The Rev. Robert McClain Lescallette, St John's Pastor since July 1, 1978, is a native of Harrisburg and therefore a Central Pennsylvania in every fiber of his being! The son of a civil engineer and a homemaker, he grew up in a close family unit, with one sister and lots of relatives living nearby. Although baptized at Zion Lutheran Church on Palm Sunday, in 1948, his family moved to Harrisburg eastern suburbs, near Paxtang, in 1951, and Good Shepherd Lutheran Church became his home congregation....where he went to Sunday School and Catechetical Class, was confirmed and served as an acolyte, junior choir member, lector, and worship assistant. Pastor's Dad was active in the leadership of the congregation, and served as its president, treasurer, and building committee chairman, while his mom helped out on the office and taught VBS.

Pastor Lescallette is a graduate of the Central Dauphin School District and that district's East High School, where he pursued extra-curricular interests in interact, the Rotary Club's service organization, the National Honor Society, and the Junior Class play. He also served as manager of the Varsity Football team for two seasons.

After high school, pastor spent four years at Carlisle Dickinson College, from which he was graduated magna cum laude in 1970, with a major in Political Science and minors in German and Fine Arts. He was also elected a member of Phi Beta Kappa,  the National German Honorary Fraternity, and the National Social Science Fraternity. The highlight of his years at Dickinson occurred during the 1968 - 1969 school year, when he spent the year abroad, studying at Johns Hopkins Center for International Studies in Bologna, Italy, and touring the continent. At this point in his life, he thought that his future lay in service to his country in the diplomatic corps.

A darmatic change of course happened during the closing days of the Vietnam War, when the first national lottery took place to re-institute the draft, and although he was accepted at American University's School of Law, those Plans had to be changed, and he inlisted in the United States Air Force for a tour of duty lasting from 1970 until 1974. After attending basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, and Medical Helper School in Wichita Falls...also in Texas, Lescallette was assigned to Malcolm Grow USAF Medical Center in Washington, DC., where he served successively in Central Files, the Business Office, and the Admission Office. In the latter department, he served as NCOIC and was SSGT. to about a dozen troops. Highlights of  his time at Andrews AFB were the meeting of his best friend, friendships with several civilian employees of the hospital, the chance to take part in repatriation of many Vietnam POE's a wonderful leave in Europe, and a chance to do some more thinking about  vocational matters. More and more Pastor found himself in situations which called for him to be a defender of the Christian faith before a world of agnosticism and need. He also was a regular parti-cipant in religious worship at both the base chapel and in civilian congregation outside the base.

Discharged in 1974 from active service, Lescallette spent the summer doing what he had done during the summer of his college years...... working for his father's construction company as a laborer..... and finding, again, that the subject of religion kept surfacing in his conversation with his fellow workers. "Could this be what God wanted him to do......be a Pastor?" was the question that continued to eat at the corners of his mind. "Or should he be a teacher, or a journalist, or a doctor, or a lawyer, or an archaeologist?"

Their were no clear answers, but a some  what mystical experience one might provider a flush of insight impelled him to talk to some others about the ministry....and so he found himself discussing the matter with the President of Gettysburg Seminary and the Dean of that institution.

The result of all this was his entrance into Gettysburg in the Fall of 1974 on a provisional basic. Pastor found the academic work interesting and fairly easy (something that he had had some misgiving about, after a non-theological college career and a long 4 years absence from the classroom) and his experience in fieldwork at memorial Lutheran Church in Shippensburg, seemed to confirm his calling.

The summer of 1975 was spent at Bethany Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas, in their "clinical pastoral education" program......and then it was back to Gettysburg for a second year of class work.

For sixteen months, in 1976 and 1977, Lescallette served as the "vicar" or interm Pastor at Lebanon Salem Lutheran Church, under the tutelage of the Rev. Harry T. Richwine, and he loved the work and the people whom he met and served.

But their was still a final year of class work ahead, before graduation, and so, rather then return to the familiar halls of Seminary in Gettysburg, he lived among the Lutheran students and Roman Catholic seminaries at St Paul's College, in Washington DC. and took classes at Catholic University and Gettysburg. The year was a real eye-opener in terms of the ecumenical nature of the Church, and 1977 - 1978 proved to be the favorite of the seminary experience.

In 1978, Pastor was graduated from Gettysburg Lutheran Theological Seminary with an MDiv degree and he was approved by the Central Synod to be eligible for call.

Hearing from a friend, Ron Pierson, about a vacant parish that Peirson had once served, Bob sought a call their, and he became St John's 42nd regularly Pastor, following employment on July 1, 1978, ordination on August 13th 1978 and installed, August 27th 1978.

A bachelor still, he shared the church parsonage with a host of dogs and cats, three families of refugees which the congregation sponsored, and many foreign "exchange" students from Holland, Norway, and Germany.

Pastor's ministry at St John's has been characterized by a great interest in parish and community historical (he has planned many historical celebrations, written histories, co-founded a local historical society, and preserved and maintained vast congregational archives), leadership of worship (where he inaugurated many liturgical practices and great variety.....utilizing 4 different hymnals and everything from traditional worship to contemporary worship), and social outreach (which included co-founding of the local food bank, beginning of the local CROP walk, and participation in the area temporary shelter program). St John's has also undergone many changes to its physical plant during the time of the Lescallette pastorate, which include the addition of an elevator and expansion of the social hall at church, beautification of the nave in many ways....with the restoration of the choir loft and addition of an alter redoes, kneeling cushions, banners, and chandeliers and countless projects invloving the parsonage and the cemetery grounds.

 In 2003 the congregation honored Pastor Lescallette for his 25 years as St John's shepherd, with a special bronze plaque, a wonderful banquet, and many other gifts and expressions of appreciation. He is now the longest tenured pastor in the parish's long history, and is the longest serving pastor in one parish, in the Lancaster Conference.