Christian Biography of The Reverend Donald E. Olson

Pastor Olson was born in Elmira, NY on July 27, 1935 to Pastor Bror and Anna (Mattson) Olson. His father was the pastor of Bethany Lutheran Church in Elmira. Pastor Olson died Sunday, Nov 22, 2015, at Brookstone Meadows, in Elkhorn, NE.

Pastor Olson graduated from SSH in Elmira, NY.; Uppsala College in East Orange, NJ., and Augustana Seminary in Rock Island, Illinois.
Ordained to the ministry of Word and Sacrament in 1963 he was called to serve Salem Lutheran Church in Williamsport, PA. He then answered the call to do mission work and went to Guyana, South America for 3 years where he was the equivalent of a circuit rider pastor.
From Guyana he came back to Pennsylvania and served a four point parish in and around Liberty, PA. He then served as assistant to the bishop. From there he served in Gettysburg, PA., and as an interim pastor in Newark, DE. Next he went to a 3 point parish in Leeds, ND and it became a 6 point parish. He served as interim assistant to the Rev. Paul Kennedy, at Trinity, Worcester, and interim in Plymouth, both in MA.

He served in Geneva, NE after which he had open heart surgery and retired. This was followed by an interim at First Lutheran, North Platte, NE, and then to Philadelphia where he served in Wissinoming, where he did the ground work for a merger with in Tacony. He was united in marriage to his wife Margaret at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church In Elkins, West Virginia on May 1, 1988.
From Philadelphia the Pastors Olson went back to Nebraska where Pastor Don served more interims at Wayne, Pilgar and Stanton, and covered during Pastor Margaret's bout with cancer.

In 2009 they moved to Omaha, NE and were called to serve an interim and in August of 2010 moved to Superior, NE where they were serving Salem Lutheran, at the time of his death.

He had a passion for church ministry. He was a great person and liked people which was evident when you met him. He was actively serving a parish in his 80th year, which tells a lot about his character. The highlight of his ministry was his presence at the March on Washington where he stood in the crowd around the reflecting pool between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. He heard Dr Martin Luther King's I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH and forever after couldn't hear it without tears in his eyes. He mentored himself by a pastor to go to seminary, he in turn mentored more than a few people to go to seminary. The highlight of his life was his children and grandchildren. He praised both his daughters and their husbands for their ability to parent, and delighted in the achievements of all of his grandchildren. His wish was to live long enough to see them grown, married and settled. He dearly loved all of them.

He was preceded in death by his parents, infant daughter Anita Faith, a sister in law Judith Olson and several aunts, uncles and cousins.

Pastor Olson is survived by his wife, Pastor Margaret Olson, brother the Rev. Richard E. Olson of Edgar, MA., son Bruce Olson (Susan) and children Kevin and Nicholas of Vienna, VA, daughter Rachel Howell (Robert) and children Thomas, and Allison of Cleveland, OH and daughter Sara Gravelle (Mark) and children Eric and Joseph of Ponte Vedra, FL, and a step/daughter Shawn Lisa Achterhof. He is also survived by cousin Ann Smith from Anchorage, Alaska.

Services at: Salem Lutheran Church, Superior, Nebraska

Time of Service: Friday, December 4, 2015 at 1:00 pm

Clergy: Rev. Megan Morrow and Rev. Dale Topp

Burial: Salem Lutheran Cemetery, Superior, Nebraska

Visitation: From 2:00 pm-8:00 pm on Thursday at the Megrue-Price Funeral Home

Megrue-Price Funeral Home, 750 N Commercial, Superior, Nebraska 68978 Phone 402-879-3900