Mark Penfold was appointed by the Charis Fellowship Council to serve as the Chaplain Ministries’ Endorser in summer 2017.

He entered military service as a Chaplain Candidate in the Army Reserve in 1986 while he was still a student at Grace Theological Seminary. After graduating from seminary and receiving his ordination at the Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church (WLGBC), he served as a Chaplain in the Army Reserve in three different assignments (1988-1995) while serving on the pastoral staff at WLGBC and at Grace Seminary.

He became an active duty chaplain in early 1995. His operational assignments include the 10th Mountain Division (Light), 94th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, and the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. He also served as an Ethics Instructor, a Basic Officer Course Manager, and then the Chief of Training Execution at various military schools. Other assignments include Deputy Command Chaplain at Ft Lee, VA; Fort Eustis, VA; Command Chaplain at the Army Test and Evaluation Command; and culminating as the Command Chaplain at Fort Jackson, SC. He retired in 2017. Deployments include Operation Joint Guardian II (Kosovo, 1999) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq, 2007).

Hobbies include study of military history, leadership, and cycling. His favorite authors include C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien (both who served in the British Army in World War I). He is married to Robin.

His life verse is Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In everything, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.”