New pastor to lead flock at Good Shepherd Church in Naperville

Naperville's Good Shepherd Church literally searched the world to find its next senior pastor before selecting Mark Carlsson to succeed Pastor Gary Olson, who is retiring after 22 years.

The Rev. Carlsson, along with his wife, Christie, and two sons, moved to Naperville in August to serve the 4,000-member church. He has 25 years of ministry experience, including eight years most recently as senior pastor of Bethlehem Church in the heart of Stockholm, Sweden.

"This is where I began campus ministry, where my wife and I met and were married, so it's always felt like home," Carlsson said. "As we explored the Chicago area, we started zeroing in on Naperville because of its family orientation, its schools and also proximity to extended family."

David Campbell led the search for the next pastor at Good Shepherd. "After searching far and wide domestically for a prospective senior pastor, we met Pastor Mark and everything fell into place," he said.

"His desire to return to Chicagoland, along with his extensive ministry experience, made him an exceptional candidate for Good Shepherd's thriving community."

Good Shepherd has been serving the Naperville area for more than 40 years. As the community has grown, so has Good Shepherd.

The church holds traditional and contemporary services each weekend at 5:05 p.m. Saturdays; and 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. Sundays at 1310 Shepherd Drive.

For details on the church, visit goodshepherd-naperville.org.