Carmichaels earn achievement award

Long-time Sisters Country residents Bill and Nancie Carmichael traveled to Costa Mesa, California, last week to accept a Career Achievement Award from Vanguard University. Both Bill and Nancie are bestselling authors, publishers, and speakers.

"We feel humbled and grateful," says Nancie. "Bill and I met at Vanguard, and three of our five children graduated from VU. It was special to have two of our sons, Chris and Andy, and their wives, Jami and Michelle, attend the award luncheon with us."

The Carmichaels have now been writing and teaching about relationships, leadership and faith for over three decades. Together, they have authored over a dozen books and spoken at leadership seminars, prison conferences, retreats, and marriage and family seminars.

But, after meeting at Vanguard, then marrying in 1966, they started out as youth pastors in the Bay Area while Bill finished up his graduate degree at the University of Santa Clara. Bill went on to earn a degree in pastoral theology from Bethany College as well.

"As our family continued to grow, we moved to Oregon and took jobs as pastors," says Nancie. "Bill's entrepreneurial spirit was piqued as he started a magazine for pastors."

That led to a position as editor for Logos Journal, a magazine based in New Jersey.

The couple first became acquainted with Sisters while youth pastors, when they took their teens to Camp Davidson near Suttle Lake.

"There wasn't much going on in Sisters then," says Nancie. "The grocery store was where the old drug store is now, run by Art Thenell."

Like a lot of folks, they were attracted to Sisters for its blue sky and scenic mountains. Says Nancie, "We also wanted to simplify our lives - but, unfortunately, we brought ourselves with us!"

In 1979, the Carmichaels and their four young sons, Jon, Eric, Chris and Andy, settled at Black Butte Ranch and started their own magazine company. As the founding publishers of Good Family Magazines, they produced Christian Parenting Today, Virtue, and Parents of Teenagers. At its peak, their combined readership was over one million readers - all operated out of Sisters.

"Our first office was above the Depot Deli," remembers Nancie. "At the time, the library was next door and the kids would walk from school to visit the library, and then come up to our office.

"Earl Armbruster was the [Sisters Elementary School] principal at the time and we immediately fell in love with the school, the teachers and the community. We adopted our daughter, Amy, from Korea in 1984. Amy was the only one to benefit from the high school in Sisters, so we drove to Redmond a lot, where our boys played basketball for the Panthers."

There was never a dull moment, as their magazine company expanded along with their family.

"It was wonderful, exhilarating and nail-biting at times," says Nancie. "As we look back, we cherish the relationships we still have with many of our staff members - editors, artists and support staff. Many of our former staff took other jobs or started companies of their own and still live in Sisters. We even still hear from our readers from time to time."

The magazines were sold in 1995 to a publisher with headquarters in Colorado.

Bill and Nancie have authored many books, including "Surviving One Bad Year" (Howard Books-Simon & Schuster); "The Missionary" (a novel published by Moody Press); "Selah: Stop, Think, Step Into Your Future" (Baker Books); "Seven Habits of a Healthy Home," "Lord, Bless My Child" and "Lord, Bless This Marriage" (all with Tyndale House Publishers); "That Man! Understanding the Differences Between You and Your Husband"; "Praying for Rain" (both with Thomas Nelson) and more.

Far from retired, their current endeavors reflect a passion to help aspiring authors.

Says Nancie, "As we have seen the rapidly changing field of publishing, we realize how difficult it is for authors to get published. The Internet has turned the publishing world on its head, and we see there are many good writers who are not getting published simply because they need an entry somehow."

The couple founded Deep River Books (DRB) as an imprint of Carmichael publishing, to address this need (www.deepriverbooks.com). Over the past 10 years, DRB has published over 250 titles for a variety of Christian authors, including best-sellers such as Coach Bill McCartney of Promise Keepers, three-time Dove award-winner Nan Allen, and novelist Jeff Dixon.

The Carmichaels also recently acquired Writer's Edge Service, which provides Christian writers with online access to most major Christian publishers through a screening and editorial evaluation process (www.writers

edgeservice.com).

Both Bill and Nancie were given honorary doctorates from Corban University for their writing and speaking ministry achievements. Bill has served on the board of directors of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association and is an emeritus board member of Assist International.

After leaving VU early, to marry Bill at the age of 18, Nancie recently completed a lifelong goal. "It took me awhile," she says, "but I went back to school and just graduated in 2012 with a master's in spiritual formation from George Fox Evangelical Seminary."

Nancie currently serves on the board of regents for George Fox Evangelical Seminary, and she's a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association.

The couple agrees that, while awards are nice, they take the greatest delight in their family. All five of their children are now married and, although two live out of state, they come home often.

"Our kids love reading The Nugget to catch up on what's happening here," says Nancie. "Sisters gets in your heart!"

The biggest event for their extended family takes place every summer, when Bill and Nancie corral all 10 of their grandchildren from near and wide for Grandkids' Camp at their Camp Sherman home.