MAXWELL AFB, Ala. - Civil Air Patrol Chaplain Lt. Col. Elmer Steenbock of Coos Bay, Ore. has been recognized by the Lutheran Church with the Bronze St. Martin of Tours Medal.

The medal recognizes Lutheran pastors who provide dedicated service to military personnel. Its recipients typically have dedicated at least 20 years of service in active duty, Reserve units, the Civil Air Patrol or the Department of Veterans Affairs.

CAP chaplains provide training in moral leadership and support for CAP members and their communities as part of CAP’s volunteer missions. Since CAP is the civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, CAP chaplains are also trained to stand in for military chaplains when called upon to serve. With some 650 chaplains and 220 moral leadership officers, CAP has the largest all-volunteer chaplaincy in the nation.

Steenbock was honored by his denomination for more than 20 years of chaplaincy with CAP cadets and senior members in the Oregon Wing. He received the medal during a special ceremony Oct. 19 at Christ Lutheran Church in Coos Bay, Ore.

Steenbock began his CAP chaplaincy in 1981 with the Marshfield Cadet Squadron in Coos Bay. Oregon wing chaplain Lt. Col. Robert Ledden, for whom Steenbock was a mentor, said he remembers Steenbock’s “rapport with the cadets and other senior members and the way he exemplifies the love of Christ, not only in the way he presents the moral leadership programs, but also in the ‘ministry of presence’ which has touched so many lives.”

A veteran of World War II, Steenbock served in England, France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland and was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds sustained at the Battle of the Bulge. He served with Gen. George Patton’s Third Army in the 87th Infantry Division.

Before entering the war, Steenbock attended the University of Iowa and Iowa State College. He went on to Concordia Seminary in Springfield, Ill. and was ordained as a Lutheran pastor in 1962. He served as pastor to Our Savior and Immanuel Lutheran Churches in Hillsboro and Grandin, N.D. and Christ Lutheran Church in Coos Bay. He also established a preaching station in the city of Khabarovsk, Russia, as well as an English Bible school for children.

The St. Martin of Tours award is named for a Roman soldier from the 4th century A.D. who, according to legend, cut his military cape in half to cover a poor beggar shivering in the cold. That night, the tradition holds, Christ appeared to Martin in a dream, wearing the half of the cape Martin had given to the beggar. The vision led to Martin’s conversion and baptism.

Martin went on to become a cleric, founded a monastery and eventually became the Bishop of Tours, France. Following his death, the remaining half of his famous cape became the object of veneration. From the Latin word for cape, “capa,” came the origin of the words “chapel” and “chaplain” used in English today. Thus, since Medieval days, Martin of Tours has been identified with those who serve as military chaplains.

For Lutheran chaplains, however, Martin of Tours has another significant connection. On November 10, 1483, Hans and Margarethe Luther welcomed the birth of a new baby boy. Following the custom of the times, the couple had the child baptized the following day, November 11, a day set apart by the Christian Church to remember and honor St. Martin of Tours. To commemorate the day, the couple named their child Martin.  Young Martin Luther went on to become one of the most significant leaders of the faith.

Civil Air Patrol is a nonprofit organization with more than 64,000 members nationwide. In addition to its work in Chaplain Services, CAP members perform 95% of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. Volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counterdrug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members take a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the almost 27,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for more than 60 years.