"I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life …Come further up, come further in!" The Last Battle C.S. Lewis

Rev. Dr. Curtis Ward Brannan, 90 years, went home on March 5, 2022.  He was preceded in death by Shirley Brannan, his wife of 60 years. He is survived by their three children: Dr. Deborah (& Gary) Kukal, Dr. Nancy (& William) Price, and Dr. David (& Alison) Brannan; by his seven grandchildren, Anna Pringle, Morgan Swartzlander, Caleb Price, Curtis Kukal, Elizabeth Lange, Elizabeth Brannan, and Adrian Brannan; and by his 15 great-grandchildren.

Born December 11, 1931, in Kansas City, MO, Curt joined the Navy directly out of high school (Northwest High School, KCMO) at 17. After completing his boot camp and training, he was married in San Diego to Shirl', his high school sweetheart, on March 11, 1950, at the age of 18. In 1951 he was assigned with Naval Intelligence during the Korean War to serve as a radio operator on Guam for 20 months, where he intercepted Morse Code messages in Russian and Chinese. Throughout his life he'd often be found tapping his fingers in what was actually Morse Code! Two months after he arrived on Guam, his first child, Deborah was born. Transferred to Imperial Beach in 1952, he finally met his 18-month-old daughter, and towards the end of his time there a second daughter, Nancy, arrived.

In 1954, orders to the Philippine Islands totally changed Curt's life. Here, through the servicemen's ministry of Jesse Miller (a survivor of the Bataan Death March) he became a lover and follower of Christ Jesus. His excitement to share what God had done in his life led him to start a church, first in his home, then in a rented space where the church is still thriving to this day.

Though offered promotion to the rank of Chief, Curt felt called to gospel ministry and left the Navy to attend college (Southwest Baptist - AA, and Southwest Missouri State - BA) and seminary (Midwestern Baptist Seminary - MDiv). During his last month of college, his third child, David, was born. Throughout these seven years Curt carried full academic loads, drove a school bus, worked odd jobs at night, pastored three churches (Lamar, Forsyth, Kansas City, Kansas), and was an engaged father and husband.

In his last year of seminary, Curt applied to be a Chaplain in the Navy.  Immediately, he was told that the Navy's quota for Southern Baptist Chaplains was full for the foreseeable future.  Curt trusted God and prayed, and soon God answered his prayers, and he was commissioned as a Navy Chaplain, sent to Navy Chaplains School, then Naval Submarine School. After training was completed, he was stationed with the Marine Corps.

His time as Chaplain with the Marines on the battlefields of Vietnam impacted Curt for the remainder of his days. His life experiences as both an enlisted man and as an officer resulted in an understanding and a love for servicemen and their struggles that helped him effectively work with men over the course of his career as a Chaplain and pastor. New duty stations were always a fun challenge for Curt; he was stationed at Camp Pendleton, CA; throughout war zones in Vietnam; Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland; Naval Weapons Station, Charleston, South Carolina; Naval Fleet Yokosuka, and Yokohama, Japan; post-graduate study American Baptist Seminary of the West, Covina, CA; and Point Mugu Naval Air Station, CA.

After retiring from the Navy in 1977, Curt started Grace Fellowship Church in Camarillo, CA, joined by many of those who had sat under his ministry at nearby Pt. Mugu. He was called to serve as Senior Pastor for Ojai Valley Community Church 1983, where he stayed until 1997. During his time pastoring in Ojai, he earned the Doctor of Ministry degree from Talbot Seminary. In 1997 he moved to the Seattle area to give spiritual leadership to The Bear Creek School, where "Dr. B" served as Dean and on the school board until 2004. After moving to Nixa, Missouri, in 2004, he became involved at Grace Classical Academy, serving as Chaplain and Bible teacher from 2004 to 2016, and continuing on the board until 2018. He also was a long-time member and Sunday School teacher at North Nixa Baptist Church.

Curt's life was characterized by a fervent love for God and his family. He sought opportunities to share his faith and hope in Christ up to the end of his life. We are blessed to have known this man! He will be greatly missed by so many.

Visitation will be held from 10:00 - 11:00 AM, with a Funeral Service directly following at 11:00 AM, on Saturday, March 19, 2022 at Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. Burial will be held at a later date in Missouri Veterans Cemetery.

The funeral will be live streamed on the All Occasion Video Springfield Missouri Facebook page, which can be viewed here .

Just as he requested at his wife's funeral, so his family requests that gifts be made in his honor in lieu of flowers to: For the Children's Sake, 6280 N Placita de Luis, Tucson, AZ 85718. Curt served as a valued board member for the ministry For the Children's Sake. He visited the work in Africa and was an enthusiastic and generous supporter of the Christ-centered education ministry since its beginning. On April 25, the Rev. Dr. Brannan Block, consisting of two classrooms and office space, will be dedicated and For the Children's Sake Demonstration School will open, built in large part by his generous gift.

Link to donate can be found here .