A former pastor of a Max church has been sentenced to serve seven months of a 10-year sentence and to repay more than $80,000 in restitution for funds stolen from the church over a seven-year period.

Erin Gullickson, 49, Benedict, appeared before South Central District Court Judge Cynthia Feland on March 20 for her sentencing following her conviction during a jury trial in January. Gullickson was charged on May 1, 2023, with a single count of theft of property, a Class B felony, following an investigation into funds missing from Our Savior Lutheran Church’s youth league account.

Gullickson’s spending was described as “egregious expenditures” by investigators in court documents, who found Gullickson had spent $40,000 of the diverted funds in six months when the theft began in 2016. Gullickson was found to have diverted $81,814.75 in church funds. Prosecutor Ladd Erickson entered more than 100 exhibits into evidence at the January trial, listing online purchases for items such as home decor, furniture, clothing, shoes, jewelry, vacations and cash withdrawals.

Feland sentenced Gullickson to seven months of a 10-year sentence, to be served at the McLean County Law Enforcement Center, with credit for 50 days already served. Gullickson was ordered to complete three years of supervised probation upon release and was required to pay the restitution in full by the end of her probation period. Feland waived $775 in court fines and fees.