Dan Linrud has been elected president for the Oregon Conference with the approval of the conference nominating committee on Monday, Dec. 19. Linrud has served as assistant to the president for the 36,000-member conference since 2013. He fills the role left vacant by Al Reimche who officially retired Dec. 5.
Bellingham born and a fifth-generation Adventist, Linrud holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary and a Master of Divinity from the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews University. With more than 23 years in local church pastoral ministry, he has honed leadership skills with more than seven years of experience in conference administration. Prior to his role at the Oregon Conference, Linrud served as the executive secretary, or vice president for administration, of Canada’s Ontario Conference.
He has honed leadership skills with more than seven years of experience in conference administration.
Linrud earlier served for a number of years in the Washington Conference as district pastor of the Issaquah and Snoqualmie Valley congregations, and lead pastor at the North Creek Adventist Fellowship in Bothell. Further experience in Ontario led to diverse roles in development and mentoring of other pastors, oversight of personnel, resolution of human resource and other legal matters, promotion of Adventist education, in addition to church growth and evangelism.
Linrud’s wide experience, combined with relationships he has fostered throughout the conference, brings a high level of confidence in his readiness to take over the presidential reins following Reimche’s retirement. He and his wife, Verlaine, who is an Adventist elementary school teacher, have two young adult daughters and one son-in-law. Linrud’s stated objective is “to lead others in knowing, loving, serving and sharing Jesus, as members in ministry advancing His kingdom for His glory in Oregon Conference and beyond.”
As part of his response in accepting the nominating committee’s invitation, Linrud said: “Thank you for the opportunity to serve. It is truly humbling and sobering. No human deserves to lead in God's Church. We have one Leader — Jesus Christ — and we all are blessed to be called to our respective roles as Members in Ministry.”
North Pacific Union Conference administrators led out in the search process, vetting and referencing all individuals willing for their names to be considered. Those names were brought to Oregon nominating committee members who were able to examine each resume, referencing scores and comments before the final vote. The nominating committee is the executive committee with several additional members who represent the various regions throughout the conference.
Reimche retires after 18 years of service to the Oregon Conference, beginning as ministerial director in 1998, then vice president for administration in 2001. He was president of the conference since 2009. Reimche was instrumental in leading the conference to embrace its current slogan of “Called by God to Go … Members in Ministry.”
