Karl Boehmke died peacefully surrounded by his family on August 19, 2018. He was 99 years old.

"Missionary at Large" was the title of Rev. A. Karl Boehmke's first call as an ordained pastor.  That title would eventually cover a full 60 years and more of ministry in various mission stations in the United States and overseas.

Born in 1919 to parents of Germanic background, August Karl Boehmke grew up in Buffalo, NY, and studied in that city's public schools.  Early on he felt called to ministry and entered schools of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod first in Bronxville, NY,  then in St. Louis, MO.  He married LaVerne Olive Telle, of St. Louis; together they answered calls to found new parishes.

First was Pilgrim congregation in Bethesda, MD, in the war-time Washington, DC area.  Work there was soon interrupted by a call to active duty as chaplain in the US Air Force Reserve. Comissioned at the Pentegon by the US Chief of Chaplains, he served military personnel and families for two years of the Korean War at Westover AFBase in Massachusetts.

Released from active duty, Boehmke served Calvary parish in Leonia, NJ, for three years. He then began a new mission in suburban Detroit, MI, Shepherd King congregation, during the heyday of auto manufacturing there.  Teenagers constituted a major part of that parish, Karl and LaVerne's own three children among them. Again, military duty interrupted as the Cuban missle crisis threatened nuclear war; however that active tour turned out to be brief as the crisis was quickly resolved.

Next came a call to Hong Kong in East Asia, where the newly founded HK International School was getting underway. Boehmke served as chaplain there while concurrently organizing the sister Church of All Nations. Students and expatriate parishioners from thirty-six countries were served during waning days of British colonialism.  As the Vietnam War was then at its height, Boehmke traveled to Clark A.F.Base in the Philippines, where at the base hospital he would minister to servicemen seriously wounded in the Vietnamese engagements.

After six years with the Hong Kong mission, the Boehmkes repatriated to the US. Once more came a call from the Air Force, with response of brief tours of duty at Scott A.F.Base, IL and Plattsburg, NY.  Then came a dozen years spent in founding one final mission parish at Fairport, NY, Risen Christ congregation, during the flourishing days of Eastman Kodak and Xerox. He was fond of the hymn line, "I will go, Lord, if you lead me; I will hold your people in my heart."

Now it was time to retire to St. Louis, MO, where Karl joined the newly organized Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and spent twenty years filling short interim pastorates for congregations as they searched for permanent ministers.  During these years he completed his twenty-eight years of service with the Air Force Reserve, eventually retiring in the grade of lieutenant colonel. Health concerns called for a move to Pullman, WA, and residence at the Bishop Place Senior Residence there.

Karl is survived by his loving wife LaVerne (Telle) Boehmke; by his sister Jean LaBarr Schwartz; by his children Sharon (Boehmke) Swanson, Karl A. Boehmke (MaryAnn), and Anne (Boehmke) Harpster (William); by his grandchildren Jennifer (Boehmke) Hudson (Michael) and Jasmine Boehmke; and by his great-grandchildren Isaiah Hudson and Jasper Karl Hudson.

Memorial services will be held in Pullman, WA and St. Louis, MO as shown below. Memorials may be sent to Lutheran World Relief (lwr.org) or to any charity of choice. Kimball Funeral Home of Pullman, WA has been entrusted with arrangements.