Gary Burns, former Lake Union communication director and longtime editor of the Lake Union Herald, died on Aug. 20 in Dayton, Ohio. He was 73.
Pastor Gary or PG, as he was affectionately known, grew up in the Walla Walla Valley during his childhood years and then moved across the United States to Kettering, Ohio when his father accepted a job at the then beginnings of Kettering Medical Center.
He started attending Dayton Junior Academy in the 7th grade, which turned into Spring Valley Academy in 1968. During his high school years, he got his first taste of communication there by filming and lighting events for students and faculty.
After graduating from Spring Valley in 1971 and deciding where to go for college, he decided to follow his best friend from SVA to Columbia Union College, and she later became his wife in 1973. During his time at CUC, he created and hosted one of the first student-led radio shows on campus.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in theology in 1975, he began his pastoral career as an associate pastor at the Bucks County Seventh-day Adventist Church in Pennsylvania shortly after graduation.
Having a passion for film and communication, he moved back home in 1976 and started his communication career at Kettering Medical Center as a producer for radio and TV, which was a revolutionary new way for a hospital to connect to a community at that time.
In 1980, Gary then took his communication talents to Florida, first taking a contract teaching job with Full Sail University, becoming their first music and lighting instructor, and then creating his own company, Life Productions, which helped tell stories on behalf of Hialeah Hospital.
Feeling a call back to ministry, Gary moved back to Ohio in 1985 and accepted a call in the Ohio Conference to pastor the Defiance, Bryan, and Hicksville district. During this time, Pastor Walter Wright served as his senior pastor/advisor in an unprecedented collaboration between the Ohio Conference and Allegheny West Conference, until Gary’s ordination in 1989.
Shortly after his ordination, he accepted a call to become the youth pastor for Pioneer Memorial Church on the campus of Andrews University. While there, he entered the Adventist Education realm, teaching Bible classes, as well as marriage and family classes at Andrews Academy. In 1995, he received a call from Dakota Adventist Academy in Bismarck, North Dakota to become the chaplain and youth pastor, while also adding the roles of youth and young adult leader for the Dakota Conference, which included becoming the camp director of Flag Mountain. During this time, he started working with the North American Division prayer ministry team to establish a focus on teen prayer.
While handling these responsibilities at the Dakota Conference, he also was working on his master’s degree in religious education from Andrews University, which he received in 1998.
Though he never attended the seminary, his list of mentors includes a number of seminary professors, and seasoned pastors, such as Tedd French, Ray Homes Doug Kilcher, Don Jacobsen, Jon Phelps, Roger Shrack and Walter Wright.
In 2003, he received a call to the Lake Union to become the communication director. During his 18 years at the Lake Union, he relied heavily on the Holy Spirit to inspire his writings for the Lake Union Herald, meaning sometimes articles came later than a managing editor might hope. He did not steer away from hard topics and talked about them by adding columns such “Present Truth” in the Herald, which always embraced the opportunity to show the love of Jesus, even in difficult subjects. In addition, he was responsible for the introduction of the Spanish language column, Conexiones. His joy was the Lake Union Herald and was the one who insisted it must tell the stories of God at work in all His people in order to inspire, educate, inform and advance the work in the Lake Union Conference and beyond.
Even though he was no longer in formal pastoral ministry, Gary carried this role into his communication role. It was not unusual for him to pay a pastoral visit readers who reached out to his office.
Besides his main responsibilities, he also served on the U.S. president’s prayer committee and had opportunities to pray for and encourage many government leaders. He was a valued ambassador for work with indigenous people groups on behalf of the Lake Union Conference and served on the NAD Native Ministries Advisory, giving counsel for the resources they produced.
Gary retired in 2021, after more the 40 years serving within the Adventist Church in roles from associate pastor, producer, youth pastor, chaplain, camp director, communication director, mentor and friend. At the 2025 Society of Adventist Communicators convention, he was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his significant contributions to communication within the Adventist Church.
He is survived by his mother Hazel Burns; his younger sister, Teri Burns Webster (Tedd); and his children, Josie Burns, Tyler Burns (Lacey), and Ryan Burns; grandchildren, Brylee, Lexi, and Colbe (Tyler). His wife MaryAnn and his father Wayne preceded him in death, in 2020. A celebration of life service will be held on Sabbath, Nov. 7 at 4 p.m. at the Dale Wright Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church, 7409 Conservancy Rd., Germantown, OH 45327. The service will be livestreamed. Memories can be shared at https://lusainohio.com/obituaries/gary-burns-2026
Compiled by Herald staff