BEFORE I was born MY CHURCH gave to my parents ideals of life and love that made my home a place of strength and beauty.
In helpless infancy MY CHURCH joined my parents in consecrating me to Christ and in baptizing me in His name.
MY CHURCH enriched my childhood with the lessons of life that have been woven into the texture of my soul. Sometimes I seem to have forgotten and then, when else I might surrender to foolish and futile ideals of life, the truths MY CHURCH taught become radiant, insistent, and inescapable.
In the stress and storm of adolescence MY CHURCH heard the surge of my soul and She guided my footsteps by lifting my eyes toward the stars.
When first my heart knew the strange awakenings of love MY CHURCH taught me to chasten and spiritualize my affections; She sanctified my marriage and blessed my home.
When my heart was seamed with sorrow, and I thought the sun could never shine again, MY CHURCH drew me to the Friend of all the Weary and whispered to me the hope of another morning, eternal and tearless.
When my steps have slipped and I have known the bitterness of sin, MY CHURCH has believed in me and wooingly She has called me back to live within the heights of myself.
Now have come the children dearer to me than life itself and MY CHURCH is helping me to train them for all joyous and clean and Christly living.
MY CHURCH calls me to Her heart. She asks my services and my loyalty. She has a right to ask it! I will help her to do for others what She has done for me. In this place in which I live, I will help Her keep aflame and aloft the torch of a living faith.
William Henry Boddy, D. D.
ANNIVERSARY FELLOWSHIP Wednesday, March 26, 6:30 P. M. Carry-in Dinner
Group Singing - Ruth Hieber, leader
Recognition of Charter Members
Historical Sketch of Grace Church and Sunday School - H. E. Kiess
Music - Male Quartet
Scenes Through the Years
Lettered "Greetings" from Former Ministers
Remarks by Members and Friends
Music
Family Devotions - John Osborn Family
ANNIVERSARY SUNDAY
SUNDAY CHURCH SCHOOL
Sunday, March 30, 9:20 A. M.Organ-Piano Prelude - Mrs. Allen Miller, Mrs. A. L. Holloway
Trumpet Call - "Adeste Fideles"
Call to Worship - Superintendent Calvin Shifley
Duet - "The Lord's Prayer" - Jane and Mary Ellis
Scripture Lesson - Mrs. A. H. Brown
Hymn No. 21 - "A Charge to Keep I Have"
Prayer - A. H. Brown
Hymn No.27 - "The Church's One Foundation"
Poem - "The Old Fashioned Altar" - Mrs. Bess Cook
Music - Men's Chorus
Lesson Study - "Luke, Physician and Historian"
SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP March 30, 10:30 A. M. Let all the people enter reverently, engage in prayer
for self, for one another, for the minister.GOD CALLS US TO WORSHIP HIM through
The Organ Prelude - "Adagio - -Beethoven
The Introit (choir and congregation singing)
Spirit of God, descend upon my heart;
Wean it from earth, through all its pulses move;
Stoop to my weakness, mighty as Thou art,
And make me love Thee as I ought to love."The Call to Worship
Minister:
Serve the Lord with gladness. Enter into his temple
with thanksgiving and praise. Come, let us worship
and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
People:
We would give unto the Lord the glory due unto
his name; we would bring an offering and
come into his courts. Praise waiteth for thee,
O God, and unto thee shall the vow be made.
WE RESPOND TO HIM through
The Invocation
Benediction
The Gloria Patri
The Scripture Message - Romans 12:1-21
The Anthem - "Out of the Deep" - Jones
The Reception of Members
WE SEEK HIS FORGIVENESS AND POWER through
The Hymn of Prayer No. 94 - "What Grace, O Lord"
The Period of Silence for Personal Petitions
The Pastoral Payer
The Choral Amen - "Four-Fold Amen" - Rowe
WE LEARN OF HIM through
The Anniversary Offering
Offertory - "Confidence" - Mendelssohn
Doxology and Dedication
The Poem - "Fiftieth Anniversary"
The Solo - "The Holy City" - Edgar Price, soloist
The Sermon. - "The Divine Imperative" - Bishop F. L. Dennis
WE COMMIT OURSELVES TO HIM through
The Prayer
The Benediction
The Choral Amen - "Seven-Fold Amen" - Stainer
The Postlude - "March in G" - Smart
Mrs. Allen Miller, organist; Mrs. Bruce Mutchler, director.
SUNDAY EVENING WORSHIP March 30, 7:45 P. M.
