Rev. Harland J. West

Rev. Harland J. West

Rev. Harland J. West, 94, of Fredonia, N.Y., passed on to eternity July 5, 2023 at the Chautauqua Nursing Rehab Center. He was born in Glens Falls, N.Y. on Nov. 2, 1928, the son of the late Harland and Vannie Jordan West. His father worked construction jobs in New York and Pennsylvania before taking a job at Eastman Kodak and settling in Rochester, New York where Harland was raised. Harland graduated from John Marshall High School in Rochester in 1946, received his BA at the University of Rochester, a Master’s Degree from SUNY Geneseo, and a Duel Master’s Degree from Boston University School of Theology, where he was ordained. He also studied at the Harvard Divinity School. He served as Pastor of numerous churches in his long and distinguished career including: the Elba Methodist Church, Batavia Methodist Church, Geneseo and Asbury First United Methodist Church in Rochester. He was the Protestant Chaplin at Fredonia State. He served as Pastor at St. John’s Church in Cattaraugus and Disciples of Christ (Christian Church) in Dunkirk. Besides his church work, Harland was also active in various civic activities including: Boy Scouts of America, where he was a Scoutmaster, a head coach with the Fredonia Little League “VFW” team. He was also a member of the Village of Fredonia Citizens Advisory Committee, the Campus Community Relationship Committee and Lakeshore Medical Staff among others. Harland and his wife Thelma enjoyed traveling and especially enjoyed Disney World.