Gilbert W Olson

Gilbert W Olson was born during the Great Depression (1934), the 4th of five boys, in Seattle, Washington,. His grandfather on his father’s side immigrated from Iceland. His mother’s side goes back to the second voyage of the Mayflower. As he was about to graduate from high school, God spoke to him: “You will be a missionary in Africa.” After college, seminary, marrying and pastoring in Michigan for two years he flew to Sierra Leone, W. Africa, with his wife, two small children, and one “on the way.” He served there for eleven years, supervising and training church leaders to be pastors. In one of those years he baptized over 1,000 converts. During his first furlough he earned an M.A. in Missions. He returned to the States in 1974, served as a pastor in the Seattle area for six years, earned a B.Th. at a Pentecostal Bible college, then served as in the Philippines for thirteen years, during which time he started two Bible schools. From 2005-2014 he was the Academic Dean of House of David Scripture College, Boise, Idaho, and earned a D.Th. Now retired, he teaches part time and writes.