St.

Mark’s Lutheran Church

A Faith Family Celebrating and Sharing God’s Grace for 150 years!
400 S. 6th. Street, Atchison, KS 66002 (913) 367-0417
www.stmarksatchison.weebly.com

June 2018 Newsletter

Being on the Receiving End
expressed concern for me and my welfare. Several
I was very frustrated! Fran and I had been planning
were upset that this would ruin our vacation.
a vacation to one of the all-inclusive resorts in the
Everyone told Fran that they were praying for my
Caribbean for many years.
recovery. Fran came home and told me, “They sure
13 days before we were to leave, I was spring love you a lot!”
cleaning my garage. I over did it. My leg started
Five days before we were to leave, I developed a
hurting quite a bit, but it was a beautiful spring day.
terribly itchy rash on my sore leg. I couldn't sleep it
I kept pushing to finish, “just one more thing.” When
itched so badly. The next morning I headed back to
I was done, my left leg was very swollen.
the Leavenworth VA Emergency with a bright red
11 days before we were to leave, the leg had leg. To counteract the severe allergic reaction to
developed cellulitis, a bacterial infection of the skin the antibiotic, they gave me lots of medications.
and tissues beneath the skin. It hurt a lot!
By Sunday, the cellulitis was almost gone! The rash
10 days before we were to leave, I had the privilege from the allergic reaction was worse and now
to conduct Jim Murray’s funeral. I know how covered a lot of my body. Since the cellulitis was
serious cellulitis can be. Over the years I have had under control, I decided to lead the worship service.
many congregation members hospitalized with Everyone there greeted me with care and concern
this disease. Jim Murray had been hospitalized and love. They asked about the trip, about how I
several times due to was feeling. They asked what they could do for
cellulitis. I couldn’t help but Fran or me. They made sure I stayed off my feet as
St. Mark’s Officers think about that during Jim’s much as possible. I believe that every single person
funeral. I explained what at St. Mark’s said a word of support to me.
President: was going on with me to
Sarah Dunning Jim’s wife, Alice. I also told
Monday morning, two days before we were to
leave, I got to see my doctor. She said, “You need
Vice President: the women working the
to stay out of the sun for at least a week.” She
Cathy Crockett funeral luncheon that I
wrote me a note for my travel insurance company.
believed that I needed to
Secretary: We canceled our long planned Jamaican vacation
Amelia Kaczmarek get to the ER. Everyone
and went to Branson to see shows out of the sun.
graciously said, “Of course!
Treasurer: Kim Smith Get going. Take something For more than 40 years I have been taking care of
Finance Secretary: to eat!” I went to the ER at people as a pastor. I do my best to let the people I
Patsy Porter the Leavenworth VA minister to know that God loves and cares about
hospital. I was quickly seen them and I do also. These past few weeks, the
Council Members and given an antibiotic and table was turned and I was on the receiving end of
Carlie Clary told to keep my leg elevated the care and love. Luther talked a lot about the
as much as possible. “Priesthood of all Believers”. We are all called in the
Mike Crockett
kingdom of God to serve one another. We serve
Shelby Kremske
Fran took the worship
the world for the sake of Christ. These past weeks I
service on Sunday so that I
Alice Murray have been well loved (served) by you. I thank you
could keep my leg up all
and I thank God for all of you.
Rev. Craig Lantz day. So many people asked
her how I was doing. Many
WELCA and Social Ministry will not meet in June. St. Mark’s 150 th. Anniversary
On June 5 the group will host the Retired Teacher’s Please make your reservations and encourage
Luncheon. family and friends to do like wise.

Wednesday, June 13 at 10:30 am United Methodist Leavenworth National Cemetery

is hosting Coffee and Conversation in their
fellowship hall.

Thursday, June 14 and 28, Quilting at 9:30 am.

Sunday, June 17.

8:30 am Worship & Music Committee
Following Worship – Church Council

Through April, expenses have exceeded income by

$3,461.