THE CHURCH LISTENING TO GOD THROUGH MUSIC
Organ Prelude - Medley of Hymns
Solo - "When Jesus Was a Little Boy" - By a Child
THE CHURCH TALKING WITH GOD
Call to Worship
Hymn No. 455 - "O God, Beneath Thy Hand"
Scripture - Gen. 2:7-17, John 19:38-42, 20:1-18 - By a Youth
Prayer and Response -By an Adult
THE CHURCH GIVING TO GOD
Offering
Offertory, Doxology, Thanksgiving
THE CHURCH LEARNING FROM GOD
Anthem - "Were You There?" - The Choir
Sermon - "God's Gardens" - Dr. V. H. Allman
THE CHURCH WORKING FOR GOD
Dedication to Our Task
Hymn No. 212 - "Something for Thee"
The Benediction
Postlude
W E L C O M E !
A very hearty welcome is extended by Grace Church to all visitors on this Anniversary Sunday. Perhaps some who are visiting today helped to make some of the history of this congregation. Maybe you were a teacher in the Sunday School or had some other place of responsibility and service for Christ and the Church; doubtless you gave immeasurable support through your prayer experiences and by your monetary contributions as "faithful stewards"; surely you gave heed to the call of the church's bell as it beckoned "Come, let us worship in the house of the Lord". Whatever the past, Grace Church bids you welcome today. May the experience of worship and Christian fellowship on this Anniversary Sunday be a great means of enhancing your commitment to Christ and His Church.
Visit Grace Church again sometime! To all who may not have a church home, we invite you to worship regularly with us.
JUBILEE SERVICES
Theme: "Christ Calls To Commitment"
The 50th ANNIVERSARY OBSERVANCE of Grace Church will continue through Easter Day with services being conducted each evening at 7:45, excepting Saturday evenings. These "Jubilee Services" will serve to unite the "past" with the "future", being designed to deepen and strengthen our personal experiences as members and friends of Grace Church and Sunday School. A further intent and purpose is that of influencing others for Christ and His Way.
The pastor will be the messenger in the services except Palm Sunday evening when Rev. John F. Osborn will be guest minister.
Decision Day
"Decision Day" will be observed in a unified service Palm Sunday morning, 9:30. (No 10:30 service).
Holy Week
The Jubilee Services will occupy Holy Week and will be climaxed in a meaningful service of Holy Communion on Thursday evening, 7:45. Candlelight service.
Easter Day
Sunrise Service, 6:00 A. M. Drama "I Speak"
Church School; 9:30 Lesson "Thomas and The Risen Lord"
Worship - 10:30-Sermon - "His Promise Is True."
HISTORICAL SKETCH of
GRACE CHURCH EVANGELICAL UNITED BRETHREN
It was March 26, 1902 that Grace Evangelical United Brethren Evangelical Church) (organized as First Evangelical Church came into being as an organized Sunday School and congregation. Worship services were actually begun in the autumn of 1901 in the G. A. R. hall under the leadership of the Rev. W. H. Munk and his associate, the Rev. L. L. Orth. From this temporary arrangement the services were moved to the armory building until such time that a church building might be constructed. (The armory building has since been renovated and is now the Episcopal Church).
Proposals for the construction of a new church building experienced gratifying response on the part of the people. They were eager to have a permanent place of worship--a church which they could really regard as the House of God. As a result, construction was soon begun and the cornerstone was laid September 3, 1905. On the following April 22, 1906 the edifice was completed. On this date Bishop S. P. Spreng officiated in the service of dedication; he was assisted by the Rev. B. E. Reams and the Rev. E. D. Paulin.
While the initial cost of the building and the lots amounted to approximately $13,000.00, at the time of dedication the remaining indebtedness was merely $4,000.00, and by August 1, 1916 the entire amount was paid. In 1915 the Annual Conference considered the work to be self-supporting and the appointment received the status of a station.
Under the impetus provided by the Ladies' Aid Society, and with the substantial assistance received from the Annual Conference a parsonage was erected beside the church in 1911.
The congregation was offically organized March 26, 1902 with a charter membership of eighteen persons; namely, the Rev. and Mrs. W. H. Munk, Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Heinlen, Mr. and Mrs. W. C. Kiess, T. C. Kiess, C. F. Kiess, Mr. and Mrs. B. G. Hieber, Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Class, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Brown, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Drexel and Mr. and Mrs. R. A. Garvin.
The average Sunday School attendance during the first year of the organization was 18. By 1916, the year of the debt liquidation, the average attendance in Sunday School had increased to 139. During the course of the subsequent years notable progress in the various areas of the church life was experienced until it became apparent that facilities for expansion should be considered. In addition to the growth of this congregation, the situation was enhanced by the uniting of the thirty-six members of the Salem Church (located about four miles east of Bucyrus) with First Church. This union took place in August, 1927.
