Eldon G. Nolte

Eldon G. Nolte was born August 12, 1934, in Sumner, Iowa, to Jesse and Alice Nolte. At the age of two, Eldon and his parents moved to Waterloo, Iowa, where he spent his youth, graduating from West High School in 1952. A highlight of his high school days was playing basketball for West High.

In the fall of 1952, he enrolled at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, with a basketball scholarship. During his freshman year at Iowa State, he felt and accepted the call into the Christian ministry, so he transferred to Westmar College in Le Mars, Iowa. In the fall of 1956, he graduated with a B.A. degree and played basketball on the college team.

In the fall of 1956, he enrolled in Evangelical Theological Seminary in Naperville, Illinois, where he received his Master of Divinity degree in 1959. Immediately following graduation from seminary, he was ordained an Elder in the Evangelical United Brethren Church of the Iowa Annual Conference. He was proud to become a third-generation pastor in his family, following in the footsteps of his father, J.R. Nolte, and grandfather, Ernest Nolte.

Upon his ordination, Eldon was appointed to the Blairstown E.U.B. Church, where he served from 1959 to 1962. He and his previous wife, Beverly, were appointed as E.U.B. missionaries to Brazil, where they served for 12 years. Eldon’s work in Brazil was in the field of Christian literature distribution, which involved travel throughout the country and managing two Christian bookstores. While in Brazil, he and his wife adopted two Brazilian babies, Mark at the age of 10 months and Debra at the age of two months.

In 1967, Eldon spent a year in Dayton, Ohio, where he studied at United Theological Seminary, receiving his Master of Sacred Theology degree in the field of Christian Missions. When he and Beverly returned to South America, he was assigned to the Methodist Church of Argentina for three years to continue working in Christian literature distribution.

After completing 15 years of missionary service overseas, Eldon returned to the United States, where he served as pastor of eight more United Methodist churches in Iowa before completely retiring on July 1, 2009, with 50 years in Christian ministry. These eight churches were the following: Garwin, Colfax and Ira, Sheridan Park (where his father served from 1921–1924) and Capitol Heights Churches in Des Moines, Ivy Centennial Church near Des Moines, and Mingo and Farrar Churches.

Pastoral care and personal involvement in the lives of his parishioners were the strong attributes of Eldon’s pastoral ministry.

On July 31, 1999, Eldon and Lois Jones were united in holy matrimony at Sheridan Park United Methodist Church. They lived in Des Moines during their married life and retirement. Eldon and Lois were very involved in the work and life of Sheridan Park Church. Together they have four children and eight grandchildren.

Sports were an important part of Eldon’s life. He played tennis as well as basketball in college and continued playing both sports for forty more years. He loved to go fishing in Canada, Minnesota, and Iowa. He enjoyed swimming, working out daily, and playing pickleball. Eldon and Lois enjoyed being in Mesa, Arizona, during January and February for the past 10 years. Eldon traveled all over the world in his lifetime as well as participating in voluntary mission work trips.

Eldon was thankful for the spiritual guidance and encouragement he received from his parents and the Kimball Avenue United Methodist Church as he was growing up in Waterloo. He was thankful for being blessed with excellent health that enabled him to be of service to his Lord at home and abroad for 65 years. Because he was given and lived an abundant life in Christ, one of his favorite Bible verses was John 10:10:

“Jesus said, I have come that you may have an abundant life.”

Eldon passed away peacefully on Friday, June 5, 2026, at the age of 91.

Left to cherish memories of Eldon’s life are his wife, Lois; daughter, Debra Pelton of Des Moines; daughter-in-law, DeAnna (Mark) Nolte of Des Moines; stepchildren, Chris (Lisa) Jones and Colleen Jones; and eight grandchildren: Ian Pelton, Colton, Connor, and Zion Nolte, Olivia, Delaney, and Ethan Jones, and Rachelle McMillen.

Eldon was preceded in death by his parents; his son, Mark Nolte; and his sister, Gladys (Ken) Oleson.

Funeral service will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 20, 2026, at Sheridan Park United Methodist Church, 4100 E Sheridan Ave, Des Moines, IA 50317. Eldon will be laid to rest at Highland Memory Gardens Cemetery. Family will greet guests from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. prior to the service.

Memorial contributions may be directed to Sheridan Park United Methodist Church.

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