Brent Clary and Tricia Clark will be attending God Blessed America
Camp Tomah Shinga in July. They would like to
"They defended our nation, they liberated the
take on some projects to earn money to help pay
the $810 costs. (Clean garages, work in yards etc.) oppressed, they served the cause of peace. And all
Contact Cathy Crockett at 370-0595 if you might Americans who have known the loss and sadness
have some work. (To make a donation simply of war, whether recently or long ago, can know
make so on your check or on an envelope.) this: The person they love and miss is honored and
remembered by the United States of America."
Thank You --George W. Bush, Memorial Day Address, 2004
*Thanks to Pastors Craig and Fran for purchasing
grab bars for the rest rooms..
*Thanks to Jerry for installing the bars. "That we here highly resolve that these dead shall
*To all for Jim Murray memorials. not have died in vain; that this nation, under God,
shall have a new birth of freedom; and that
June Birthdays government, by the people, for the people, shall
Ardena Loch 6/01 not perish from the earth."
Candice Jaegle 6/01
--Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address, 1863
Lynn Shannon 6/03
Miriam Dunavan 6/04
Maggie Porter 6/10 "The United States and the freedom for which it
Mike Crockett 6/14 stands, the freedom for which they died, must
Lurena Hansen 6/19 endure and prosper. Their lives remind us that
Debra Mikkelson 6/19 freedom is not bought cheaply. It has a cost; it
Brent Clary 6/22 imposes a burden."
--Ronald Reagan, Memorial Day speech, 1982

FROM THE HISTORY OF ST. MARK’S
In 1880 Mrs. H.E. Monroe, daughter of Rev.
Earhart, moved to Atchison and established her
school, The Atchison Institute. Father and daughter
worked together to reestablish the Atchison
congregation; their letters to the General Synod
Headquarters resulted in Rev. W.I. Cutter, a
retured missonary to India, accepting the Atchison
mission.
On the evening of August 8, 1880 a group of
twenty three met at the home of Henery Snell for
the reorganization of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church.
Officers of the congregation were J.H. Berlin, W.H.
Kuhns, N.D. Kistler, J.L. Heisey, W.D. Kistler,
John Tusselmann, J.H. Talbott, W.D. Smith and S.J.
Clarke. The Atchison Institue became their
temporary worship site. The work of the church
could progress.
From its refounding in 1880, St. Mark’s
embarked on a journey of spiritual and numeric
growth. In chronicalling events one tends to assign
an accomplishment to the individual in charge at the
moment of completion, but that is a distortion. St.
Mark’s was blessed to have pastors who would
embrace the work of their predecessors and help
bring the dream to reality. Similarly, St. Mark’s
was blessed to have a congregation and lay leaders
who demostrated a constancy of purpose.
Rev. Cutter enjoyed working with struggling
congregations and moved on westward when the
services of Rev. George Diven were secured in
1884. From there, a strong Sunday School was
established, catechism classes began, and a church
college was contemplated. In 1865 the President of
Synod reported that this field was “growing in
membership and influence”. The pastor reported
sixty members.
In May of 1887 St. Mark’s formal
constitution was adopted. In the same church
register is an alphabetical listof the church
members. There were seventy in number.
In 1887 Rev. Diven resigned and was
replaced by
Rev. William
B. Glanding, a
Midland
professor, for a
short period
until replaced by
Rev. W.F.
Rentz in April
of 1888. Rev. Rentz confirmed St. Mark’s first
catechism class. The growing congregation now
sought a place of worhip adequate to their needs.
Contractors A.S. Zimmerman and B.D.
Zimmerman, members of St. Mark’s, undertook
construction of an edifice sited at 400 S. 6th Street
which was dedicated on December 16, 1888 as St.
Mark’s Lutheran Chapel.
The building and equipment cost $4,010.
The congregation had established a home. In
addition to Worship, there were Confirmation
Classes, Sunday School, Choirs and groups for the
men, women, and youth of the congregation.
The settling of the lower Missouri River
valley had prompted discusssion about the need for
institutions of higher education. At a meeting of the
General Synod at Omaha in 1887 formal proposals
for siting a college were presented by a large
number of Kansas and Nebraska cities. Based upon
a wide variety of factors, including the City of
Atchison’s promise of financial support and gifting
of land and the pledges of private citizens, Atchison
was selected to be the home of Midland College.
The College began at Mrs. Monroe’s
Atchison Institute and subsequently developed its
campus on donated land. In 1895 training for the
ministry was added at Midland with the formation
of the Western Theological Seminary. In 1897 a
German Department was added to the Seminary in
cooperation with the Breklum Seminary in
Germany to allow their students to study for a year
or two to complete their studies and/or become
accustomed to living in America.