Bishop Harold L. Usgaard - Biographical Information

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Short version
was elected June 9, 2001, to a six-year term as bishop of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Previous to his call as bishop, he served as a pastor at St. Olaf Lutheran Church, Austin, Minn.; at Mount Hope Lutheran Church in West Allis, Wis.; and at Zumbro Lutheran Church, Rochester, Minn. Usgaard holds degrees from Luther College and Luther Seminary, and was ordained as a pastor in 1973. He was born and raised in Decorah, Iowa. He and his wife, Lynette, have three grown children and currently reside in Austin, Minn.

Long version
is the current bishop of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The Southeastern Minnesota Synod is a faith community of 132,000 ELCA Lutherans in 183 congregations in 15 Minnesota counties.

Ordained in 1973, Usgaard served Zumbro Lutheran Church in Rochester, Minn. from 1973-1978. He then served Mount Hope Lutheran Church in West Allis, Wis. from 1978-1991, and finally returned to Minnesota to serve St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Austin from 1991-2001. On June 9, 2001, he was elected bishop of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod, and on October 21 of that year, he was installed as bishop at St. John Lutheran Church in Owatonna, Minn.

Before his election as bishop, Usgaard served on several committees in the Southeastern Minnesota Synod, including the Mission Planning and Action Team, Synod Council and Executive Committee. He has also served on the Good Earth Village Board, Southeastern Minnesota Synod Endowment Committee and the Synod Council and Executive Committee of the Greater Milwaukee Synod, ELCA. He is currently serving on the Luther College Board of Regents.

Usgaard was born October 27, 1947 in Decorah, Iowa. He is the son of Curtis Usgaard, deceased, and Margaret Usgaard of Decorah.

Usgaard was raised in Decorah and attended Luther College in Decorah, where he received his bachelor’s degree in sociology. He went on to earn his master of divinity degree from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. 

Usgaard married Lynette Ellingson, also of Decorah, on December 13, 1969. They currently reside in Austin, Minn., and have three grown children: Jennifer, Sarah, and Joshua.

Additional information
More information on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: www.elca.org
More information about the Southeastern Minnesota Synod: www.semnsynod.org/aboutus.html

Photos of the Bishop

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Head Shot of the Bishop

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