BMH Editor's Blog

Doris Julien Services Set for Thursday

Posted by Terry White on September 7, 2009  |  7 Comments

Plans are now set for the memorial service for Doris Julien of Winona Lake, Indiana, who died suddenly Saturday evening.

Calling will be at Redpath-Fruth funeral home, 225 Argonne Road in Warsaw, Indiana, on Wednesday, September 9, 2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. There will also be calling at the Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church, 1200 Kings Highway in Winona Lake, on Thursday morning, September 10, at 9:00 a.m. The memorial service will be at WLGBC at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, September 10,followed by a brief committal service at the cemetery.

Doris Mardella Julien, of 545 S. Circle Drive E., Warsaw, Indiana, went home to be with the Lord on Saturday, September 5, 2009, at 10:00 p.m. at Kosciusko Community Hospital, Warsaw, Indiana, at the age of 77.

Mrs. Julien was born on March 27, 1932, in North Manchester, Indiana, to the late Beulah Louise (Myers) and Robert Earl Briner. She was married August 21, 1953, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Tom Julien, who survives.

Doris graduated in 1950 from Central High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She then continued her education and graduated in 1954 from Bob Jones University. After graduation she was employed as an elementary school teacher for Monroe Township School from 1954-1956. Mrs. Julien then taught kindergarten from 1957-1958 in New Haven, Indiana.

Doris and Tom served in France from 1958-1986 as a missionaries with Grace Brethren International Missions, returning home to Indiana after 28 years. She then continued serving from 1986-2000 as the supervisor for the Grace Brethren Missionary Residence, and from 2000-2003 was a Special Assignment Missionary to Paris, France.

She was a member of Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church, Winona Lake, Indiana, a homemaker, and also helped to coordinate the European Ministry Team.

She will be lovingly remembered by her husband of 56 years, Tom Julien (Warsaw, Indiana); two daughters: Becky Jean (husband Rev. David) Schwan (England); Jacqueline Sue (husband Jeff) Schram (Winona Lake, Indiana); and one son: Terry Lee Julien (Winona Lake, Indiana). Also surviving are five grandchildren and one sister: Mary Ann (husband Duwain) Meyers (Fort Wayne, Indiana). Doris was preceded in death by her parents, four brothers and one sister.

Pray for the Julien Family

Posted by Terry White on September 6, 2009  |  2 Comments

A source close to Grace Brethren International Missions is reporting this evening that Doris Julien, retired missionary to France and wife of GBIM executive director emeritus Tom Julien, died of a heart attack about 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

Your prayers are encouraged for Tom and the Julien family–more details and verification will be posted as they become available.

Grace Enrollment Up Fourth Year in a Row, to 1,633

Posted by Terry White on September 5, 2009  |  1 Comment

From the Fort Wayne (IN) Journal Gazette:

Grace College enrolls record 1,633 students

Enrollment is at a record high for the fourth year in a row at Grace College, Winona Lake, Indiana.

As of Friday, 1,633 students were enrolled for the 2009-10 school year, an increase of more than 8 percent over last year. Grace officials are attributing the growth to new students and a high retention rate.

Grace is attracting so many students because of new programs, the development of scholar and leadership programs, and the college’s commitment to Christian values, Grace President Ronald E. Manahan said in a statement.

“It is encouraging to see our students respond to our innovative scholar and leadership programs, such as the Millennial Scholar Academy, Orthopaedic Scholar Institute and Presidential Scholarship Competition, as well as the strong enrollment in the Graduate Department of Counseling and Interpersonal Relations and the new graduate programs in the Teacher Education Department,” Manahan said.

“In addition, when visiting the Grace campus, parents and future students often comment on the engaging atmosphere and commitment to both academic achievement and the Christian faith.”

Brethren Report on California Wildfires

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 4, 2009  |  No Comments

From around the country, Grace Brethren people have watched the news with interest. There are fires in California again — both in the south and in the north. Has anyone we know been impacted? How close are they to a Grace Brethren congregation? How can we pray for them?

We surveyed the pastors in California. (It never hurts to ask.) Below are some of the responses. While it has become apparent that congregations within the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches have not been impacted directly by the flames, continue to pray for our brothers and sisters on the west coast. If they are in a region near a fire, air quality levels may drop to an unhealthy level due to the amount of smoke and ash in the atmosphere.

We have done nothing about the fire except pray and watch. Although the amount burned is a record, the personal losses in LA County have been small by California standards. That is most likely because the winds were not blowing this time. …

We had two families near an evacuation zone, but the fire passed without property damage. We are thankful that the massive area of the fire was mainly up in the wilderness area.

Pastor Terry Daniels
Grace Brethren Church of South Pasadena
—

As far as I know, no Grace Brethren folks have been directly impacted by the fires

Pastor Greg Stoever
River City Grace Community Church, Sacramento
—

Thankfully here in San Diego we have not been affected by the fires as of yet. However, fire season will continue until the end of October for us down here in San Diego.

Pastor Glen Sykes
Grace Brethren Church, San Diego
—

The billow of smoke of the big “Station Fire,” seen from a distance on a very clear Saturday last week, looked like a volcanic eruption in the mountains, then later as a white thunderhead. Really quite beautiful (at a distance)!

Don Shoemaker
Grace Community Church of Seal Beach
—

This is a large fire, but I do not think it is the most destructive as of yet.

