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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">This
evening, I received news about the death of Paul Tideman, 76, who died early
this morning, July 26, of a heart attack in Minneapolis. Lynda, Paul’s first
wife, asked that this news be shared with those who knew him during his work
with EI/OE/ICA, 1967-1980. Rick Deines, who was a close friend of Paul’s since
their first meeting in 1963, has provided some key information to share about
his life. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Â </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Paul
played a pivotal role played with the Local Church Experiment when it commenced
in 1970. Between 1981 and 2006,
Paul was pastor of St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran in St. Paul, MN. During his time
there he played a leading role in bringing the church universal (ELCA,
ecumenical and interfaith) to an new awareness and relationship to GLBT
realities. His writings and action on this and other human rights issues, including
race and poverty, were pioneering endeavors. His missionary time in Guyana was
a key reference point for him about global care throughout his entire life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Â </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Paul
was married to his second wife, Janet, for 30-some years. Though she had
Parkinson’s during the second half of their time together, and experienced radical
health decline in recent months, Paul and Janet continued to bring depth and
insight to this and all situations they encountered.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><br><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt">
<span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">A full obituary with information about service arrangements will follow.<br></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Â </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Grace
and Peace,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Â </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial">Terry Bergdall<br></span></p>
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