Jan-Feb 08 Together

Announcements

Births

Sophie Marie Arnold and Samuel Mason Arnold, Sept. 27, fourth daughter and first son of Anne (Bredemeier) and Paul Arnold, of Albertville, MN.

Dacota Jade Davidson, Nov. 18, first daughter of Craig Rhys and Sharina (Van Landuyt) Davidson of Paradise, CA. The grandparents are Larry and Judy Van Landuyt of Paradise and Lorraine Garrett of Christchurch, New Zealand.

Katia Ariel Rebecca Gordon, May 6, fourth child of Peter and Christina (Hleboff) Gordon, of Dallas, TX. - photo at right

Autumn Campbell Smith, May 6, first daughter of Meredith and Sean Smith of Sacramento, CA.

Ordinations

John Bekker, Perth, Australia
Jimmy Boone, Talisay, Philippines
Gary Childers, Raleigh, NC
Cesar Dela Paz, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Ludiha Omadjela Disashi, Binza, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
Jeanette Engblom, Wetaskiwin, Alberta
Denoel Ferraz, Madrid, Spain
Dorothy Jackson, Opelika, AL
Dorothy Nordstrom, National Women's Ministry Coordinator, Canada; Grande Prairie, Evansburg, and Westlock, Alberta
Sonia Orosco de Vengoechea, Barranquilla, Colombia
Michael Roth, Van Buren, AR

Ministry changes

Kalengula Kaoma, area pastor for Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, has been appointed Mission Developer for all African nations north of the Republic of South Africa.

James Henderson, national ministry leader in the United Kingdom, has been named Mission Developer for Europe.

Mark and Joanne McCulley have moved to Denver, CO, where Mark will serve as pastor of the Denver North and Colorado Springs churches.

Wedding

James Scales of Bridge City, TX, and Joyce Fay Hankins of Silsbee, TX, were married on Oct. 13. They attend in Beaumont, TX, where James is the co-pastor.

Obituaries

Jean A. Brockmeyer, 74, of Delhi, IA, Oct. 31. She is survived by her husband, Neal; four children, Glenn (LaNette) Brockmeyer of Riceville, TN, Linda (Phil) Maitland of Keystone, IA, Karla (Dan) Kelley of Monticello, IA, and Paul (Hiroko) Brockmeyer of Altus, OK; 11 grandchildren; one great-grandchild; a sister, Judy Harrison of East Dubuque, IL; a brother, Russell Story of Milwaukee, WI; and a sister-in-law, Delores Story, of Minnesota. Jean was preceded in death by her parents, Harry and Gladys Story; an infant son, Gary; a brother, LaVern Story; a sister-in-law, Mary Story; and a son-in-law, Robert Schmidt.

Robert G. Brown, 64, of Mt. Pleasant, IA, Oct. 12. He was born on March 27, 1943 in Mt. Pleasant, the son of Ivan and Betty Menkens Brown. He graduated from Mid Prairie High School in 1961. He had farmed in the West Chester area and later worked for Heatiltor in Mt. Pleasant for 29 years. He was a member of the Family of Faith church in Cedar Rapids, IA. He is survived by his mother, his brother Gilbert Brown and his wife Margaret of Adair, IA; two nieces, Susan Schafer and Sheryl Richter, both of Adair, and eight grandnieces and nephews.

Richard Cadan, 60, of Austin, TX, Sept. 15. Richard proudly served three years in the army, began attending over three decades ago, and was an employee at the Pasadena headquarters property as a plumber in the 1970s. He continued as a plumber in the Austin, TX, area until his health began to decline seriously a few years ago, dealing with several onslaughts of cancer. Richard loved gardening and raising bees, marketing his honey under his own label. He grew up in the Brethren church and a few years ago, to honor his mother in her final years, he began attending the Brethren church with her again. He also continued to faithfully attend a Bible study. After our doctrinal changes of the mid-1990s, Richard grew more and more excited about the subject of grace, talking to anyone who would listen about the many jewels of God’s unconditional mercy. Richard was a life-long bachelor, and he leaves behind many loving extended family and community friends with whom he kept very close bonds.

Mary Elizabeth Cottingham, 97, of Columbia, MO, Sept. 12. She was a wonderful mother, a great lady of faith, and a long-time member. Her husband, George, and an infant daughter, Ada Jean, preceded her in death. Survivors include five sons, George, Jim, Tom, Curtis and David, six daughters, Elizabeth, Mary Jane, Margaret, Florence, Elaine and Sarah Jo, 22 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren. Praise be to our Lord and God for this precious life!

