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07218
April 13, 2007
Notes about people
Douglas F. Ottati, professor of theology at Union Theological Seminary-Presbyterian School of Christian Education for nearly 30 years, is heading to Davidson (NC) College to fill a newly-endowed chair in religion. Ottati, who has been a visiting professor at Davidson this spring, begins his new work next fall.
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The Rev. Michael D. Smith, a retired Presbyterian minister living in Tucson, AZ, was recently honored by Planned Parenthood Federation of America for his lifetime of leadership for reproductive freedom and justice.
The group’s Distinguished Service Award was presented to Smith at its annual meeting in Los Angeles on March 29. The award highlights the important role played by clergy of many faiths in supporting women’s rights to birth control and safe, legal abortion services.
Smith has been active in reproductive freedom and justice issues for many years as a campus minister and pastor in Iowa and Arizona.
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George Mack
George J. Mack III — a lifelong Presbyterian who was a fixture in the General Assembly Communications Center for many years — died March 7 after a year and a half of struggling with pancreatic cancer. He was just four months shy of his 80th birthday.
A native of Cranford, NJ, Mack served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, then graduated from Northwestern University as an electrical engineer. He worked his entire career for General Motors, first in its space program in Milwaukee and then in the automotive division in Detroit. He retired in 1987.
Mack was ordained an elder in the PC(USA) in 1960 and has served on the session of three congregations. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Marjorie Foster (Midge) Mack, two children and two grandchildren. A memorial service was held March 12 at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Hendersonville, NC, where in retirement he was a session member and treasurer.
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The Rev. David Wallace, dean of Atlanta’s Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary,
has submitted his resignation, effective Dec. 31, 2007. Wallace has directed the affairs of the seminary since 1993.
“David Wallace has been a faithful and passionate spokesman for Johnson C.
Smith. His contributions culminated in the initiation of a major gifts campaign that includes the commitment of John Wieland to build a new facility for the seminary on the Interdenominational Theological Center campus,” said the Rev. Eugene Turner, president of the seminary’s board of trustees.
The board will soon appoint a search committee to begin looking for Wallace’s successor. |
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