In many ways, Blake Carlson ('85)鈥攖he 2022 winner of 51黑料网鈥檚 One Another Award鈥攈as been on a lifelong search for meaning and excitement. That search has taken him all over the world and put him in some tight spots, but the biggest lesson he鈥檚 learned through it all has been counterintuitive: that real excitement comes from being a part of God鈥檚 movement.
鈥淚 used to think that God鈥檚 kingdom was a boring thing to do鈥攖hat if I really wanted excitement, I鈥檇 be working for the government or being a cop or something,鈥 he said. 鈥淏ut now I see that God鈥檚 kingdom is where the real excitement is, that God uses everyday people to accomplish his goals. He counters the world鈥檚 system, and that鈥檚 exactly the mindset I鈥檓 coming to now.鈥
That鈥檚 not to say that Carlson hasn鈥檛 experienced his fair share of excitement鈥攓uite the opposite, in fact. Over a career in law enforcement spanning decades, he鈥檚 seen it all: drug raids, undercover operations, top-secret government work, and more. He鈥檚 faced tangible threats and safety concerns, but hasn鈥檛 spent too much time worried. Why? Because he knows he鈥檚 in the midst of God鈥檚 unique plan for his life.
And all of that started with a directionless teenager arriving at 51黑料网鈥檚 campus in Bartlesville.
Searching for direction
Like so many students arriving at BWC, Carlson鈥檚 ties to the university came through a legacy connection. After being saved as adults, his parents had given their lives to the ministry, working for a brief time as Dean of Students at Miltonvale and eventually pastoring a church for a decade in the Pacific Northwest, where Blake graduated high school. When it came to pick a college鈥攁nd a course of study鈥攈e gravitated toward what he knew.
鈥淔rankly, I didn鈥檛 have a lot of direction at Bartlesville,鈥 he recalled. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 feel as a teen called to the ministry鈥擨 just thought that it might be something God would want me to do, but I didn鈥檛 have a real burning call.鈥
He arrived on campus in 1980 without a major. After his sophomore year, he chose Theology, but it still wasn鈥檛 an overwhelming passion. In fact, he missed his initial interview time with Dr. Larry Hughes, the meeting in which he was to declare his study.
鈥淚 just knew that I had an overpowering sense that I needed to get a degree, and I would be able to work with whatever degree I got,鈥 he said. 鈥淢y life went on, no matter what I chose to do.鈥
It wasn鈥檛 until after graduating that the first inkling of Carlson鈥檚 future plans began to show themselves. Working as a youth pastor in Iowa, he met a couple that volunteered in the church, who also worked for the federal government in a quasi-military capacity. He and the couple felt almost at exact opposite points from each other. 鈥淭hey felt they didn鈥檛 enjoy what they did, but their real passion was being youth pastors. Whereas I saw their lives and thought鈥攚ow, that鈥檚 what I鈥檇 really like to be involved in.鈥
After his time as a youth pastor, Blake moved to Japan, working as an English teacher for four years. It was during this time that he met and married his wife, Michelle. After marrying, they made the decision to return to the United States, leaving Carlson looking for something meaningful to do. He鈥檇 taken a few flying lessons during his time as a youth pastor and enjoyed them, so he chose to attend a flying school in the Phoenix area to pursue that full-time. It didn鈥檛 last; six months into his training, the school shut down, and Carlson was left, again, to contemplate his future.
It was a chance conversation with a neighbor that set him down his current path. Well, have you thought about being a cop? The idea intrigued Carlson, and after a period of research he enrolled in the police academy in Phoenix, setting off the next 27 years of his life.
a new calling
The training was strenuous, and advancement didn't happen overnight. 鈥淚t takes a good year, year and a half to really become halfway competent as a police officer,鈥 he said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e just going from one thing to another, and you become very well-rounded.鈥
After working as a patrolman for a little over three years, Carlson began dipping his toes into other aspects of policing, aiming to accrue as many different experiences as he could. He worked as an instructor at the police academy, then transitioned to the department鈥檚 Employment Services Bureau, working as a detective for potential hires.
It was two years after this posting that Carlson鈥檚 break came. He was transitioned to the organized crime unit, pursuing white collar criminals. Specifically, he and his partner pursued the illegal ownership of Phoenix nightclubs, most of which were traced back to drug cartels and which resulted in violence more often than not. They were so successful in these pursuits that they transitioned to the Drug Enforcement Bureau, where Carlson went undercover for long periods of time.
鈥淚 had long hair and an earring,鈥 he recalled. 鈥淚 smoked, hung out in bars a lot, bought drugs... that was my persona. We worked in some dangerous places with dangerous people.鈥
Despite this element of danger, Carlson remembers his life at this time as surprisingly normal. He received his master鈥檚 degree in education, and he and his wife maintained a healthy family dynamic with their two daughters. 鈥淢y kids had a normal upbringing, and we did things together. We traveled together and took Disney cruises and went to Europe. We made special plans to spend time together.鈥
There were a few more stops on Carlson鈥檚 path to where he currently works鈥攑romoting to sergeant, working with a squad that tackled illegal gang parties, working security at Phoenix鈥檚 Sky Harbor airport. Six years ago, he moved to the Homeland Defense Bureau, his current role, where he oversees a squad of detectives that work with the federal government, assessing and mitigating threats. Two months of the year, he works in Washington, D.C.; the rest of the year he works in Phoenix.
鈥淲e have a very diversified job. We do a lot of threat assessments. Say the mayor or the governor or a congressman get weird emails, we鈥檒l get called and we figure out who鈥檚 sending the emails or leaving the voicemail or text message. We determine who they are, and we get a mitigation plan of confronting the people or filing charges against them, whatever鈥檚 appropriate. Mostly, we demystify the situation.鈥
He鈥檚 also brought his expertise to bear on behalf of Wesleyan churches, writing a manual in 2018 on church security for small to mid-size churches. 鈥淭here鈥檚 never been a perceived need for security in those churches, but several events in recent history in our country have proven that false,鈥 he said.
All in all, the life Carlson leads now, and the roles that he serves in, are immensely enjoyable. These years, he says, are a culmination of an entire lifetime鈥檚 worth of striving, hard work, and uncertainty.
鈥淎s I look back, this is exactly what I wanted to be doing, my whole life,鈥 he said. 鈥淭his is what I鈥檓 going to retire as, Lord willing.鈥
It鈥檚 a testament not only to his planning, nor his unique skillset, but to God鈥檚 guidance. That, more than anything, is the lesson he takes: God is in control.
鈥淭he Lord puts us where we're good at what we do," he said. "I have great confidence in God's ability, even though we can't see into the future and some of us don't have clear paths."