In 1929, during the pastorate of the Rev. N. W. Sager, the church building was thoroughly remodeled and an educational and social unit constructed. This renovation program included the removal of the cement-block veneer from the exterior of the building, and a reconstruction of the walls with a brick veneer to harmonize with the exterior of the new unit. Inside the church the sanctuary and chancel arrangements were reversed, the chancel being removed from the east to the west end of the building. Likewise, a Gottfried pipe organ was installed at the rear of the chancel and choir area. The total cost of the project was $57,000.00. At the time of the dedication, December 1, 1929, with Bishop S. P. Spreng again officiating in the service, half this total had been paid. The membership then numbered 315 persons. By 1934 the debt had been reduced to $9,500.00 through a process of refinancing, and on December 6, 1942, the occasion of the 13th Anniversary of the new educational unit and remodeled sanctuary, all notes were burned in a service of thanksgiving and praise.
These congregational advances were made during the pastorates of the Rev. C. D. Osborn and the Rev. L. E. Dietzel. Recent material improvements (1951) included a $5,300.00 redecoration and insulation project, the entire cost being fully met.
In 1947 the name of the church was changed from First Evangelical Church to Grace Evangelical United Brethren Church. Two factors occasioned this action. In the first place, the union of the former Church of the United Brethren in Christ with The Evangelical Church made for the denominational change of name; further, the denominational change resulted in two Bucyrus Churches having identical designations--"First Evangelical United Brethren." In order to make for certainty of designation both churches assumed entirely different names-- "Woodlawn" and "Grace".
At the beginning of the present conference year (1951-1952)--the first year as a congregation of the newly-formed Ohio Sandusky Conference--the membership of the church numbered 346; the Sunday Church School enrollment, 314.WE REJOICE TOGETHER IN WHAT THESE PAST 50 YEARS HAVE RECORDED--BOTH OF SHORTCOMINGS AND ADVANCES --BUT THE GREATER REJOICING CAN BE EXPERIENCED IN MEASURE AS WE OF GRACE CHURCH ARE HUMBLED IN THE SIGHT OF GOD AND ARE YIELDED TO HIM. "CHRIST CALLS TO COMMITMENT."
DIRECTORY OF PASTORATES
1901 - 1902 W. H. Munk, L. L. Orth 1902 - 1903 W. H. Munk 1903 - 1907 B. E. Reams 1907 - 1910 J. M. Prickett 1910 - 1914 H. W. Graunke 1914 - 1918 E. D. Paulin 1918 - 1920 S. A. Shiser 1920 - 1925 0. J. Stone 1925 - 1927 T. S. Weaver 1927 - 1928 P. E. Smoke 1928 - 1934 N. W. Sager 1934 - 1941 C. D. Osborn 1941 - 1944 L. E. Dietzel 1944 - 1951 J. P. Jones 1951 - H. L. Adams
DIRECTORY of
SUNDAY SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS
R. A. Garvin 1902 - 1915 J. W. Haller 1915 - 1933 H. E. Cook 1923 - 1928 E. Paul Spreng 1928 - 1930 J. W. Haller 1930 - 1934 E. Paul Spreng 1934 - 1941 Frank E. Wagner 1941 - 1944 E. Paul Spreng 1944 - 1946 Robert E. Caldwell 1946 - 1950 Calvin Shifley 1950 -
MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL OF ADMINISTRATION
Rev. Harry L. Adams, Chairman
Harry Schieber, Vice Chairman - T. C. Kiess, Secretary
H. E. Kiess, Treasurer
CLASSLEADERS
Vern F. Berry - Harry Schieber
TRUSTEES
S. A. Schieber, President - W. S. Kiess, Secretary
O. J. Cover - Harry Schieber - L. F. Wagner
STEWARDS
O. J. Cover, Chief Steward - Robert Cook, Vice Chairman
Mrs. Ethel Schieber, Financial Secretary
H. E. Kiess - M. A. Welge - Lloyd DeerwesterH. E. Cook (Honorary) Virgil Edmonds - T. C. Kiess - Joe Hartwell
Warren Shawk - T. C. Wagner
Clare Marvin - Floyd Barrett - F. E. Wagner
Sunday Church School Superintendent - Calvin Shifley
Sunday Church School Treasurer - Miss Velda Wiseman
W. S. W. S. President - Mrs. Lloyd Deerwester
W. S. W. S. Treasurer - Miss Bessie Cook
Guild President - Mrs. L. F. Wagner
Guild Treasurer - Miss Irene Ulmer
Brotherhood President - Floyd Barrett
Brotherhood Treasurer - Emery Cook
Youth Fellowship President - Miss Barbara Johns
Youth Fellowship Treasurer - Miss Marilyn Kiess
Director of Young People's Work - Mrs. Robert Cook
Sec'y, Missionary Edu. for Children - Mrs. Warren Shawk
(to be continued)
If you would like to contribute your Crawford County Church Records
or History information, please send it to:Please report any errors or corrections to
Frances Reiter at ccgs_oh@yahoo.com
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Last updated June 22, 2007
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