Mormon church leader Neal A. Maxwell dies after battling leukemia

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Neal A. Maxwell, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died after a lengthy battle with leukemia, the church said. He was 78.

Maxwell died at home surrounded by his family late Wednesday, which was the 23rd anniversary of his call to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, one of the highest ranking bodies of the Mormon church.

Funeral arrangements were pending.

Maxwell previously served as a member of the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy from 1976 to 1981, and as an assistant to the Twelve from 1974 to 1976.
A lifelong educator, Maxwell was executive vice president at the University of Utah when he was appointed as Commissioner of Education for the Church Educational System, where he served from 1970 to 1976.

Maxwell previously held a variety of administrative and teaching positions with the University of Utah. He earlier served as a legislative assistant to U.S. Sen. Wallace F. Bennett of Utah.

He was a prolific writer, producing about 30 books on religious topics.

Maxwell earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science from the University of Utah, which in 1998 established the Neal A. Maxwell Presidential Endowed Chair in Political Theory, Public Policy, and Public Service.

Maxwell also has served as a director of several business firms, including Questar Corporation, Questar Pipeline, and Deseret News Publishing Company, and has been active in public service such as chairman of the Utah Constitutional Revision Commission.

Survivors include his wife, the former Colleen Hinckley, and four children.

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