ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Births
• Engagements
• Weddings
• Anniversaries
• Obituaries

Births

Mark and Jeannette (Hoffart) Freeman of the Houston South, Texas, congregation are proud to announce the arrival of their second child, Luke Elliot. He was born Sept. 21, 2007, weighing 7½ pounds and measuring 21 inches. He was welcomed by big sister Audrey.

He is the fourth grandchild of Dave and Kathy Hoffart (St. Paul, Minnesota, congregation) and the sixth grandchild of Bob and Pat Freeman (Columbia, Missouri, congregation).

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Gregg and Rebekah (Evans) Drury are so proud to announce the birth of their daughter, Jaeden Olivia Drury. Jaeden was born Sept. 9, 2007. She weighed 6 pounds 7 ounces and measured 20 inches long. She has her daddy's dark hair and her mommy's blue eyes.

Jaeden is the granddaughter of Gary and Sue Evans from Ohio and Paul and Norma Drury of Arizona. Jaeden was able to attend her first Feast with both sets of grandparents in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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Dan and Alea Meek of the Fort Worth, Texas, congregation are delighted to announce the birth of their daughter, Audrey Sharron. Audrey was born on Feb. 12, 2007, weighing 7 pounds 11 ounces and measuring 19½ inches. Proud grandparents are Charlie and Lanae Waldrup of Houston, Texas; Sharron McDearmont of Round Rock, Texas; and Lewis Meek of Lawton, Oklahoma.

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Craig and Cindy (Read) Pifer of Salem, Oregon, along with big sister Amber, are tickled pink to announce the arrival of the newest member of the Pifer family. Mikayla Lynn was born March 20, 2007. She weighed in at 9 pounds 2¼ ounces and was 19½ inches long.

Mikayla is the 10th grandchild for Garry and Connie Pifer of Edmonton, Kentucky, and the third grandchild for Stephen and Gladys Read of Westminster, California.

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Benjamin and Shannon Light of the Salem, Oregon, congregation would like to announce the birth of their son, Aiden Joshua Light. Born July 1, 2007, he weighed 9 pounds 2 ounces and measured 21¼ inches in length. He is the first child for Ben and Shannon, as well as the first grandchild for doting grandparents Becky (of the Spokane, Washington, congregation) and Clement Light, and Tim and Brenda Robinson of the Salem, Oregon congregation. Jenny Light, Sabrina and Carl Koester, Jamie Robinson and Trevor Robinson also seem to be enjoying their roles as aunts and uncles. Aiden is typically a good-natured and fun-loving baby who is quick to smile and laugh for family and friends.

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Engagements

Mavis Jolin and Harold Stevens are pleased and happy to announce their engagement to be married. They are both members of the Ann Arbor, Michigan, congregation. A wedding date has not yet been set.

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Weddings

It is with great joy that Don and Elsie Hooser of the Sedro-Woolley, Washington, congregation along with Simon and Eugenia Wuerfel of the Grand Rapids, Michigan, congregation announce the marriage of their children, Amy Elizabeth Hooser and Donald Simon Wuerfel.

The wedding and reception took place in Dallas, Texas, at the beautifully restored Weisfeld Center on Aug. 20, 2006, with the father of the bride performing the wedding. Tim Rule, a good friend of the groom, was the best man, and Darline Kellers, a longtime friend of the bride, was the matron of honor.

The happy couple spent their honeymoon in Bora Bora on the way to the Feast in Australia, and are members of the Dallas congregation.

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Drs. Jerry and Sandra Brenner are happy to announce the marriage of their daughter Danielle Elizabeth Brenner to Darrell Steven Britt Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. Darrell Britt Sr., on May 19, 2007, in Macon, Georgia, at the close of a beautiful Sabbath day. The ceremony was performed by Gene Hilgenberg, uncle of the bride. The wedding was witnessed by 250 friends and family members who traveled from all over the Southeast and Midwest. Sister of the bride Lacie Brenner served as the maid of honor, along with bridesmaids Sarah Hilgenberg, cousin of the bride, and Halley Britt, sister of the groom. Father of the groom Darrell Britt served as the best man, along with groomsmen Randy Heaton, friend of the groom; Cole Britt, cousin of the groom; and Michael Brenner, brother of the bride.

