Dr. Don McCall, D.Min., a pastor turned professor at Clarks Summit University, has served in ministry for nearly five decades.
Dr. McCall grew up in Morton’s Corners, New York, just south of Buffalo. The oldest of eight kids, he made a profession of faith in Christ as His Savior at age nine. At age 16, he made a decision to dedicate his life to Christ.
Called to Build Bridges
“I knew that I didn’t want to be a pastor,” Dr. McCall said. “and I didn’t want to be in a small town.” As a teenager, he set his sights on going to school to be a civil engineer. But then he attended a Christian camp where Dr. Wendell Kempton spoke. Dr. Kempton was a professor and resident director at Clarks Summit University.
Dr. McCall shared, “For whatever reason while speaking at that camp, Dr. Kempton said, ‘What do you want to do with your life? Do you want to spend it building bridges to help some people go from one bank to the next bank? Or do you want to spend your life building bridges from this earth to heaven?’ That statement and question is what God used to set my course toward full-time ministry.”
Dr. McCall would later stay in Dr. Kempton’s residence hall when he arrived at CSU as a student in 1967. He majored in Bible and Pastoral Ministries and initially planned on being a military chaplain. “I still didn’t want to end up being a pastor,” Dr. McCall said chuckling.
While in school, he was inspired by professor Lawrence Grow.
“He sold me on the importance of the local church,” Dr. McCall said. “It was at that time God called me to be a pastor.”
Dr. McCall met his wife Bonnie at CSU, and the couple was married in 1970. They have three children and seven grandchildren.
In 1972, God called the McCalls to Highpoint Baptist Chapel in Geigertown, Pennsylvania. He has been in full-time ministry building bridges into people’s lives ever since. He later served as pastor of Langhorne Terrace Baptist Church for 26 years in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.
In 2000, Dr. McCall came to CSU as a professor. Now an associate professor of Pastoral Ministries, he teaches expository preaching, pastoral and Bible classes.
He began a ministry called “Church Revitalization,” which allowed him to work as an interim pastor in churches that were in transition. For the past 21 years, he has served in 10 different churches.
As he teaches full time at CSU, Dr. McCall mentors students and alumni beginning full-time ministry.
“The school (CSU) equipped me for ministry. The how-to courses that I took in those days as a student not only taught me how to teach and how to preach the Word but stirred within me a passion for local church ministry,” Dr. McCall said. He now does this for others.
Dr. McCall, who was poured into by men like Dr. Wendell Kempton and Lawrence Grow, has a legacy of pouring into others who are making an impact in local churches across the country.
“Every Sunday, I set aside time to pray over these guys who have gone out and are now in full time ministry,” he said.
CSU alumni still call him for advice and counsel.
Building a Legacy
Micah Clouse (’20), one of Dr. McCall’s former students, is now the lead pastor at Salem Church in Martinsburg, Pennsylvania, and intern youth pastor at Faith Baptist Church of Altoona, Pennsylvania.
“When it comes to Dr. Don McCall, one word that comes to mind is ‘dedicated,’” Clouse said. “He is passionate about teaching the truth as it comes from Scripture and then making it come alive through current, relevant application. He passes this down to his students. He preached a sermon once and the take away message was this: Jesus Christ is worthy of my life’s devotion. I believe that is a summary of Don McCall’s life.”
Dr. McCall spends most of his time with pastors-in-training, like Clouse. He affects dozens of churches every year as his students go out. His vulnerability and practical advice for young pastors has left its mark on many.
“He’s not content just to have an information dump on his students,” Clouse said. “He wants to ensure that when they go out in ministry they aren’t just preaching the Word but living it in their lives and able to be a practical help to others…One of the things that made an impression on me is that he is not fearful of being vulnerable. He puts more emphasis on his testimony and the grace of God in his life than on his accomplishments in ministry.”
Dr. McCall’s personal mission statement is to “Make disciples of Jesus Christ, by bringing people into a learning, loving relationship with Him.”
The man who thought he would never be a pastor, and as a young man planned to build bridges as a civil engineer, became a pastor and now trains pastors, building bridges for eternity.
“That’s the mission God has given the church,” Dr. McCall said, “to go out and make disciples. Not only to build bridges and reach people for Christ, but the role of the pastor/teacher is to equip the saints to the do the work of the ministry. We do that by building into people’s lives.”
To learn more about CSU’s undergraduate pastoral programs visit:
- Accelerated General Ministries (B.S. and M.Div.)
- Pastoral Ministries (B.S.)
- Pastoral Ministries – Seminary Track (B.S.)
- See a full list of programs
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