We do not have any people from Church Multiplication Associates in any of the areas affected that I know of. Last year, however, my father lost his house, all his pets and a lifetime of artwork (he is an artist and teaches at Cal Arts) in one of the fires. We have these every year.

Neil Cole
Church Multiplication Associates, Long Beach
—

Individuals are reaching out in ministry to help those displaced.

Richard Todd
Community Grace Brethren Church of Whittier

Aiming for the Stars

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 4, 2009  |  No Comments

A recent issue of the Columbus, Ohio, Suburban News, featured Andrew Rickly, who attends the Grace Brethren Church of Columbus and is a student at Worthington Christian High School, which is sponsored by the church. Andrew, who endured multiple surgeries as a child for intestinal blockages, qualified for the U.S. Jr. Olympic National Team in May. (That’s him at right, competing on the high bar at the qualification meet in Cincinnati.) His parents are Mike and Sandy Rickly, who are also members of the church.

A portion of the story is below. Click here to read all the details.

Andrew Rickly still aiming for the stars as elite gymnast

It’s not an exaggeration to say Andrew Rickly was in a race with death the day he was born.

And for a time, death held the upper hand.

“He had intestinal blockages at birth,” said his mother, Sandy Rickly. “He was in the hospital and had multiple surgeries to save his life. If not for that, he wouldn’t have made it.”

Fourteen years later, Andrew, now an accomplished gymnast, still has some effects from that near tragedy. Yet for all the Powell resident and incoming Worthington Christian freshman has been through, life is still out there as a gift to be enjoyed.

Along with some high-flying athletic events to be won.

In competition for a place on the 14-member Level 9 Junior Olympic National Team in Cincinnati in May, Andrew was fifth all-around. That meet, it should be noted, consisted of 642 gymnasts from all 50 states.

To read the rest of the story, click here.

Cycling Tours Benefit National Missionaries

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 3, 2009  |  No Comments

The folks at Grace Brethren International Missions tell of an African named Dang Kara, who took off on a bicycle to see what it would take to get the Word into the Sudan. Inspired by the Grace Brethren pioneer missionary to Africa, James Gribble, Kara pedaled his bicycle thousands of miles around Central Africa.

After three months, ten major villages, and 1,057 miles, he arrived home convinced God was calling his family to be pioneer missionaries.

“The great hunger of my heart is to go to the extreme east of Central Africa with the good news of Jesus Christ,” he says.

It is men like Kara who will be supported through individuals and churches who participate in the Day of Generosity, an effort of Grace Brethren International Missions to support national ministry partners around the globe. (See the July 29 blogpost about the Day of Generosity.)

A grassroots effort to raise funds for these individuals is the Day of Generosity Cycling Tour. It is designed to also build awareness for national missionaries, like Kara, who are reaching the least-reached tribes in the heart of Africa, plowing spiritually hardened soils of Europe, preaching the gospel in the teeming cities of Latin America, or carrying God’s good news to the religiously diverse towns and villages of Asia.

Three cyling tours are planned in the U.S: September 26 in northern Indiana and October 3 in both northeast and central Ohio. Others may be added. Click here for complete details and up-to-date registration information. You’ll also find forms to enlist sponsors for your ride.

Going Public in Goshen, Ind.

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 2, 2009  |  No Comments

Last Sunday (August 30) saw 42 people baptized at Grace Community Church, a Grace Brethren church in Goshen, Ind. Pastor Jim Brown writes about it on his blog, The Brown Bytes:

Sunday we gave people an opportunity to go public in baptism. 42 people stepped forward and made a public statement that they were followers of Jesus. It was electric in the place as Christ-followers unashamedly spoke through this act.

After our services we gave them a chance to stand in our foyer to be greeted by the worshippers. There was a buzz in the foyer as people stood between and after services with joy-filled people.

During the services we also gave people a chance to come and worship with the team on the stages in both auditoriums, if they were overflowing with praise. Once again people lined our stages and went public in praise! It was electric!

Click here to see the complete post, along with a video of the service.

FGBC World Celebrates Grace Brethren Movement in Argentina

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 2, 2009  |  No Comments

The Grace Brethren movement in Argentina turns 100 this year. Learn the back story on this thriving national church that now has its own missionary sending agency. For details, see the September-October issue of FGBC World, which is available at no charge at your local Grace Brethren church or online at fgbcworld.com/.

FGBC World is an all-fellowship, all-Grace Brethren newspaper that is published six times a year. In its pages you will find stories about the Grace Brethren family around the world – from individuals who are on the front line of ministry to organizations that help impact lives for Jesus. Pick up your free copy of the September-October issue at your local Grace Brethren church, see fgbcworld.com or subscribe online to have your free copy delivered directly to your mailbox.

Wooster, Ohio, GBC Baptizes 32

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 1, 2009  |  No Comments

More than 300 people from the Grace Brethren Church (Bob Fetterhoff, pastor), Wooster, Ohio, gathered at the farm of Rus and Maralee Boreman on August 23 for a picnic and baptism. That day, 32 individuals made a public profession of faith in very cold waters! Above, Pastor Bob Fetterhoff prays for Jeff and Beth Reed while Daron Butler, pastor of cross cultural missions, holds the microphone.

Above, Matt Carter, director of contemporary worship, baptizes Steven Starkey.

Above, Ben Framstad baptizes Thomas Ostroski while Nick Cleveland (in the navy blue) and Daron Butler (holding the mic) look on.

Thanks to Jillian Moomaw for sharing these photos!