by Judy Stack
About three years ago, Ben and Corrie Steckelberg, and their sons Wilhelm, Beo, and August moved to the Twin Cities from a cabin they built in the northeastern woods of Minnesota, not far from Grand Marais.
“Our life has been rather unusual. One of the more surprising choices we made was to live in a yurt with two kids under 3 for nine months. It was so deep in the woods that we had to snowmobile in, and we even got snowed out for two weeks after a May snowstorm!”
Shortly after the move to Minneapolis, a friend recommended that Ben and his family check out St. John’s. At the same time, a different friend advised Ben to seek out Craig Lemming — and it turned out that Craig was here! “The first time I came to the church I was struck by how much hospitality I experienced, but I was still curious about the other churches in the area so we bounced around for a while,” Ben said. “However, when we came back, there was still this feeling of hospitality, and it just ‘felt right’. And shortly after that Wilhelm was invited on the youth pilgrimage to Croatia, so that really sealed the deal! We are also glad to be a part of the community and are looking forward to getting more connected with people here.”
“This is the first time we’ve been involved in a church as a family, so we’re kind of just learning what that means as we go,” Corrie and Ben said. “But we are excited about the opportunities for formation and education that the kids are experiencing, and it’s been a meaningful and generative routine for us all to go to church every Sunday (who knew?!).”
The family members have a wide variety of interests. August loves Manga, is learning Japanese, likes to draw, and plays soccer. Beo is also very into soccer, survivalism, and the woods, and he is a wizard at making fires. Wilhelm’s Interests include medieval history, exploring, climbing mountains, talking about ideas, and drawing. Corrie likes art, crafts, literature, and rooms that get good light. And Ben likes art, lived religion, and walking around the city and in nature.
Ben is currently pursuing his Master of Divinity from United Theological Seminary, and Corrie is earning a BFA in sculpture and drawing at the University of Minnesota; the three sons are also pursuing degrees. Wilhelm is an 9th grader in high school while Beo and August attend grades 7 and 5 in middle school. The boys are all involved in the youth group, and Ben and Corrie look forward to a time when life moves out of lightspeed and they can be more involved.
Welcome, Ben, Corrie, Wilhelm, Beo, and August!
