John G. LeMond, 74

The Rev. Dr. John G. LeMond transitioned from life to life through death on 02/19/2023. John was born on July 31, 1948, in Tampa, Florida. At the age of one month he was placed in the Hillsborough County Children’s Home, and at the age of two months was adopted by Frank and Grace LeMond, and moved with them to their home in Lakeland, Florida, where he was raised. Frank passed away when John was four and when he was six Grace remarried John M. Roach, who adopted John and became Dad.

Following high school and three years in the U.S. Navy, John graduated from the University of South Florida, and went on to attend Luther Theological Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey. He was ordained in the American Lutheran Church (now the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) in 1981, and spent the remainder of his life before retirement in 2014 as a missionary in the China area, first in Taiwan and later in Hong Kong. In addition to serving as a pastor in the Kangshan Lutheran Church in Taiwan, he also served throughout his years in Hong Kong as a sacramental pastor in a number of Chinese-language congregations. He was the editor of the English-language Areopagus Magazine, on the subject of interfaith dialogue, at the Tao Fong Shan Christian Centre, and taught for over 20 years at Lutheran Theological Seminary, Hong Kong in the areas of church history and religious studies. John and his wife, Barbara, were married in 1976, and were a team in every way for the remainder of his life.

John is survived by Barbara, the love of his life, and by his precious children: David LeMond, Janna and Vinnie Garramone, and Ryan and Kara LeMond. John and Barbara were also blessed with four grandchildren: Ridley, Nico, Edie, and Ari Garramone. He is also survived by his sister, Jane Anne Dowd and her husband John. In addition to family, John was blessed with special relationships far and near, including his childhood friend of more than 60 years, Jerry Dollar and his wife Barbara; Ted and Janey Zimmerman and their family with whom he and Barbara shared ministry and life for over 40 years; a brother, John Chanudet and his wife Becky, whom he came to know later in life; and many, many friends, colleagues, and interfaith partners throughout the world. Jesus says to us in the Gospel of John 15:12, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”