Rev. John Russell

Rev. John Russell, MDiv, ‘63

The Rev. John Russell was born and raised in Glendale, California.  He graduated from Midland Lutheran College in 1959, where he met his future wife Colleen during their senior years.  John  studied for three years at PLTS, and was ordained into the Lutheran Church of America.

John served the parishes of Faith, San Jose; Calvary, San Diego; Grace, Culver City (Calif.); Holy Trinity, Littleton, Colorado; and St. Paul’s, Grand Island, Nebraska.  He served his last call from 1984 to 2002.

Beyond the parish, he was a pastor/evangelist specialist, a co-leader of numerous “Preaching from Commitment” seminars around the country, and a member of the Board of Trustees of Midland College.  Furthermore, has was active in social ministry organizations, was president of the Board of Directors of Lutheran Social Services of Southern California, coordinator for the Evangelical Outreach Emphasis of the Pacific Southwest Synod and Rocky Mountain Synod Representative on the Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue.

Rev. Russell died on February 16, 2016 in Denver, Colorado.  His wife Colleen preceded him in death by five days.