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David D. Swartling was elected Secretary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America by the Churchwide Assembly on August 11, 2007. He replaced retiring secretary, Lowell G. Almen, who held the position since the founding of the ELCA in 1987.
Mr. Swartling has been shareholder/director in the law offices of Mills, Meyers, Swartling of Seattle Washington. He has been a litigation attorney since 1976 and served in the U.S. Navy from 1969-1973. He has also been half-time director of the Lutheran Planned Giving Consortium of Western Washington. He received his A.B degree from Princeton University and his J.D. from the University of Washington. Mr. Swartling is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and has received the President's Award from the Washington State Bar Association for his ongoing efforts to improve the legal profession. He is a member of the ELCA Attorney's Association.
In addition to his litigation practice, David Swartling has received recognition for his long time efforts in teaching litigation and improving the system of justice in Washington. He received the American Law Institute-American Bar Association Harrison Tweed Award for special merit in continuing legal education for developing and presenting an intensive skills training course for lawyers.
David Swartling was a member Bethany Lutheran Church, Bainbridge Island, Washington. He has served his congregation and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in a variety of positions as congregation president, Northwest Washington Synod vice president, Region 1 Council chairperson, chairman of the Board of the ELCA Foundation, and trustee of the ELCA Board of Pensions. Since Mr. Swartling moved to the Chicago area, he and his wife Barbara have joined St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Park Ridge, Illinois. |
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