Russ was one of our core members, the pastor of Sachse United Methodist Church, and an all-around great person. His sudden absence left our band, his church, and all who knew him, in a great deal of shock.
Here is Russ' official obituary:
"Reverend Russell Eugene Noland
Elder, North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, August 14, 2008 after suffering a massive heart attack at his home.
Russ was born on April 19, 1955 in Booneville, Missouri and was an alumni of John Tyler High School in Tyler, TX and Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, TX. He was a 1997 graduate of Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, KY; a member of Theta Phi, International honor society for religious professionals and was twice named to Who’s Who Among American Colleges and Universities.
He was preceded in death by his father, Harold Noland. Russ is survived by his wife, Stephanie, his mother, Betty J. Noland of Ashland, MO, sister and brother in law, Patty and Gregg Story of Longview, TX, niece and husband, Jennifer and Robert Hansard, niece, Aimee Story, nephews Drew, Preston, and Ian Story, and great nephews, Will and Nolan Hansard
“Pastor Russ”, as he was known, was privileged to serve three United Methodist churches; McKenzie United Methodist in Honey Grove, TX, Casa Linda United Methodist in Dallas, and ended his 11 years of ordained Methodist ministry at Sachse First United Methodist in Sachse. He will be remembered for his love of hot sauce, Starbucks coffee, Hawaiian shirts, music, and the opportunities to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Russ worked in many areas of ministry beyond the local church. He served as the Vice President of the Board for the City Core Initiative, an urban ministry resource group in Dallas, and has served as an editorial consultant to Homiletics magazine, a preaching resource for pastors of all denominations. Pastor Russ was a member of the Creating Congregations Team of the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and chaired the Missional Church Task Force for that group. He had a passion for those whom Jesus called the least, last, and lost… especially children in need. Thus he was proud to be the driving force behind ongoing fundraising events for the North Texas Food Bank’s Food 4 Kids program.
In his spare time, Russ played lead guitar with Connections, a group of United Methodist pastors and laypersons who strongly believe in using their musical skills to raise money for great causes. He was a Fender Strat guy, but welcomed all who loved great music."
Here is a tribute written about Russ by our bandmember, Eric Folkerth, entitled "Goodbye, Stratopastor."
This blog entry has links to several soundclips of Russ playing with Connections.
Throughout 2008, Connections Band honored Russ by displaying his signature Fender Strat guitar at each of our shows.
We carry Russ' spirit with us, trust that he is in God's care, and commit ourselves to his honor his legacy through ministry and music.
