CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Kurt F. Kusserow, St. Paul
Lutheran Church, Latrobe (Trauger), Pa., was elected June 15 to a
six-year term as bishop of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Kusserow was
elected on the fifth ballot for bishop, 271-248 over the Rev.
Martha W. Clementson, assistant to the bishop, ELCA Southwestern
Pennsylvania Synod.
The synod assembly was June 14-16 at Thiel College,
Greenville, Pa. Thiel is one of 28 ELCA colleges and
universities.
Kusserow, 43, will succeed the Rev. Donald J. McCoid.
McCoid, 63, previously announced he would not seek re-election.
McCoid has served as bishop of the synod since 1988.
On the fourth ballot for bishop, Kusserow received 200
votes. Clementson, who led on the first through fourth ballots,
received 208 votes and the Rev. Kevin E. Anderson, Forks-Zion
Lutheran Church, Leechburg, Pa., received 118 votes. There were
63 names on the first or nominating ballot.
Kusserow will assume the role of bishop on Sept. 1. He will
be installed Oct. 20 at Calvary Episcopal Church, Pittsburgh.
Born in Shelby, Ohio, Kusserow is the son of parents who
were missionaries in the former Lutheran Church in America. In
1966 the family moved to Malaysia, and they lived in Lenggong and
Ipoh. In Singapore they lived in Jurong, where Kusserow's father
served as one of two pastors of Jurong Christian Church.
Kusserow graduated from Singapore American School in 1981.
After returning to the United States, Kusserow attended
Thiel College, where he received a bachelor's degree in English
in 1985. In 1989 he received a master of divinity degree from
Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio, one of eight ELCA
seminaries.
Kusserow was ordained in 1989. He was pastor of the
Westmoreland Unit of Town and Country Lutheran Ministry, serving
Faith Lutheran Church, Apollo (Oklahoma Boro), Pa., and Hebron
Lutheran Church, Avonmore, Pa. before he became pastor of St.
Paul Lutheran Church in 1997.
Kusserow and his wife Pamela are parents of a son, Benjamin,
and a daughter, Abigail. The Kusserows reside in Latrobe.
The ELCA Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod has 86,039 baptized
members in 207 congregations. The synod office is in Pittsburgh.
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*Judi Rogers, supplement editor for The Lutheran, ELCA
Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, provided information.
Information about the Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod is at
http://www.southwesternpasynod.org on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