Edna F. Evans, 76, of Kenai, AK, Oct. 2. She was a long-time member and the mother of Jack Evans, pastor of the Family Church of God in Kenai. She became ill with lung cancer seven years ago. She remained an inspiration to all who knew her right up to the very end.

Glenola D. Junge, 75, of Fayette, IA, Oct. 26. Survivors include her children: Jackie (David) Garlow of West Union, IA, Tom (Carol) Junge of Clermont, IA, and Judy McGuire of Fayette; a son-in-law, Jeff Lau, of Randalia, IA, six grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, two sisters: Viola Nabors, of Charlotte, NC, and Ladema (Norman) Euchner, of Holstein, IA, a brother-in-law, Joe Fleming, of Waterloo, IA, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, John, a daughter, Ruth Lau, a sister, Margaret Fleming, and a son-in-law, Donald McGuire. She was born on Dec. 28, 1931 at rural Lamont, IA, the daughter of Rudolph William and Anna Pearl (Smith) Westendorf. She graduated from Oelwein High School in 1950. She was united in marriage to John Thomas Junge on June 22, 1951. The couple lived in Waterloo and then moved to Texas for three years, where they lived at Lake of the Pines and Gilmer. They moved to Fayette in 1970, where Glenola was a homemaker. She was a member of Family of Faith Community Church of Cedar Rapids, IA. She enjoyed baking and word search puzzles.

Alma Elfrieda Kleier, 90, of Argyle, WI, Oct. 22. She was a member since her baptism on October 1, 1959. She attended Abundant Grace Church in Deerfield, WI. She is survived by two brothers, seven children, 13 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Alicia A. Pirog, 75, of Chicago, IL, Oct. 1. She was a member for 50 years. Alicia is survived by four children and their spouses: Terri and Larry Cortelyou of La Harpe, IL, Ginny and Tom Martin of Phoenix, OR, John and Carol Pirog of Palatine, IL, Maryann and Fred Stevens of Arcadia, CA, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Mary Simcik, 90, of Granger, TX, Sept. 17. She and her husband, Lad, became a part of the church in the late 1940s, listening to the radio broadcast on station XEG out of Mexico. They attended the early festivals in Belknap Springs, OR, and Siegler Springs, CA, and later (with their three sons) began driving 250 miles one-way for the holy days to the nearest location, in Alice, TX. They attended the San Antonio church after it was started (only 125 miles away) until the Austin church (20 miles away) was founded. Spanning back over 50 years, the Simcik family has been an inspiration to many members, and Mrs. Simcik was a wonderful example of selfless love for others. She turned 90 less than a week before she died, and even though she has not been able to attend services for a while, the congregation sang her “Happy Birthday” by phone to honor her years of dedication to God. She is survived by three sons, Johnnie, Robert and Larry, several daughters-in-law, grandchildren and other family members.

Jackie Reemes Spurgeon, 73, of Pasadena, CA, Oct. 29. He was born on July 17, 1934 in Brooklyn, NY, to Jackie Reemes and Isabella Spurgeon. He was the second of three children and the oldest son. Jackie was raised in New York City. After graduating from high school in 1952, he served his country in the U.S. Naval Reserve, having the privilege of being sworn in by his own father.

An important part of Jackie's young life was his boxing career. He began the sport at the age of 11 with the Police Athletic League of Brooklyn. He won many competitions, including the Golden Gloves Bantam Weight title, and first place in the Olympics Trials of 1952. Jackie met Dosha, the love of his life, and they married on March 28, 1955. He continued his winning boxing career in New York and turned professional in 1959 when he moved his family of five to California. Jackie gave up boxing when he decided against leaving his family to pursue his career overseas. However, Jackie also attributed the end of his boxing career to his call from God. He began listening to The World Tomorrow on the Radio Church of God in 1956. Jackie and Dosha were baptized together in October 1958 by Carlton Smith in New York. After moving to California, they became active members in the Pasadena congregation. He had a career as a custodian with Ambassador College for 33 years. He retired in 1997 and dedicated his time to the success of his own custodial business.

Jackie will always be known for his joyful smile, kindness, and his dedication to the Word of God, his family, and caring for others. He is preceded in death by his parents and his son Christopher Allen. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Dosha, and nine children: Jackie Jr. and his wife Rosalinda, Dovonne, Brian and his wife Sian, Tim and his wife Rachel, Phyllis and her husband Ronnie Vance, Rhona and her husband Donnie Reddix, Marlon and his wife Anne, Aaron and his wife Lydia, and his youngest daughter Ellen, and 12 grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, his sister Phyllis, his brother Frankie, and a host of extended family and friends.