The Rev. Bart Day has accepted a call to serve as president and chief executive officer of Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF). He will succeed Rich Robertson, who plans to retire Oct. 1 after serving in the post for eight years. Day plans to begin his transition to LCEF Sept. 1.
Day has been executive director of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s Office of National Mission for the past six years, overseeing 20 ministries that support LCMS districts, congregations, schools and workers in their “witness, mercy and life together.”
He also served as interim chief mission officer from 2014 to 2015, reporting directly to the LCMS president, and as interim executive director of Pastoral Education from 2015 to 2016, overseeing coordination of the church body’s pre-seminary, seminary and post-seminary education programs.
In his new position, Day will oversee LCEF’s investments, loans and ministry-support activities; communicate with its partner organizations; and assist its board of directors in establishing the overall course and direction of the organization.
Day said he is “completely humbled” by the call. “LCEF has faithfully served the church for the last 39 years, and the work of providing funds and services for the sharing of the Gospel will extend long into the future,” he said. “The opportunity to serve such a wonderful organization along with such committed people is overwhelming.
“The Lord has certainly led me on an unusual path in the church these past 20 years, giving me the opportunity to serve in ways I never imagined when leaving the seminary,” Day continued. “Each new open door has been a blessing and a delight. Together with our investors and borrowers I look forward to a bold future at LCEF.”
LCMS President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison thanked Day “for his stellar service in the Office of National Mission. We are very confident his skills will be a blessing to LCEF and to the LCMS family — nationally and around the world.”
Citing Day’s “joyful, pastoral approach and faithfulness to the Word, combined with his ability to foster excellent working relationships,” LCMS Chief Mission Officer Rev. Kevin D. Robson called him “an exemplary servant in the Office of National Mission over the past six years, ably assembling and leading a multifaceted team that is producing splendid fruits under priorities given by the Synod in convention.
“With a spirit of gratitude and prayerful anticipation, we look forward to Rev. Day’s ongoing contributions to the church’s mission and our life together in his new role at LCEF,” Robson said.
LCEF Board of Directors Chairperson Rev. Max Phillips said the LCEF board and staff are “excited to have Rev. Day come aboard, as we endeavor to serve the Lord Jesus and His church how we do it best — with stable practice and innovative design.
“We invite our brothers and sisters in Christ to join us in praying for the mission of LCEF and for Bart as he begins this new phase of his ministry to and with God’s people.”
Day began his career in 1997 as associate pastor at Memorial Lutheran Church in Houston. He served concurrently as headmaster of Memorial Lutheran School from 2005 to 2011.
His service to the church also includes leading or taking part in numerous mission trips to the United Kingdom, Mexico, Nicaragua and Kenya.
Since 2002 he has served in a number of volunteer positions, including as a board member of The Friends of Westfield House, Lutheran Services in America, Lutheran Hour Ministries, and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.
A graduate of Concordia Teachers College (now Concordia University) in Seward, Neb., Day also holds a Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.
He and his wife, Julie, have six children and reside in Sunset Hills, Mo.
In a July 18 news release announcing Day’s acceptance of the position, LCEF also thanked Robertson “for his vision, focus and leadership for the past eight years. The organization has been blessed to have a servant-leader such as Rich commit so much to the service of both LCEF and the LCMS.”
The nonprofit LCEF provides loans and facility-planning services to LCMS churches, schools and rostered church workers through the investment support of church members. It strives to “support the church in fulfilling its mission of sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ by being a Christ-centered servant partner of the LCMS, ensuring that funds and services are available now and in the future.”
Posted July 18, 2017 / Updated July 19, 2017
