Pastor Believes in Physical Health, and He Practices What He Preaches

Mark G. Huggenvik says he finds inner peace and spiritual harmony through competing in athletic contests.

So when he praises exercise and a healthful life style, he is speaking from experience. And when he talks about the Lord, his are the words of a man who is pastor of the Lutheran Church of Our Savior in San Clemente, where he has been for four years.

Of his interest in athletics, Huggenvik, 45, said: “When I was 30 and working really hard in a successful but stressful position in the ministry, I got sick. One of the things I needed was a more healthy life style, so I took up running.” Huggenvik, who was a high school athlete, noted that the running craze was just taking off at the time, and “I jumped in and stayed with it.”

Huggenvik, who is married and the father of three daughters, now says he is “as healthy as can be.”

And although he competes in races, “I don’t care if I win--finishing makes you a winner,” he said. “Just participating sends out a positive message to the congregation.”

Besides setting an example for staying healthy in body and in spirit, his pursuits, he believes, provide another benefit: “Athletes like me are people who have an inward kind of peace that is contagious with other people. Exercise leaves you less aggressive and less fearsome.”

Huggenvik competed in the Long Beach Marathon three years ago, but he now concentrates on the triathlon, which consists of swimming, running and bicycling.

“It’s more interesting with three sports,” he said. “And while each event is tough, they are not as grueling and the body doesn’t take as much of a pounding as it does in a marathon.”

In fact, Huggenvik, who is a member of the San Clemente Rotary Club, was among the volunteers who worked to bring the recent Bud Lite Triathlon to that city.

He also competed in the event. “I ran in the 40-to-44 age group and finished in the middle of the pack,” he said. “I think as you grow in years, you realize you are not going to make it to the Olympics.” The winner finished an hour before Huggenvik did.

“That just blows your mind,” he said, “but people who sit on a couch can’t even say that.”

And although he is devoted to exercise, his true calling, he believes, is his role as pastor for the church.

“I love being a parish priest, and I love preaching the gospel.” Huggenvik added that he hopes the scandals involving some of the television evangelists don’t “chase people away from the church.”

“The majority of pastors are really loving, caring and dedicated people,” he said. “We are genuine human beings, and that’s one of the reasons I want to present a healthy picture of a parish priest.”

The meetings of Smedley Chapter 1 of the Toastmasters Club in Santa Ana have always had a special flair, perhaps because this club was the first, formed by Ralph C. Smedley in 1924 to promote better communication and public speaking.

For instance, the meetings always start at exactly 6:29 p.m.

“Smedley was always on time and made sure everyone else was on time,” said Teresa Wright of Irvine, the organization’s administrative vice president. In addition, although Smedley died some time ago, the group still reserves his chair for him at every meeting, Wright said. On Oct. 18, the club will celebrate the 65th anniversary of its first meeting, convened in the basement of the Santa Ana YMCA.

Smedley’s idea caught on in a big way. “I don’t think that Smedley realized it would grow to its current membership of 600,000,” Wright said. There are now 8,000 clubs worldwide.

Because the Santa Ana club was the first one formed, Wright said, “We have Toastmasters from all over the world coming to our meetings to visit us.”

The celebration will be at the Saddleback Inn in Santa Ana, and it will begin, of course, at 6:29 p.m.

And yes, the group plans to have Smedley’s chair there.