Rev. Renee Splichal Larson
SIOUX FALLS, SD – August 23, 2019 – The South Dakota Synod Council approved today to call the Rev. Renee Splichal Larson to serve as Associate to Bishop Hagmaier for Candidacy, Congregation and Rostered Minister Accompaniment. Rev. Splichal Larson accepted and will begin her call later in September.
“I am delighted to introduce you to the Rev. Renee Splichal Larson,” stated Bishop Elect Hagmaier. “Pastor Renee has a deep love for God and His people. Please help me to welcome her and her family to our beloved synod.”
Pastor Renee Splichal Larson has been serving as pastor of Heart River Lutheran Church in Mandan, ND, since September 2010. While at Heart River, Renee served as a mission developer, creating a re-entry ministry and support network for youth at the North Dakota Youth Correctional Center called, Heart River Bridges of Hope.
Pastor Renee grew up in Garrison, ND, and went to Concordia College in Moorhead, MN, for undergraduate studies. After graduating from Concordia with a B.A. in Physical Education and minor in Religion, she volunteered full-time for two years: one year with Urban Servant Corps in Denver, CO, and one year with Border Servant Corps in Las Cruces, NM. Renee attended Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, IA, receiving a Master of Divinity Degree, and was ordained on August 2, 2010. Renee has served the church body of the ELCA as a trained “global musician,” and preached at the 2011 Churchwide Assembly in Orlando, FL.
Pastor Renee has served on the Advisory Board for Ministry on the Margins, and on the board of Charles Hall Youth Services in Bismarck, as well as on the Disciplinary Committee for the Western ND Synod. Renee is a survivor of the Haiti earthquake and has authored her first book through Wipf & Stock Publishers, titled: A Witness: The Haiti Earthquake, a Song, Death, and Resurrection. She has also written articles for The Lutheran Magazine, Gather Magazine, and the Christian Century, and has been on the teaching faculty at Holden Village.
Pastor Renee is married to Pastor Jonathan Splichal Larson who serves as the senior pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Bismarck, ND. They have two sons, Gabriel and Elias.
About the South Dakota Synod
The South Dakota Synod is one of 65 synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). With over 200 congregations and 100,000 members, the vision of the South Dakota Synod is that all may be fed. For more information, visit www.sdsynod.org.
About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with nearly 3.5 million members in more than 9,100 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.
Media Contact
Sawyer Vanden Heuvel
Director of Communications
svandenheuvel@sdsynod.org
605-274-5035
