By Carrie L. Draeger, ELCA News Service*
The Rev. Leonard H. Bolick was elected to his third term as bishop of the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) June 5 during the synod assembly June 4-6 in Hickory, N.C. Bolick was re-elected on the second ballot, receiving 442 of the 544 votes cast. There we 58 names on the nominating ballot. The next highest vote-getters were the Rev. Larry J. Yoder with 37 votes, and the Rev. S. Craig Bollinger with 14 votes. Yoder is a professor of religion at Lenoir-Rhyne University and Bollinger is a pastor at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Charlotte, N.C. Lenoir-Rhyne is one of 28 ELCA colleges and universities and was the site of the North Carolina Synod Assembly this year.
Bolick, 62, was born in Lenoir, N.C. He earned a bachelor's degree in history from Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. in 1968. In 1972 Bolick earned a master of divinity degree from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, Columbia, S.C., one of eight ELCA seminaries. Bolick holds doctor of ministry degrees from McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago, and from the Graduate Theological Foundation, Donaldson, Ind.
Bolick and his wife Rita are the parents of two grown children and live in Salisbury, N.C. The North Carolina Synod has 83,083 baptized members in 234 congregations. The synod office is in Salisbury.
* Carrie L. Draeger is a senior communication major with a concentration in journalism at Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Wash. This summer she is an intern with the ELCA News Service.
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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
