Mark R. Kolbo

Mark Rodney Kolbo, 69, of Crary, North Dakota, passed away unexpectedly on March 11, 2026, at Altru Hospital in Devils Lake.

Born on August 25, 1956, in Zumbrota, Minnesota, to Robert and Beverly (Bailey) Kolbo, Mark grew up in his hometown, graduating from Zumbrota High School in 1974. He participated in the high school band and marching band, playing trombone, and played on the football team. He went on to study music at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls before discerning a call to ministry. In 1980 he entered Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, earning his Master’s in Theology in 1984. He completed an internship at Trinity Lutheran Parish in Binford, Our Savior’s in McHenry, and Gethsemane in Tolna, North Dakota. Ordained on June 3, 1984, at United Redeemer Church in Zumbrota, he devoted the next forty-two years to serving rural congregations across North Dakota.

Mark served his first call at Trinity Bethany in Harvey, Vang Lutheran in Manfred, and Hoff Lutheran in Heimdal from 1984 to 1987. From 1987 to 1999 he was pastor of United Lutheran in Brocket, Lawton Lutheran, and Bethlehem Lutheran in Doyon. He then spent four years as an interim pastor at several parishes before accepting a call to Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Rolla and Trinity Lutheran in Perth, serving there until 2018. Though he had planned to retire that year, he continued as part-time pastor at Michigan Lutheran Church, where he was still teaching his Church School class on the night he passed.

He married his beloved wife, Lisa Crandall, on August 13, 1988, in Duluth, Minnesota. The couple lived in Brocket, where their son Carl was born in 1994, before moving to Crary in 1999. Music remained central to Mark’s life and ministry. An accomplished musician who played French horn, trombone, trumpet, and flute, he performed for thirty-seven years with the Devils Lake Community Orchestra and with the Langdon Community Band, Elks Community Band, Heartland Community Orchestra in Rugby, and Belcourt Community Band. He was a faithful presence in the Michigan Easter Cantatas and enjoyed collecting vintage brass instruments. Mark was also an avid Minnesota Vikings, Wild, and Golden Gophers fan, a wine enthusiast, an enthusiastic gardener and cook, and a devoted caretaker of his cats. He generously shared baked goods, garden produce, and fruit with neighbors, shut-ins, and local food pantries.

Mark is survived by his wife Lisa; his siblings Leslie McDonald of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Robert “Craig” (Linda) Kolbo of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Paul (Sarah) Kolbo of Minneapolis; and his sisters-in-law Laurie (William) Bastian and Terri (Genia) Crandall of Duluth, Minnesota, along with many dear nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his son Carl, his parents Robert and Beverly Kolbo, and his in-laws Donald and Helen Crandall.