Rev. Paul Nash

Paul Michael Nash, 67, was called to his heavenly home on October 9, 2021, by his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Visitation will be held on Thursday, October 21, 2021, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM, followed by a prayer service at 7:00 PM at Vertin-Munson Funeral Home, Wahpeton, ND.  Visitation will continue on Friday, October 22, 2021, from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, followed by his funeral service at 11:00 AM at Maranatha Free Lutheran Church in Glyndon, MN. Burial will be held at Bethany Free Lutheran Cemetery, rural Abercrombie, ND, at 3:00 PM following the funeral.  A live stream of his services will be available on the Maranatha Church website at (https://youtu.be/HTeGtLyRjFw) and the funeral home’s website.

Paul was born to the late Kenneth and Mary Nash, a faithful farmer and hardworking homemaker respectively, in Breckenridge, Minnesota on November 9, 1953. He was a proud farm boy growing up on the Nash homestead in rural Colfax, North Dakota. He attended and graduated from Richland #44 High School in 1971, the Association Free Lutheran Bible School in 1973, Moorhead State University in 1975, and the Association Free Lutheran Theological Seminary in 1979.

Paul was blessed with a large and loving family. He married his Bible School sweetheart Laurie Kay Dietsche on June 29, 1974. They raised three children and have ten grandchildren who were his pride and joy. He always made his kids finish their dinner before dessert but loved giving his grandkids however much ice cream they wanted whenever they wanted. He worked hard and played hard. He instilled an ambitious work ethic into his kids from a young age and loved saying “if you have the energy to fight, you have the energy to do chores”. He was excited to build a home on his and Laurie’s recently purchased lake lot where he could take his grandkids tubing and fishing.

Paul pastored churches in Michigan, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Texas. He was a Chaplain for the Roseau County Sheriff’s Department, served on the AFLC Youth Board and AFLC School Corporation. Paul was the Director of AFLC Home Missions for twenty-three years. He is a licensed pilot and flew as a Search and Rescue Pilot for many years. His greatest joy was working with young people and training them to serve God through the Parish Builders program. He also helped start F.L.A.P.S. (Free Lutheran Association of Pilot Supporters) and worked extensively with the Alaska Mission including KAKN Radio in Naknek. Most recently he started Shamgar Ministries which focuses on mobilizing men for God’s mission and His glory.

He was an avid pilot and mechanic and loved working on airplanes and cars. He had a big heart and would go out of his way to help anyone in need. He was boisterous and larger than life, and always had time to answer a question or solve a problem, no matter how small. His ultimate goal in life was to meet people where they were at and walk them to the Cross. He is dearly missed by his loved ones, who celebrate the fact that he is at peace in the presence of his Creator. His devotion to ministry, his family, and serving others is a legacy that will live on through those whose lives he touched.

Paul is survived by his wife, Laurie; his son, Samuel (Emily) Nash; his daughters, Melissa (Daniel) Windsor and Sara Nash; his grandchildren, Sydney, Aidyn, Chloe, Tallula, Penelope and Georgia Windsor and Vincent, Lincoln, Miles and Iris Nash; his brothers, Donald (Penny) Nash, Marlow (Ranee) Nash, Kermit (Angela) Nash; his sister, Marjorie (Arden) Jacobson; and his sister-in-law, Kendra. He is preceded in death by an infant brother, his brother, Keith Nash, and his parents, Kenneth and Mary.

In lieu of flowers, Paul requested donations be given to F.L.A.P.S. Aviation Ministry or the Alaska Mission at aflchomemissions.org/donate/