In May 2023, UCC Missoula proudly welcomed our new Senior Pastor, John Lund.
John grew up with Finnish and Sicilian roots in Michigan, was baptized as a Roman Catholic, attended an Episcopalian church as a child and a Lutheran church as a youth. With standing in both ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America) and UCC (United Church of Christ), his personal and professional vision, mission, and values align closely with those of our own church. Pastor Lund served as pastor for Grace Lutheran Church in Dodgeville, WI, until 2000, then as pastor for Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Vancouver, WA, through 2005. From 2005 to joining us in 2023, Pastor John served as the ELCA campus pastor at Emmaus Campus Ministry at the University of Montana here in Missoula.
Pastor John has served as a connecting point between the campus community, churches, and many community organizations, as well as teaching in the Honors College. Pastor John is married and has two sons. Karin is a licensed clinical social worker, Sam recently graduated from Seattle University, and Eric is a junior at MSU. Pastor John enjoys all things outdoors and is an experienced handyman. As a congregation, we are lucky to have found such an experienced and devoted leader.