Bishop Laura Merrill
Episcopal Office
800 Daisy Bates Drive
Little Rock, AR 72202
Phone: (501) 324-8019
Fax: (501) 324-8021
Email: bishop.merrill@arumc.org
Bishop Laura Merrill was born in San Antonio, Texas and raised in Austin. Her father and maternal grandfather were both Methodist pastors, and she grew up deeply affirmed by the local churches they served. She served as a young adult missionary for 16 months in Concepción, Chile, during the final months of the Pinochet dictatorship. She later served more than 11 years along the US-Mexico border, as a young adult in Tucson, Arizona, and as a pastor and district superintendent in South Texas.
Bishop Merrill is a graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas and Candler School of Theology at Emory University. She was ordained as an elder in 1999 in the Southwest Texas Conference, later Rio Texas. She served 13 years as a local church pastor, twice as district superintendent, and as assistant to the bishop, prior to her election as bishop. She was assigned to Arkansas in January 2023 and to the Oklahoma and Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conferences in September 2024.
Bishop Merrill is mother to Joe and Caroline Sisto, young adults living and working in Boston and Austin, respectively. She enjoys the theater, live music, travel, thrift shops, time with her kids, and walks with her curious dog.
Media Contact: Amy Ezell, Director of Connectional Ministries
(501) 324-8030
amy.ezell@arumc.org
Social Media
- Facebook – Bishop Laura Merrill
- Instagram – @bishoplauramerrill