Gerald C. White, 95

The Rev. Dr. Gerald Curtis John White, former associate pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Kalispell, passed away at his home near Winger, Minnesota, on Jan. 4, 2022, at the age of 95.

Gerald was born Sept. 18, 1926, near Winger. After high school he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet. When the war ended, he attended Concordia College in Moorhead and Luther Seminary, St. Paul. He was ordained at Bethel Lutheran Church, Winger, in 1953 on a call to White Earth, North Dakota.

He married Inez Hagen of Kindred, North Dakota, and following her death in 1956, earned a Master of Science in Chemistry degree at North Dakota State University in Fargo. Although invited to remain at NDSU, he felt called to Bethlehem Lutheran and served with the Rev. J.M. Grimsrud, senior pastor. The Rev. White’s ministry focused on teaching the Scriptures and baptizing and confirming the youth of the congregation. One of the babies he baptized was Ladd Bjorneby, now a pastor himself in Idaho. During his tenure at Bethlehem, Gerald met and later married Joyce Lorraine Alton, daughter of Fred and Marie Alton of Creston.

With a strong desire to become a seminary professor, the Rev. White resigned from Bethlehem in 1958 and earned his Master of Theology degree at Luther Seminary in St. Paul. Following a summer interim pastorate at Fairview, Montana, the couple moved to Camrose, Alberta, where Gerald taught chemistry and Bible at Camrose Lutheran Junior College and where their first daughter, Stephanie, former youth leader and choir director at Bethlehem of Kalispell, was born. Their next move was to St. Louis to attend Concordia Seminary and complete a Th.D. in Old Testament and Semitic Languages degree and welcome a second daughter, Christine.

In 1962 he was called to Bruflat and Trinity Lutheran Churches in Portland, North Dakota. While serving the parish, he also instituted a Lay School of Theology, and taught pastors in the Charis and Great Plains Schools of Theology. He also served as associate professor of chemistry and taught world religions at Mayville State University. While in Portland, three more daughters were born, Rebecca, JoAnn and Katherine.

In 1972, Gerald was called to Trinity Lutheran Church in Moorhead as education pastor. From there he moved to Rugby, North Dakota, to serve the Bethany and Berwick congregations, before returning to Minnesota in 1978 and accepting a call to the Faaberg/Norman/Ness parish at Rindal, Minnesota, where he served for 10 years before retiring and moving with his wife for her job at Dickinson State University, North Dakota. While there he served as interim pastor at the UCC church, and taught chemistry and world religions and supervised student teachers at DSU.

Four years later they returned to the family farm at Winger, and for the next 11 years, he served as visitation pastor at Hope Lutheran in Fosston, followed by supply preaching at Calvary Lutheran in Winger and Immanuel Lutheran in Bejou for several years. After more than 60 years of church ministry, Gerald retired again to build a chapel on the home farm to house and preserve the contents of Sand Hill Lutheran Church which was being demolished. In this chapel he conducted several Norwegian language services, honoring the faith and heritage from the pioneers of the area.

Gerald, like the rest of the “Greatest Generation” of World War II, was a remarkable man and a faithful servant of God.

He leaves his wife of 62 years, Joyce; his daughters, the Rev. Stephanie White, of Shelby, Montana; Christine (Dale) Lennon, of Bismarck, the Rev. Rebecca (Todd) Worner, of Starbuck, Minnesota; Dr. JoAnn (Ehsan) Khaleel, of San Diego; and Katherine White (Hiten Doshi), of Anaheim, California. He also leaves two foster sons, Cuong Le (Hang), of Andover, Minnesota, and Truc Le (Vy), of Kent, Washington; 17 grandchildren and eight-great grandchildren.

Blessed be his memory.