John R. Lasater
Encyclopedia
John Roger Lasater is a retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier General
who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense for European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization policy, the principal director for European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy, and as commander of the Strategic Air Command
's 4th Air Division at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base
, Wyoming
. After his retirement from the Air Force in 1983, Lasater served as a general authority
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1987 to 1992.
, Utah
. He grew up in the Ogden
, Utah area, graduating from Weber County High School in Ogden, and attended Brigham Young University
, Provo
, Utah. He graduated from the University of Omaha, Nebraska
, with a bachelor's degree
in political science in 1966, and earned his master's degree
from the University of Southern California
in Los Angeles
, California
in 1970. He completed Squadron Officer School in 1966 and graduated from the National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair
, Washington, D.C.
, in 1974.
After graduation from the U.S. National War College in June 1974 he served as a special assistant for joint matters and chairman of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Initiatives and Action Group in the Directorate of Plans and Policy, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. While in this position, he also served, beginning in March 1975, as chief of the Europe/North Atlantic Treaty Organization Division within the directorate. In April 1976 General Lasater was assigned as executive assistant to the deputy commander in chief, U.S. European Command, Stuttgart-Vaihingen, Germany.
From June 1978 to June 1979, he served as commander of the Strategic Air Command's 4th Air Division at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo. In addition to the 90th Strategic Missile Wing at Warren, the division included the 44th Strategic Missile Wing; the 28th Bombardment Wing at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D.; and the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.
General Lasater returned to Washington, D.C., as the senior military adviser to the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency of the State Department. He was also the acting U.S. Commissioner to the 19th and 20th U.S. and Union of Soviet Socialists Republics Standing Consultative commissions.
and second counselor in the Europe Area Presidency.
. After serving in this capacity for some time, he was released in 1976 and was called as a Regional Representative of the Twelve
, until being reassigned to the Pentagon by the U. S. Air Force.
After retirement from the Air Force, Lasater was called to serve for three years as a mission president
, presiding over the New Zealand
Auckland
Mission
.
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense for European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization policy, the principal director for European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy, and as commander of the Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
's 4th Air Division at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base
Francis E. Warren Air Force Base
Francis E. Warren Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately west of Cheyenne, Wyoming. It is one of three strategic missile bases in the United States. It is named in honor of Francis E. Warren....
, Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. After his retirement from the Air Force in 1983, Lasater served as a general authority
General authority
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1987 to 1992.
Background and education
Lasater was born in FarmingtonFarmington, Utah
Farmington is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,255 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Davis County...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. He grew up in the Ogden
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
, Utah area, graduating from Weber County High School in Ogden, and attended Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
, Provo
Provo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
, Utah. He graduated from the University of Omaha, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, with a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in political science in 1966, and earned his master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
from the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1970. He completed Squadron Officer School in 1966 and graduated from the National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair
Fort Lesley J. McNair
Fort Lesley J. McNair is a United States Army post located on the tip of a peninsula that lies at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. To its west is the Washington Channel, while the Anacostia River is on its south side...
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, in 1974.
Military assignments
He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in March 1952 and received his commission as a second lieutenant through the Air Force Officers' Candidate School at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in March 1957. His first operational flying assignment was in November 1958 with the 93rd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M. In July 1960 he joined the 751st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron at Mount Laguna Air Force Station, Calif., where he remained until December 1961. Lasater began service in Southeast Asia in May 1967 where he flew RF-4C's with the 16th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Tan Son Nhut Air Base, Republic of Vietnam. While there he completed 221 combat missions, 100 over North Vietnam, and compiled 485 combat hours. Following his Viet-nam service he served in Europe (Great Britain and West Germany) in both tactical reconnaissance and tactical fighter units.After graduation from the U.S. National War College in June 1974 he served as a special assistant for joint matters and chairman of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Initiatives and Action Group in the Directorate of Plans and Policy, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. While in this position, he also served, beginning in March 1975, as chief of the Europe/North Atlantic Treaty Organization Division within the directorate. In April 1976 General Lasater was assigned as executive assistant to the deputy commander in chief, U.S. European Command, Stuttgart-Vaihingen, Germany.
From June 1978 to June 1979, he served as commander of the Strategic Air Command's 4th Air Division at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo. In addition to the 90th Strategic Missile Wing at Warren, the division included the 44th Strategic Missile Wing; the 28th Bombardment Wing at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D.; and the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.
General Lasater returned to Washington, D.C., as the senior military adviser to the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency of the State Department. He was also the acting U.S. Commissioner to the 19th and 20th U.S. and Union of Soviet Socialists Republics Standing Consultative commissions.
General authority
In 1987, Lasater was called to serve as a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy. His assignments while a member of the Seventy included President of the North America Southeast AreaArea (LDS Church)
An area is an administrative unit of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which typically is composed of multiple stakes and missions...
and second counselor in the Europe Area Presidency.
Other church assignments
Prior to his retirement from the Air Force, Lasater served as a stake president over the Serviceman's Stake (Europe), effectively the spiritual leader of all American Latter-day Saint servicemen in Europe, all while serving as the executive assistant to the deputy commander in chief, U.S. European Command, in Stuttgart, GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. After serving in this capacity for some time, he was released in 1976 and was called as a Regional Representative of the Twelve
Regional representative of the Twelve
Regional representative of the Twelve, commonly shorted to regional representative or regional rep, was a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1968 and 1995...
, until being reassigned to the Pentagon by the U. S. Air Force.
After retirement from the Air Force, Lasater was called to serve for three years as a mission president
Mission president
Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...
, presiding over the New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
Mission
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
.