For Pastor Steve Elderbrock, the journey toward obtaining his Doctor of Ministry was not so much about the degree but more of finding the answers to questions that had bothered him. 

 

“My desire to go back to school grew out of Covid,” he said. “I wanted to explore ways in which the pandemic changed the nature of our perception of the Christian community. I didn’t really care much about the degree itself, honestly, I just had a lot of questions and wanted to be in an academic setting to explore some possible answers.”  

 

His three years of work culminated in his being awarded a doctorate degree from the Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA, in May. The process started while he was the pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in Burnsville, NC, and continued after arriving at the Bridgeport Presbyterian Church in July 2023.  

 

To mark the accomplishment, the church presented him with a robe signifying his academic status during its July 12 worship service. Elderbrock noted that he had used the congregation as part of his research in his thesis. 

 

“I explored the history and present-day reality of the community in this special place,” he told the congregation. “When I moved here in July 2023, you embraced that part of my journey and supported me every step of the way to its completion.”

 

A native of Findlay, Ohio, Elderbrock earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and film from Denison University in 1989 and later received a master’s degree in history from Bowling Green State University. At the urging of the senior pastor at the church he grew up in and was attending at the time, he decided to enroll in the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, where he obtained his Master of Divinity degree and became an ordained Presbyterian minister in 1997. He has since led congregations in Minnesota, Ohio, and North Carolina before coming to Bridgeport.

  

Despite the lofty accomplishment, Elderbrock laughs off the thought of being referred to as “Doctor Steve,” preferring the simpler “Pastor Steve.” 

 

“The congregation’s recognition and gift humbled me and made me feel very appreciated and very blessed and very loved,” he said. “I appreciate (this congregation) as well.”

 

When he is not searching for answers to questions or leading worship services at the church, he enjoys sitting and reading on the front porch of the church’s manse, laughing at his two cats Sherlock and Frankie, trying to exercise regularly, watching baseball, and traveling with his wife Deb. Together, they have two sons, a daughter-in-law, and two granddaughters.