- R. Kern Eutsler
Ralph Kern Eutsler (born
2 August 1919 ) is aretired AmericanBishop of theUnited Methodist Church , elected in 1984.Birth and Family
Eutsler was born 2 August 1919 in
Bridgewater, Virginia . He married Eva Rebecca Vines ofGreenville, Virginia 20 October 1945. She was born 23 June 1922 and is a graduate ofMary Baldwin College ,Staunton, Virginia . They have two daughters: Rebecca Ann Coulter and Mary Margaret Abramson.Education
Eutsler earned the
B.A. degree in 1940 fromBerea College inBerea, Kentucky , just south of Lexington. He then earned theB.D. degree in 1943 from Union Theological Seminary inNew York City .Ordained Ministry
He became a member of the
Virginia Annual Conference of The Methodist Church. Rev. Eutsler served the following appointments: Greenville-Mint Spring (1943-45), Elkton (1945-49), Luray (1949-53), South Roanoke (1953-60), theGinter Park Methodist Church in Richmond (1960-65), and the Washington Street Church in Alexandria (1965-66). In 1966 he was appointed theExecutive Director of Virginia Methodist Homes, Inc., serving in this capacity until 1973. Rev. Eutsler then was appointed the Superintendent of the Alexandria District of the United Methodist Church (1973-78), thenPastor of the Reveille U.M. Church in Richmond (1978-82). His final appointment before his election to the Episcopacy was as Director of the Virginia Conference Council on Ministries (1982-84).Rev. Eutsler was elected a delegate to
U.M. General and Jurisdictional Conferences, 1964-84. He served on numerous conference agencies, and on the U.M. General Board of Global Ministries (1972-76) and the General Board of Discipleship (1980-88).Episcopal Ministry
The Rev. Ralph Kern Eutsler was elected to the
Episcopacy by the 1984 Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of theU.M. Church . He was assigned to theHolston Episcopal Area, where he served until his retirement in 1988. Bishop Eutsler served as the Chairman of the Curriculum Resources Committee of the U.M. General Board of Discipleship (1984-88).In
retirement Bishop Eutsler served for seven years as the Director of Interpretation and Promotion of United Methodist Volunteers in Missions in the Southeastern Jurisdiction. He also served as a fund raising consultant with local churches.References
*InfoServ, the official information service of The United Methodist Church. [http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=1&mid=1244]
*The Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church [http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=1&mid=5855]ee also
*
List of Bishops of the United Methodist Church External links
* [http://www2.umc.org/umns/photos_headshots.asp?ptid=2&mid=2060&photo=hse053 Phot of Bishop Eutsler]
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