Former Elon Community Church pastor Randy Orwig said he once thought he would spend the rest of his pastoral career at a church in St. Louis. However, things did not go as expected. That experience led him to worship at Elon Community Church in 1992, the first United Church of Christ congregation he had ever attended. In 2011, he assumed the pastor role.

He has served as pastor of Elon Community Church for nearly 15 years.

At the start of 2026, his time as pastor officially came to an end, after he notified the United Church of Christ congregation by letter in July. 

“I felt like that was the best time to break because of what was going on with holidays, and pastors and holidays have to match,” Orwig said. “It's not good to get a brand new pastor for a holiday that's going on.”

Orwig said that because of the relationships he has built since becoming involved in 1992, his farewell brought some grief to the congregation.

“We prepared everybody quite well,” Orwig said. “We've talked about it. I gave six months notice, and we took our time really trying to help people understand it. We had several gatherings, and those things really made a difference too.”

One of Orwig’s favorite memories is walking into the church sanctuary to find a group of teenagers playing handbells. From that moment, he said, he wanted the church to emphasize its love of music.

“I feel like they're learning not only about their own faith, but they're also learning something special, something that they can do,” Orwig said.

After preaching for a total of 42 years in churches in Elon and St. Louis, Orwig said he is looking forward to doing something different, but will miss the relationships he has built. 

“I automatically have a community that meets with me and builds relationships,” Orwig said. “And that is just a wonderful gift.”

Orwig’s relationships extend beyond the church to the Town of Elon, where he serves on the Elon Town Council. 

Elon Downtown Development Director Jill Weston said Orwig has been instrumental in planning downtown events, including the Elon Farmer’s Market, which uses the church’s parking lot. 

“His relationship with myself and my staff is so great,” Weston said. “Whenever there's anything we need to know, it's a quick phone call, and he values what we do as much as we value what he did over there, so we're really gonna miss him in that capacity.”

Weston described Orwig as an advocate, cheerleader, supporter and a hard worker and said she’s grateful for his partnership on downtown programs.  

“It's a blessing and a curse to him,” Weston said. “He took on so much there and did so much himself, but he always took everything on like it was his own, and treated the things that we did downtown as well as what the church did as just what we do for Elon. 

Orwig will remain on the town council aside from his retirement from the church. Weston said she will miss his enthusiasm and excitement in helping plan downtown events. 

“I won't get to see as much, but I'll still get to share in it,” Weston said. “I'm more excited for him to do other things in his life, because we all deserve that.”

Elon Town Manager Richard Roedner, a member of the church and Elon resident, said Orwig has provided many church resources for the town’s needs, such as hosting group meetings in the church’s community life center. 

“The church has been a great partner, and those partnerships have been stimulated by Randy's role in the church,” Roedner said. 

Roedner said he knew about Orwig’s retirement for more than a year. 

“Anytime somebody is at that point where they get to retire and enjoy not going to work every day, it's always good news for them,” Roedner said. 

Although Orwig’s time as pastor has ended, Roedner said that the town’s partnerships are with the church, not just Orwig. 

“Obviously, we'll lose Randy's role in those events, because quite frequently, as minister, he's been there doing things, so that's something that will change, but it's a great opportunity for him,” Roedner said. “As from the town's perspective, we get to keep him on the council for another four years, so that's good.”

To find a new pastor, the United Church of Christ uses a call system that creates a pastor profile with the desired qualities and forms a search committee. Orwig said the process does not allow him to be involved.

“I wrote a letter to the congregation, and I told them that for the time being, I will not be available for weddings, funerals,” Orwig said. “I will not be available for counseling and those kinds of things, the things that I've done as a pastor, they need to now build a relationship with the next new pastor.”

Orwig said now that he is retired, he plans to work with churches to create programs that help people meet housing-related needs, such as paying electric, water and mortgage bills.  

“If we can get a significant number of churches working together, this process could actually make a real difference for people in our county,” Orwig said. “Of literally helping them pay bills, to not become unhoused, or not to lead to becoming unhoused, and so we want to try to keep them in their houses.”