Husband of Concordia Alumna Dies in Haiti

Jan 15, 2010

Husband of Concordia Alumna Dies in Haiti

The Concordia community grieves with Renee Splichal Larson ’04 whose husband, Ben Larson, died in the Haiti earthquake. Ben was a Luther graduate and a student at Wartburg Theological Seminary.

Renee, Ben and Ben’s cousin Jonathan Larson, all seminary students, were providing assistance to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Haiti. The three students were staying at St. Joseph’s Home for Boys in Port-au-Prince when the building collapsed on them during the earthquake. Renee and Jonathan were able to escape but when they went back, they were unable to locate Ben.

“We are saddened by the news,” says Concordia President Pamela Jolicoeur. “The work Renee and her husband were doing in Haiti is an inspiring example of faith in action. Concordia extends its deepest sympathy to Renee and her family.”

The seminary students were in Haiti for a January term. Ben and Jonathan were serving as teachers to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Haiti. Renee was working with the people of Haiti doing interviews and research for her Masters of Divinity thesis on the beginnings of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Haiti.

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