Mark Basil Herbener's Obituary
The Rev. Mark B. Herbener, Bishop Emeritus of the Northern Texas – Northern Louisiana Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, claimed the promises of his baptism on Saturday, October 28, 2017. He died at home with his wife, Donna Gergens Herbener, at his side. Bishop Herbener was born in Chicago, Illinois to Otto and Elsbeth Herbener. He knew he was going to be a pastor when he was 5 years old, and when he was 13 years old, he left home to pursue the education that was required for him to do so. In 1951, he graduated with honors (Cum Laude) from Concordia College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Thereafter, he graduated from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri with a Bachelor of Arts in 1953, and with a Theological Diploma in 1956. His first pastoral call was to Messiah Lutheran Church in Richardson, Texas, where he served from 1956-1961. During that call, he met the love of his life, Donna Gergens, and they were married at Trinity Lutheran Church in Dallas, on April 25, 1958. Trinity Lutheran’s building later became Mt. Olive Lutheran Church, and Bishop Herbener served Mt. Olive as its pastor from 1961-1987. During the height of the civil rights movement, Bishop Herbener worked in harmony with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Black Citizens for Law and Justice, and the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee. He was a board member of the Opportunities Industrialization Center, an organization that provided opportunity for vocational, educational, and life skills training designed to prepare young men and women for full-time employment. While at Mt. Olive, the church established the first food pantry in the city of Dallas, encouraged the building of new homes in South Dallas, and sold part of the church’s property to see that goal realized. He was a beacon in the community to young and old alike. He was Vice President of the Dallas Community of Churches, Director of the Dallas Region of the National Conference of Christians and Jews, Co-Chair of the Dallas Interfaith Task Force, and Interim Director of the Texas Conference of Churches. He was a board member of many theological organizations, including the Dallas Memorial Center for Holocaust Studies, Wartburg Theological Seminary, Texas Lutheran College Corporation, the Dallas Committee on Foreign Relations, The Dallas Council of Bishops and Executive Ministers, the Jewish Christian Relations Forum, and the Texas Conference of Churches. He was the first recipient of the Peacemaker of the Year award from the Dallas Peace Center. Bishop Herbener faithfully served Mt. Olive as its pastor for many years, shepherding them through the tumultuous times of the civil rights era and the Seminex crises as they chose to leave the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS) to become a part of the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC). With the formation of the ELCA, he was elected bishop of the Northern Texas – Northern Louisiana Synod, and he served the Synod, its churches, and its members faithfully before retiring in 2000. During his tenure, he played a pivotal role in the founding and developing of the NT-NL’s strong relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Leone (ELCSL). He was a humble man, though, and he did not brag or boast about these many accomplishments. But enough of the all this serious stuff! He loved a good pun, a bad joke, and a silly song. He loved to sing, and sang with The Lutheran Hour Chorus, the St. Louis Bach Choir, the Dallas Lutheran A Cappella Choir, and with a local group who sang madrigals, as well as Stephen Foster songs. He also sang the National Anthem to open a Texas Rangers baseball game. He taught himself to play guitar, loved silly songs, and sang and taught them to his kids and the kids at church, built a mountain dulcimer, made wine and beer, tried unsuccessfully to make champagne and delighted his family with his pickled herring. He tied his own bowties and flies, and he built a cabin on a lake in East Texas, where he loved to spend time with family, fish, and commune with God. He spent seven wonderful summers in Wittenberg, Germany with the love of his life, Donna. He dearly loved his family, those who came before and those who came after. He was preceded in death by his parents, Otto and Elsbeth, and by his sister Ruth. He is survived by his wife Donna, by his daughter Jenny and her husband Steve, by his son Matthew and his partner Paisley, by his granddaughter Anna, by his brother-in-law Robert, and by many other family members and friends who are too numerous to list here, although they were no less loved. And he was loved dearly by us. And while our hearts are heavy, we delight in our memories, and take comfort in the promise of the resurrection! Memorials may be made to Mosaic (a faith-based organization serving people with intellectual disabilities), the Mission Endowment Fund of the Northern Texas – Northern Louisiana Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Luther Center of North Texas, and Mt. Olive Lutheran Church, Dallas.Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery, 13005 Greenville Avenue, at Restland Road, Dallas, TX 75243, (972-238-7111).
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