The family of Pastor Pohl will meet with friends from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 1, 2005, at the Ralph J. Wittich-Riley-Freers Funeral Home, 1931 Houser Street, Muscatine.

Bishop Phillip Hougen, former Bishop Paul Werger, the Reverend Don Sondrol, chaplains Cindy Ford Breed, Martha Lang and Vicki Pedersen will co-officiate at a memorial service to be held at Grace Lutheran Church, 2107 Cedar Street, Muscatine on Thursday, June 2, 2005 at 10:30 a.m.

Per his wishes, his body has been cremated. The Ralph J. Wittich-Riley-Freers Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials be made to the Lutheran Chaplaincy Outreach at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, the Grace Lutheran Church Renovation Fund. Checks for Lutheran Chaplaincy Outreach may be sent to the synod office, PO Box 3167, Iowa City, IA 52244. The family also asks that people donate blood in his honor.

He was born Sept. 22, 1940, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of Neil Alan Pohl and Frieda Herma Auguste Radtke-Pohl. He married Janice Jean Forsyth on May 28, 1966, at Grace Lutheran Church, Des Moines, Iowa.

He was a 1958 graduate of Brookfield High School, Brookfield, Wisconsin. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Botany in 1962 from the University of Colorado in Boulder. He attended Maywood Seminary in Maywood, Illinois from 1962-1966. During his third year of seminary, he interned at Luther Memorial Lutheran Church in Des Moines, Iowa. He graduated from Maywood Seminary on May 19, 1966, with a Masters of Divinity degree.

He was ordained to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament in the Lutheran Church of America now known as Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on June 12, 1966, in Colorado Springs, Colorado He served as an associate pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Muncie, Indiana, and part-time campus pastor at Ball State University from June 1966 until March 1969. He served as pastor of Faith Lutheran Church, Owensboro, Kentucky, from March 1969 until March 1976. He served as pastor of Our Savior Lutheran Church in South Haven (Valparaiso), Indiana, from March 1976 through July 1985. He has served as pastor of Grace Lutheran Church, Muscatine, Iowa, from August 1, 1985, until his death, May 28, 2005.

Over the course of his ministry, one of Leif's greatest joys was supervising seminary students during their intern year. The twelve students he supervised came from a variety of seminaries. They are: Gene Hollingsworth, Gary Sherman, Walter (Skip) Courter, John Santoro, Lauren Ley, Tom Miller, Ian McFarland, Tim McKenzie, Bill Kirsh-Carr, Kim Holt, Margie Olson and Brad Pohlman.

He was Dean of Conference No. 7 (Iowa City area) of the Southeast Iowa Synod of the ELCA for the past two years. He was a member of the Gifts Discernment Committee of the synod. He was an active member of the Muscatine Ministerial Association. He is a past board member of the Commission on Aging, now known as Senior Resources. He served as chaplain of Unity Hospice. He was serving on the board of Lutheran Chaplaincy Outreach for the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. And he was a regular donor to the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center.

Survivors include his wife of 39 years, Janice Jean Pohl of Muscatine; three sons, Eric Alan Pohl and wife, Christina Lyn, of Rock Island, Illinois, twin sons, Andrew James Pohl and wife, Cassandra Marie, of Troy, Ohio, and Thomas John Pohl and wife, Christina Ann, of Urbandale; one daughter, Jennifer Lynn Pohl-Staack of Urbandale, and her special friend, Nathan Jon Carlson; nine grandchildren, Devin Gregory Staack, Christian Thomas Staack, Sean Alan Pohl, twins, Matthew Leroy and William Arthur Pohl, Catelyn Elizabeth Pohl, Neil Andrew Pohl, Megan Elizabeth Pohl, and Joshua John Pohl; and two sisters, Merry Joan Lobrecht and husband, Richard Paul Sr., of Kingwood, Texas, and Kathleen Carol Lobrecht and husband, David, of Mounds, Oklahoma; nieces and nephews, Murray Ann Mallett-Stein and husband, Fred, of Atlanta, Georgia, Mark Adam Mallett and wife Andrea and children, of San Diego, California, Megan Alane Mallett, of Tampa Bay, Florida, Richard Paul Lobrecht, Jr. and wife Mary and children, of Pearland, Texas, Juliana Lobrecht-Crownover and husband Matthew and children, of Garland, Texas, Nathan Dorr Lobrecht of Mounds, Oklahoma; cousins, Robert Pohl and wife, Ann, of Jacksonville, Florida, William Pohl and wife Dawn, of Rushville, Ohio, and Elizabeth Pohl, of Charlestown, Massachusetts.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and one sister, Nancy Ann Mallett and his uncle and aunt, Robert and Marge Pohl.

