[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15551-15552]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           REMEMBERING BISHOP
                             EMERSON COLAW

  Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, today I wish to remember a dear friend, 
Bishop Emerson Colaw, a devoted and widely respected leader of the 
United Methodist Church. Bishop Colaw passed away on October 11, 2016, 
at the age of 94 in Ohio, where he lived during the final years of his 
life.
  Emerson Stephen Colaw was born November 13, 1921, in Chanute, KS, and 
moved to Cincinnati at the age of 16 to attend God's Bible School and 
College. A committed student, Colaw went on to earn a B.S. degree in 
1944 from the University of Cincinnati, a bachelor of divinity, magna 
cum laude, in 1947 from Drew Theological Seminary, and a master of arts 
in 1953 from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. He also received 
honorary doctorates from five different institutions.
  Remembered as a strong preacher and compassionate leader who loved 
the church and had a heart for the clergy, Colaw served as a mentor and 
role model of Christian discipleship for colleagues, congregants, 
friends, and family. He began his ministry as a clergyperson for the 
United Methodist Church serving the New York Annual Conference and the 
Northern Illinois Annual Conference, where he served three pastorates 
over 14 years.
  In 1961, Colaw was appointed to Hyde Park Community United Methodist 
Church in Cincinnati, OH, part of the West Ohio Annual Conference. 
During his time in Cincinnati, Colaw spent many years as the moderator 
of a weekly television program titled ``Dialogue'' which featured area 
clergy from a variety of faiths.
  After 19 years of service to Hyde Park Community Methodist Church, in 
1980, Colaw was elected Bishop of the Minnesota Conference, where he 
served until retiring from the episcopacy in 1988. He went on to serve 
as professor of Homiletics and Christian Ministry at the United 
Theological Seminary in Dayton, OH, from 1988 to 1999 and was its 
acting president in 1995-96. He later

[[Page 15552]]

spent winters in Florida and served as bishop-in-residence at North 
Naples United Methodist Church.
  Emmerson and his late wife, Jane, were married more than 70 years and 
raised 4 children, 8 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, and a 
great-great-granddaughter.
  I would like to honor Emmerson Colaw for his contributions to the 
United Methodist Church, his community, and our State.

                          ____________________