Wellesley Walter Muir was born on October 28, 1926 in Santa Barbara, California to Walter and Ethel Muir who dedicated their firstborn son to the ministry.  Not long after, the Muir family moved to Paso Robles, California. With two other families, they started a church school so that their children could receive a Christian education. Wellesley was the first student to graduate that had attended the little Paso Robles school all eight years.

Wellesley’s grandparents, John and Sarah Muir, had accepted the Seventh-day Adventist faith in 1900 after reading a neighbor’s REVIEW in Oregon. Wellesley was baptized at age 13 with a desire to be a minister. Listening to first-hand mission stories at Wawona Youth Camp, Wellesley knew he had to be a missionary too. 

A very shy young man, Wellesley’s academy teachers encouraged him to be a doctor, saying, “You are too shy to be a minister.” Wellesley went into his closet to pray. He emerged with a plan, which he had presented to God.  “I am going to be a student colporteur. If You help me sell books, I will take it as a sign to enter the ministry.  If I don’t sell books, I will study medicine.”

During four summers of selling Christian books, the Lord blessed and Wellesley was able to pay all of his expenses and graduated from Pacific Union College in 1947. He then began a ministerial internship in Central California.   

Wellesley met Evelyn Chapman, his future wife, at a funeral in the Bay Area. Neither knew the deceased or each other. He preached and she sang a solo. He decided this beautiful blue-eyed blond nurse from San Francisco would be the perfect missionary minister’s wife. They married in 1954.

Wellesley completed nine years of evangelism and pastoral work in Central California before he and Evelyn accepted a call to the Lake Titicaca Mission where he became mission president.  Still recuperating from serious injuries sustained while helping with a church community service center project, Wellesley arrived in Peru on crutches. 

While living in Puno, Peru, on the shores of Lake Titicaca, Wellesley built a boat and began exploring the lake.  On one of his excursions he saw the floating islands and realized these people needed to know Jesus, too.  As a result of his efforts, a floating school was built and soon there were many people worshipping God on these islands. During sixteen years in Peru, Wellesley also served as youth director for the Central Peru Mission and the Inca Union Mission (which at that time encompassed the countries of Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador).   His emphasis was encouraging young people to experience the joy of sharing Jesus thorough Voice of Youth Evangelism.  Many were led to Christ as a result of evangelism conducted by South American Youth. 

Because he owned a tent, Wellesley was later asked to live in that tent for four months with his family while he built the airbase for the first Seventh-day Adventist Mission Aviation program, in the Amazon jungle of Peru.  At this beautiful spot, Wellesley conducted many youth camps on the shores of Lake Yarina Cocha.  Many young people were inspired to give their lives in service to God.

 In 1972 the Muirs intended to return to the United States so that their two daughters, who Evelyn had been teaching, could go to real school.  However, God had other plans.  Wellesley and Evelyn accepted a call to the Bermuda Mission where Wellesley served as Mission Youth and Temperance Director and pastor of two churches for five years.  It was again Wellesley’s joy to conduct camps, this time on a beautiful island.  Here young people were introduced to the Creator God who had big plans for their lives and were encouraged to share their faith through evangelism.

In 1977, the Muirs returned to Central California.  Wellesley’s first assignment was to pastor the churches in Oakhurst and North Fork California.  Distantly related to John Muir (Wellesley’s great grandfather and John Muir were cousins), he enjoyed re-acquainting himself with the wonders of God’s creation in Yosemite.  The Muir family backpacked the John Muir Trail, climbed Half Dome several times, and enjoyed hikes throughout the park. 

Later, Wellesley pastored other churches in central California, spending time in Bakersfield and Clovis, until his retirement in 1991 with 44 years of denominational service.  After building a house in Oakhurst, Wellesley continued to find ways to serve God.  For several years, he and Evelyn coordinated the Yosemite Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church Services during the summer months.

In 1994, Wellesley and Evelyn were asked to go as volunteer missionaries to Thailand, where Wellesley was the chaplain for the Bangkok Adventist Hospital School of Nursing.  He was challenged in his work with the mostly Buddhist students.  Seeing several of them give their lives to Jesus Christ brought him great joy.

 Returning to their home base in Oakhurst in 1996, Wellesley kept busy with speaking appointments, writing and evangelism.  During the past 16 years he and Evelyn were involved in evangelistic meetings in the Domincan Republic, Nigeria, and Peru.  

Over the past 25 years, Wellesley authored six books:

Faith under Fire
The Man Who Jumped Off Clouds
Higher Still
The Last Train Out
Daughters of Inheritance
Little Indian

All of these books have been published in English and Spanish and several in Portuguese. 

In November 2011 Wellesley Muir travelled to Peru to lay the ground work for evangelistic meetings to be conducted by the Quiet Hour Ministry during the month of June, 2012, in the city of Tacna, Peru.  He planned to return to Peru in June for these meetings.

Wellesley was in Moscow from March 27-April 2, 2012 as the guest speaker for a spiritual retreat for the Euro-Asian Division. It included Union leaders, the Adventist Seminary leaders and their wives, and the Adventist Publishing House employees. His experience on this trip was one of the highlights of his life.  He arrived home on April 4 and the next day was admitted to the hospital. He died three weeks later of a previously undiagnosed lung disease.

He is greatly missed by Evelyn Muir, his wife of 58 years; daughters Gladys Muir and Gail Muir Giebel; his son-in-law Herb Giebel; granddaughters Melissa and Tami Giebel; his brother Don; his sister-in-law, Jeanna; seven nieces and nephews; and numerous family members, friends and neighbors. He was pre-deceased by his sisters Mildred Muir and Shirley Steinhoefel.

“Wellesley’s message to us is the slogan he used throughout his years of labor for Jesus,  “MARANATHA!”  The Lord IS COMING!  Let us be ready to meet Him and Wellesley.