A Memorial Service for Leif will be at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, June 2, 2005, at Grace Lutheran Church, 2107 Cedar Street, Muscatine. A luncheon will follow the service in the church Social Hall.

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Jan awoke early this morning after spending the night in Leif's hospital room in Iowa City. She hugged him, told him good morning and wished him a happy anniversary. She then told him that he is very sick and the cancer has spread to his liver and he is not going to get well. She assured him we will be OK and God is waiting to take him home... and then she told him that she loves him... she kissed his forehead and layed back down...

Mere moments later, Leif passed from this life... quietly... serenely... and comfortably...

Visitation with the family is scheduled for Wednesday, June 1, 2005 at Wittich, Riley, Freers Funeral Home, Muscatine.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, June 2, 2005 at Grace Lutheran Church, Muscatine.

Specific times will be posted as they are confirmed.

Leif's wishes were to be cremated, so no public viewing will be held.

Leif's blood sugar level has been increasing and hit a concerning high today. This is a direct result of the liquid diet he has been receiving via feeding tube. He had been receiving insulin to counter-balance the high sugar levels. Even with keeping his sugar levels in-check, Leif was still in danger of a blockage due to lack intestinal output. So, the decision was made to remove his feeding tube to make him more comfortable.

He was moved out of intensive care and into a palliative care (hospice) room. He is getting round-the-clock care. And family is able to stay with him at all times. Leif is terminally ill. He is working very hard to breathe and receiving medication as needed to keep him as comfortable as possible on his journey.

The lesions are cancer. His cancer is now diagnosed at stage 4 and inoperable. The leak in his chest is also inoperable.

Dr. Mark Iannettoni and his nurse, Kelly, spent a long time discussing Leif's prognosis and options for keeping him comfortable. Over the next two days they will administer steroids to reduce the swelling in his throat... and on Thursday they will remove the ventillator tube. Leif's family will be with him. Everyone is hopeful that he will be succesfully removed from the vent and he will be able to communicate.

Your continued prayers and support are needed.

Dr. Iannetonni, Leif's head cardio-thoracic physician, counseled with the family today about Leif's care and how the CT will help him determine the next steps. The family plans to meet with the Dr. again tomorrow morning to discuss tests results and prognosis.

However, Leif is progressing slowly. His electrolytes are moving in the right direction so the medical staff has tentatively scheduled a CT scan for Monday to get a clearer picture of what's going on in his chest (infection, leakage, tube placement, etc.).

The medical staff worked with Leif's breathing quite a bit today. He is still on the ventillator but taking more breaths without the help of the vent. The intent is to get him off the vent as soon as he is strong enough to breathe... which is a lot of work for him right now.

Leif's sister, Merry, arrived from Houston this morning to support his healing process.

He was moved into the Cardio-Thoracic bay of the SICU today. Which is where the staff primarily responsible for his care are located right outside his door. He had been in a general surgery bay until this bed was available.

The family brought his favorite CD's for him to listen to... and he rested more today as the music played.

The medical staff is also concerned about Leif not being responsive enough. He does have his eyes open and appears to follow faces but he is not responding to some neurological tests. He had a CT scan of his head this morning that did not give enough information to draw any conclusions. His lack of response may be a result of the electrolyte imbalance, a small stroke or just a result of all the major medical procedures he has been through recently. Further tests to determine what is going on cannot happen until his electrolytes and kidney function are under control.

Leif has also had difficulties with fluid in his lungs today. The staff may use a scope to see what's causing the fluid to build-up and to clean his lungs out more thoroughly. The main problem Leif is experiencing is an overwhelming infection that may be having a negative effect on his organs (i.e. kidneys, lungs, etc.).

He is completely off of the medication to keep him sedated and is alert and recognizes family faces and voices but is still unable to communicate due to being on the ventillator. They will also resume intraveneous nutrition this evening.

Since coming to Iowa City, the staff has been trying to stabilize his condition and are running numerous tests to determine what the next steps are. He remains on a ventillator and it is possible he will have a traecheostomy (vent tube in his throat). He is in renal failure but action is being taken to hydrate him and correct this as soon as possible.

Jan and all four of his children are with him. He is partly sedated but responds to family talking to him by opening and moving his eyes and looking at faces.