Carlos Lantis

September 24, 1938 - Easter Sunday, 2014

Rev. Carlos Lantis passed away on this past Easter Sunday. He was born to John C. Lantis and Henrietta Mount Lantis in Carlisle, OH. He was a proud graduate of Carlisle high school. An then attended Miami of Ohio where he was student body president. While there he spent significant time pursuing racial equality while hosting Martin Luther King Jr and other civil rights proponents. Following his graduation form Miami he went on to receive his divinity degree from Princeton Seminary; and was ordained in the New Jersey Presbyterian Church in Carlisle.

While attending Princeton he served as youth minister at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Newburgh NY where he met his first wife Deidre Glenn. His strong interests in the arts and liberal causes led him to a position as an Assistant Editor at Concern, a Presbyterian Magazine based in New York City. Then after 7 years in that position through an odd set of circumstances he moved his young family to County Tipperary Ireland where he founded a Community Craft Center. There he focused on creating jobs for out of work communities. Upon the development and commercialization of that entity he moved on to being the creative lead for an international advertising agency.

Once leaving Ireland in 1976, he returned to his true calling; the pulpit. Where, he once again joined the wonderful congregation of Calvary Presbyterian Church, in Newburgh NY. He remained in that pulpit until October 2003, while there he also served as Deputy Mayor for the City of Newburgh, and he was named the Newburgh's man of the year in the mid 1980's. His greatest work related pride was his role in Newburgh's multifaith cooperation of places of worship, and integrating interfaith and interracial worship, before it was common place.

In 2000 he married Laura Bonevac and enjoyed a wonderful retirement of travel, and exploring the arts. He also served as a mentor to many and helped others reach potentials that they didn't know they possessed.

He succeeded in his stated goal to make the world a better place. His most notable pride outside of his diverse work life and his wonderful friendship with Laura, was the development of his son and grandson, for whom he will be an undying inspiration and source of strength.

There will be a memorial service at the family gravesite at the New Jersey Presbyterian Church in Carlisle on Sunday, May 4th at 1 PM. There will be a celebration of his life at the Anderson Life Celebration Center in Franklin to follow. All are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the

Miami of Ohio; Oxford campus Student Union.