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Leighton Kirk Farrell was born on October 13, 1930 in Hillsboro, Texas. He earned his B.A. (1951) and Master of Theology (1953) from Southern Methodist University (SMU), Dallas, and his Doctor of Theology (1956) from the Iliff School of Theology at the University of Denver.

Dr. Farrell was ordained in the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church. Among his charges were the Edge Park Methodist Church, Fort Worth (1956-1965), which he founded; First United Methodist Church, Richardson (1967-1972); and Highland Park United Methodist Church, Dallas (1972-1995). He also served briefly on the pastoral staff of St. Andrew United Methodist Church in Plano, Texas (2001).

In addition to his pastoral responsibilities, Dr. Farrell taught classes at Bright Divinity School and at Perkins School of Theology. He also served on the SMU Board of Trustees for sixteen years. In 1987 Farrell chaired the task force that reorganized the SMU Board after the infamous football recruiting scandal of the early 1980s.

Dr. Farrell held several denominational leadership positions beginning in 1965, when he became an administrative assistant to Bishop W. Kenneth Pope. After his lengthy Highland Park pastorate, Farrell worked as a development officer for the North Texas Annual Conference, 1995-1996, and then was appointed Superintendent of the Dallas South District from 1997 to 2001. He served six years as Chair of the Board of Directors of Methodist Hospitals of Dallas, eight years on the General Council on Finance and Administration of the United Methodist Church, and eight years on the General Board of Pensions.

Leighton Kirk Farrell married Julie Yarbrough in 1987. He died in Dallas on July 13, 2004 after several months of illness.

Sources:

Yarbrough, Julie. "Leighton K. Farrell." Journal of the North Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church (2005): 355-356.

"Farrell, Leighton Kirk." Dallas Morning News . July 15, 2004.