wfn.org | Cancer leads to reversal of roles for pastor, flock

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

Feb. 1, 1999        Contact: Tim Tanton*(615)742-5470*Nashville, Tenn.
10-71BP{056}

NOTE:  A photo is available with this story.

By Jill Callison*

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (UMNS) -- The diagnosis came with a take-your-breath-away
unexpectedness, a couple of days after a routine checkup that Darrel Leach
approached, believing he had nothing more serious than a cold.

But in the intervening 13 months, a time blurred by three surgeries and
aggressive treatment, the United Methodist pastor never wavered in his
faith.

"I feel like I'm the most fortunate 57-year-old person this side of heaven,"
Leach said.

Leach has accepted the challenge that faces every ill person, said the Rev.
Howard Grinager, a district superintendent for the United Methodist Church's
Dakotas conference.

"What happened to Darrel can happen to any of us," Grinager said. "So a part
of the challenge simply becomes as it does for every person, to learn to
live each day fully, to find joy in life."  

Leach also has accepted a role reversal. The flocks he tended in Dell Rapids
and Colman, near Sioux Falls, abruptly took over the shepherd's role.

"It helps you put your own life in perspective," said Sandi Sittig,
chairwoman of the worship committee at Dell Rapids United Methodist Church.
"When he first got sick, it was like, 'What do we do? Where do we go? How do
we get this done?' And then everybody else kind of takes over and pitches in
and pools their resources, and pretty soon you have the project completed." 

Many of those projects were started by Leach, who came to the fast-growing
Dell Rapids five years ago. One is an after-school program know as The
Haven. And every day that he's able, Leach walks the children from the
nearby school to the church where the program takes place.

He relishes the contact with children because working with young people has
been a blessing of ministry for him. A plaque on his wall announces his
installation in the United Methodist  youth worker hall of fame.

Leach began his ministry in Colman and returned 26 years later. He and wife
Karla, an elementary school teacher, began planning for retirement. After
completing 35 years, he would satisfy his desire for an acreage, and tend a
few animals and a Shetland pony or two.

Then came Oct. 13, 1997, and the stunning news.

"I was told one word: it's melanoma," Leach said. "That was the beginning of
what's happened in my life."  

Three days after the diagnosis, he underwent a 7½-hour operation, the first
of three brain surgeries. 

^From the beginning, he shared everything with his congregations. He also has
shared his story with others. For example, he spoke at Asbury United
Methodist Church in Sioux Falls.

"The reason I invited him to come and share at our evening service was so he
could share the graces of God that he's experienced in the midst of the time
of suffering," said the Rev. Dar Berkenpas, Asbury's pastor. "I can hardly
believe the depth of his awareness to the promptings of the Spirit within
and how he's honoring that, no matter what lies ahead." 

Treatment was immediate and aggressive, most of it in Sioux Falls. Karla
learned to give him the necessary shots. They also traveled to Denver to see
doctors, and Leach has gone on the Internet to learn more. He also continues
a regimen of vigorous exercise, as he has done for years.

Both congregations made it clear that he could stay as long as he wanted.
But Leach decided the time had come to let them move on. He has been on
disability leave since Jan. 1. He officially will retire in June and plans
to return to Sioux Falls.

"I have experienced the power of prayer in all this,"  Leach said. "I have
thousands of people praying for me, including many Catholic Masses, and
that's made a difference." 

Someone asked him once why he wasn't angry at God for putting him through a
year of illness and the need to confront his own mortality.

"I don't ask why, I ask why not," Leach said. "God shows no partiality, and
I'm no better than anyone else. Life isn't fair, but when this happens to
you, it makes you a more complete person. I don't know how many cancer
patients I visited and said, 'I understand how you feel,' but I really
didn't until I took this walk myself."
				# # #
*Callison is a writer for the Argus Leader newspaper in Sioux Falls, S.D.

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