Descended from Norwegian immigrant farmers, Pastor James Enger Sjolie was born in the family farmhouse in rural Madison, MN on February 11, 1931. After graduating high school, he taught country school at the Sjolie Schoolhouse for a year. He then enrolled in St. Olaf College, graduating in 1955. He taught English at the Martin Luther Schule in Rimbach, Germany for a year, then returned to the United States, enrolling in Luther Seminary in St. Paul.
During this training, he was introduced to the lovely Sylvia Guldseth, RN, the daughter of Lutheran medical missionaries. They were married on August 31, 1957, and remained married for 63 years until Sylvia's death on December 27, 2020.
Pastor Sjolie was ordained in 1959. During his ministry, he served as senior pastor of Kerkhoven Lutheran Church, Kerkhoven, MN; Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Wells, MN; Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Montevideo, MN; First Lutheran Church, Barron, WI; and Bethesda and Cornucopia Lutheran Churches, Bayfield and Cornucopia, WI. After retiring in Duluth, James and Sylvia joined Gloria Dei Lutheran Church. In retirement, he served as interim senior pastor of Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Superior, WI, and also briefly as interim pastor at Gloria Dei in Duluth.
Pastor Sjolie died peacefully at age 94 on May 12, 2025, following a short period of declining health. His ashes are buried in the family plot at Scandia Cemetery in Duluth, overlooking Lake Superior. He is survived by his children Elsa Sjolie (Rob) Calhoon of Lake Nebagamon, WI; Martin Sjolie of Seattle, WA; and Sarah Sjolie (Andrew) Parks of DePere, WI; his grandchildren Elin Erickson (Arjun Soundararajan), Anna Parks, Emily (Anthony) Raycraft, Liesa Erickson, and Eric Parks, and his great grandchildren Riaan and Daphne.
Our father would have remarked that he was just a farm boy who married well and made something of himself. Others will remember him as a kind, loving, and good-humored pastor, husband, father, and grandfather.
Memorial gifts preferred to ELCA World Hunger, our parents' favored charity.
During this training, he was introduced to the lovely Sylvia Guldseth, RN, the daughter of Lutheran medical missionaries. They were married on August 31, 1957, and remained married for 63 years until Sylvia's death on December 27, 2020.
Pastor Sjolie was ordained in 1959. During his ministry, he served as senior pastor of Kerkhoven Lutheran Church, Kerkhoven, MN; Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Wells, MN; Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Montevideo, MN; First Lutheran Church, Barron, WI; and Bethesda and Cornucopia Lutheran Churches, Bayfield and Cornucopia, WI. After retiring in Duluth, James and Sylvia joined Gloria Dei Lutheran Church. In retirement, he served as interim senior pastor of Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Superior, WI, and also briefly as interim pastor at Gloria Dei in Duluth.
Pastor Sjolie died peacefully at age 94 on May 12, 2025, following a short period of declining health. His ashes are buried in the family plot at Scandia Cemetery in Duluth, overlooking Lake Superior. He is survived by his children Elsa Sjolie (Rob) Calhoon of Lake Nebagamon, WI; Martin Sjolie of Seattle, WA; and Sarah Sjolie (Andrew) Parks of DePere, WI; his grandchildren Elin Erickson (Arjun Soundararajan), Anna Parks, Emily (Anthony) Raycraft, Liesa Erickson, and Eric Parks, and his great grandchildren Riaan and Daphne.
Our father would have remarked that he was just a farm boy who married well and made something of himself. Others will remember him as a kind, loving, and good-humored pastor, husband, father, and grandfather.
Memorial gifts preferred to ELCA World Hunger, our parents' favored charity.
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