist Church, De Soto, KS, the Kansas City area.

Pastor Turk started Clearview Baptist Church of De Soto, KS in 1998. The church was organized in 2004 out of Northway Baptist Church, Humble, TX, Pastor David Stone.

On June 2nd, 2005, Pastor Louis R. Turk was awarded the Honoris Causa Doctor of Divinity from Great Plains Baptist Divinity School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (a ministry of Empire Baptist Temple) for the accomplishments of his long-term ministry and faithfulness to the Lord's heritage.

Pastor Louis R. Turk retired in June of 2008.