Daniel James McLaughlin

Dan is survived by his wife of 42 years, Larami McLaughlin, his daughter Natalie (Ken) Alexander, his son Ryan (Erin) McLaughlin, his goddaughter, C’arah Coleman, and three grandchildren, Lyla Alexander 8, Kayden Alexander 5, and Kamila Alexander, 3.

In Dan’s world, strangers were friends and friends were family. His passion was leading the broken to a life of hope by introducing them to a relationship with Christ. His message brought a real Jesus to them who would take them as they were, right where they were, and walk with them as they turned their lives to Him as Savior.

Dan gave his life to Christ at the age of 18. He graduated from Johnstown-Monroe High School in the class of 1980. He continued his education at the Ohio State University majoring in communications and broadcasting. In the early 1980s, he was the morning drivetime host on WCVO which is now known as 104.9 The River. Dan attended a Bible Missions conference where he felt the call from God to give his life to full time ministry. His journey began with Youth for Christ where he served for over 20 years. He was a staff person at Central Ohio Youth for Christ and later joined the team at Bluewater Thumb Youth for Christ where friends became family and he had the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of students. In the late 1990s he became the director of Youth for Christ in Mansfield known as North Central Ohio YFC where he developed staff and ministries such as His House and JAM (Jesus and me) which ministered to students in the urban areas.

While in Mansfield he became ordained as a pastor, and in 2005 he answered the call to become the pastor of Faith Fellowship in Johnstown, Ohio. The message of hope continued as he encouraged the act of serving others in the community by being “Jesus with skin on”. His desire in these efforts was to introduce them to a saving relationship with Jesus and encourage them to grow as disciples of Christ. He retired from the pastorate in January of 2023.

As Dan struggled with his health, the call of ministry on his life was as strong as the day he heard it. He continued the message of hope in the form of a podcast known as “Let go and Let God with Dan McLaughlin”. He will be dearly missed by those who knew him, but the message lives on. I Thessalonians 4:13-17

Friends may call from 2-4 & 6-8 p.m. on Friday, January 3, 2025 at Shepherd Church of the Nazarene, 425 S. Hamilton Rd., Gahanna, OH 43230. A celebration of life will take place at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday at the church with Pastor Rob Paugh and Pastor Ken Smeader officiating. Honoring Dan’s wishes, cremation will follow services. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Faith Care Food Pantry or Shepherd Church of the Nazarene Johnstown Campus in Dan’s memory.

Thank you Dan for giving to the Lord, hundreds of lives have been changed.

Dan’s podcast can be heard at https://www.podbean.com/pu/pbblog-3q5ea-119e02a

Livestream for funeral services will be available at shepnaz.altarlive.com