Jade Dell

Jade Lynne Luerssen Dell was raised in Central Illinois as a Missouri Synod Lutheran, a very conservative denomination. Attending Duke Divinity School in 1967-1969 in Durham, Jade left that theological view behind and learned about the Social Gospel, Liberation Theology and Black Theology.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated while Jade was at Duke and that was a life-changing event that shaped her next 50 years. After getting a Master’s in Religious Education, Jade moved back to Illinois and was active in 5 United Methodist Congregations – suburban, rural, and city – along with her spouse, Rev. Gregory Dell. Jade’s lay ministry revolved around work with Cesar Chavez’s Farm Workers, protesting the war in Vietnam, working with the ANC against South African Apartheid, supporting Central American refugees from El Salvador and Guatemala living in Public Sanctuary, and protesting the UMC persecution of LGBTQIA persons.

Coming full circle, Jade and Greg moved back to North Carolina in 2015, Jade having retired from working in Public Health for 37 years in the Chicago area. Beloved family are nearby: son Jason, daughter in law Tonya and granddaughters Olivia and Ramona.

Jade has served as Co-Treasurer of CWACM since 2012. In Raleigh, she works with “Fed Up,” an organization addressing food apartheid in low wealth households in Central North Carolina. She also is active with an international group named “The Raging Grannies” who sing truth to power on issues as varied as environmental degradation, racism, militarism, poverty, voting rights and immigration.

Jade continues to struggle to understand how white privilege has shaped her life and how one must keep pushing for dignity and equality especially for People of Color.