St. Luke United Methodist Church celebrates 50 years of fellowship

Members of St. Luke Methodist Church in Newton are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their congregation all year. It was June 3, 1962, when the first worship service was held in the gymnasium of Emerson Hough Elementary School, and the church has made some impressive improvements since that time as well as constructing a building of their own.

There were 28 charter members and 11 preparatory members for the first worship service. The Rev. Duane Churchman was appointed as pastor of the new congregation, and St. Luke Methodist Church was officially incorporated in August 1962.

Church members were eager to move from the schools gym, and in June 1963, church trustees were empowered to borrow $40,000 from the National Board of Missions for a new church. More than $14,000 remained from the Builders Club Call, and the new church was estimated to cost $60,000.

Ground-breaking for the new church was held on Feb. 16, 1964, and construction began the following March. The church was consecrated on Oct. 18, 1964, at 501 E. 19th St. N. Membership at that time was 120, with 180 in the church school.

In November 1966, Pastor Leo Spiker requested a church conference to vote to build an education addition to the church. The following February, Pastor Spiker took seriously ill with an inoperable lymphomasarcoma, and on May 27, 1967, he died at the age of 38. The Rev. Carroll Robinson was appointed to succeed the Rev. Spiker.

In June 1968, nationally the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church joined to become the United Methodist Church, and St. Luke became St. Luke United Methodist.

In March 1969, groundbreaking ceremonies were held for the education unit of the church, which included six classrooms, a fellowship hall and kitchen.

The Rev. Arthur Campney was appointed to St. Luke in June 1969. He was succeeded by the Rev. Scott Hall in the fall of 1973, who was then succeeded by the Rev. W. Robert Fowler in June 1980. The Rev. Paul Wilcox was appointed pastor in June 1988. The Rev. Daryl Pals was appointed as pastor in June 1993. The Rev. Kalen Fristad was appointed in June 2001, and the Rev. Linda Butler was then appointed as pastor when the Rev. Fristad announced he was leaving to pursue a traveling ministry for universalism. The Rev. Jon Dinsberg was appointed interim pastor in March 2007, when Pastor Butler left for Ames Collegiate United Methodist Church. The current pastor, Audrey Young, was appointed in June 2007.

Today, St. Luke United Methodist Church is 305 members strong, with six of the charter members still in attendance. Charter member Rose South deserves special credit because she served as pianist for the first service at St. Luke and still plays the piano at the church every month.

John Jennings can be contacted at (641) 792-3121 ext. 425 or via email at jjennings@newtondailynews.com.

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St. Luke United Methodist Church celebrates 50 years of fellowship