Obituary of the Rev. El Roy Buhr

The Rev. El Roy Buhr died on July 24, 2004 in a Sioux Falls, South Dakota Hospital at the age of 78. The funeral was held at Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Waterloo, Iowa on July 28, 2004 and burial took place in St. John's Lutheran Cemetery, Sumner, Iowa.

He was born on April 10, 1926 to Henry and Ida (Huebner) Buhr four miles south of Sumner, Iowa. He graduated from Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa and from Wartburg Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa. He was ordained on June 12, 1949 at St. John Lutheran Church, Sumner, Iowa. In 1951 he married Lavon Menninga at Waterloo, Iowa. They had two daughters: Beth and Elaine. Pastor Buhr served four Lutheran congregations in Minnesota and Iowa. During his pastorate in Parkersburg, Iowa he and some members of his parish left the ALC and joined the ELS in 1972.

After retiring in 1980, El Roy and his wife moved to Waterloo, Iowa, where he served as organist at Pilgrim Lutheran Church for 23 years. In 2003 he and Lavon moved to Elkton, South Dakota near their daughter.

El Roy is survived by his wife, his two daughters, two sons-in-law (the Rev. Richard Voswinkel and Dave Van Dyke), seven grandchildren, two great grand-daughters, a sister, and two sisters-in-law.

VBS at Grace, Weston, Ohio

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church of Weston, Ohio held its VBS this year from July 26 to 30; the closing program took place on August 1 during the worship service. This year we used the materials Ready, Set, Gold, with the theme: "Thanks be to God He gives us the Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:57).

There were 49 children enrolled with an average attendance of 36. Seventeen faithful staff members assisted. The offerings totaled of $219.00 which will be directed to ELS missionary work in Peru. We thank God for this opportunity to teach these children, many on whom were not from our congregation.

Children who came to VBS in Weston, Ohio.

Pastor John E. Merseth Sr.
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church
Weston, Ohio 43569
E-mail: graceels@wcnet.org

ELS Float in Wisconsin Parade

"From the Past to the Future He's Got the Whole World In His Hands." That was the title for the float of Faith Lutheran, Oregon, WI, in the community's annual Summer-fest Parade sponsored by the local Chamber of Commerce. The float theme sought to incorporate the parade theme of the Chamber (which looked back on its 40 year history in Oregon) while giving witness to the Savior. 

Designed and engineered by a collaborative effort of Debra Lehmann and Dan Schuman, a revolving globe of the earth was framed by Jesus' presence. Over a dozen children of the congregation's Sunday School and Preschool, who dressed up in costumes that reflected world cultures, sat on the float to represent how Jesus came for all races and nations of the earth. Adults walked beside the float to hand out some 2,000 invitations to worship at Faith.

The parade is quite popular, particularly because it brings in many good marching bands. Included among them were the two large marching bands of our WELS/ELS high schools: The Lakeside Lutheran Warrior Band (Lake Mills, WI) and the Lutheran Van Guard Marching Band (Fox Valley Lutheran, Appleton, WI).  

Brooks Installation

The Rev. Matthew Brooks was installed as Youth Pastor at King of Grace Lutheran Church of Golden Valley, Minnesota on Sunday, August 8, 2004. The 4:00 p.m. service was well attended. The Rev. Bradley Kerkow preached on the theme, "Feed My Lambs," based on the words of the Savior as recorded by St. John. ELS President John Moldstad conducted the rite of installation, the Rev. David Russow served as lector, and the Rev. Erwin Ekhoff served as liturgist. The Membership Committee served a wonderful dinner after the service.

Back Row (l to r): reverends Bradley Kerkow, Erich Hoeft, Phil Mischke, Arnold Kuster, David Russow, Paul Sullivan. Front Row (l to r): reverends Karl Anderson, Pres. John Moldstad, Matthew Brooks, Erwin Ekhoff, and Juul Madson.

Thoughts of Faith Installs new Pastor Mentor

At its meeting on August 6, 2004, the Thoughts of Faith committee installed Pastor Wayne Borgwardt as Pastor Mentor to the Ukrainian Lutheran Church. Pastor Borgwardt and his wife, Myrna, moved to Kyiv, Ukraine on August 13, 2004.  Pastor Borgwardt replaces Professor John Lawrenz, who has served as Pastor Mentor to the ULC since March 2003.

Pictured: (l-r) Rev. Paul Schneider (ToF President), ELS President Rev. John Moldstad, Jr., Rev. Wayne Borgwardt, Myrna Borgwardt, Rev. George Orvick (ToF Vice-President)

Dr. Gary Greenfield died August 17, 2004 at the age of 66. For twenty-eight years he was the President of Wisconsin Lutheran College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A former elementary school teacher, Greenfield graduated in 1959 from Martin Luther College in New Ulm, Minn. He earned his master's degree in school administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his doctorate in curriculum and instruction from Marquette University. During his tenure, Wisconsin Lutheran grew from a two-year college with a part-time faculty and an enrollment of 27 to a four-year, accredited institution of 700 students and a full-time faculty of 50.