Danielle and Steven now live in Athens, Georgia, and attend the Macon, Georgia, UCG congregation. Danielle is a senior at the University of Georgia, completing a bachelor's degree in microbiology. Steven completed his degree in applied mathematics from Georgia Institute of Technology two weeks before the wedding took place. Both plan to pursue graduate school in their respective fields of study.

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On Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, Sarah Jane Amelon and Thomas "Tad" Lambeth Walls Jr. were married in Charlottesville, Virginia. The ceremony was officiated by Todd Carey, pastor of the Williamsburg, Virginia, congregation. The couple began their life together honeymooning in St. Lucia coinciding with their first Feast of Tabernacles together. The couple resides in Suffolk, Virginia, and are members of the Williamsburg congregation.

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Anniversaries

The Elkhart, Indiana, congregation hosted a special potluck lunch Oct. 20, 2007, to celebrate the 45th wedding anniversary (Oct. 24, 2007) of their pastor and his wife, Vernon and DeLee Hargrove. They were presented with a cake and personalized robes from the congregation. The two met at Ambassador College in Pasadena, California, in 1960. They were married on the Ambassador campus in an outdoor evening wedding Oct. 24,1962, shortly after he was ordained as a minister during the Feast of Tabernacles at Squaw Valley, California.

The Hargroves have two sons and five grandchildren. The older son, Michael, lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife, Lisa, and three children, Kristin, Aaron and Kaci. The younger son, David, lives in Sydney, Australia, with his wife, Danielle, and two children, Jordan and Mackensie.

The Hargroves have served in 18 congregations throughout the United States, and have pastored Hammond, Indiana, since May 1995 and Elkhart since September 1997.

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Carl and Mary Carmichael of Dubois, Wyoming, celebrated their 55th anniversary Nov. 22, 2007. They have four children and eight grandchildren.

The couple, while living in Cheyenne, Wyoming, were baptized in Denver, Colorado, in 1969. Mr. Carmichael, a registered professional civil engineer, moved his family to Wisconsin to help build the Wisconsin Dells Feast site in 1971-72. After the Feast Development Team was transferred to Big Sandy, Texas, and then disbanded, the Carmichaels moved to Tyler, Texas, where they lived for 25 years. Carl worked for a consulting engineering firm and Mary was a homemaker.

In 1978, Carl was ordained a local elder and Mary was ordained a deaconess. They served in the Tyler and Denison, Texas, congregations. Both became members of the United Church of God when it was formed in 1995, and served in the Gladewater/Big Sandy congregation.

In 1997, Carl and Mary, with an "empty nest," moved back to Wyoming, built a house in the small town of Dubois, high in the Rocky Mountains, and are now active in voluntary community service, such as the Medical Clinic Board, Assisted Living Facility planning and the Art Guild, as well as assisting Wilbur Berg with the Jackson Hole/Dubois, Wyoming, congregation.

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Harry and Shirley Smith celebrated 64 years of marriage with family and friends at a dinner given in their honor. They were married Oct. 16, 1943. They have five children, 17 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren. The Smiths began listening to Herbert Armstrong in the 1960s and were baptized in 1970 and ordained deacon and deaconess in 1978. The Smiths would enjoy hearing from friends: 55 Ehrhardt Rd., Smoaks, SC 29481 or by e-mail at cherry@joimail.com.

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Angus and Hallie Benson of Erwin, North Carolina, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on April 6, 2007. They grew up together and attended the same school in the Erwin area. After Angus was discharged from the Navy in 1946, they had a courtship for about a year before they married on April 6, 1947.

They have two children, Tonia of Coats, North Carolina, and Michael of Garner, North Carolina. They have five grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Both Angus and Hallie were baptized in February 1973 and attended the Fayetteville and Raleigh congregations. When the United Church of God formed a congregation in Raleigh in 1995, they attended a few times before their health prevented them from coming. For the past 12 years, though not able to attend services, they have received sermon tapes and videos on a regular basis, continuing to be faithful and zealous members of the Church.

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Obituaries

Guy L. Muller died Oct. 21, 2007. He was born in Pendleton, Oregon, on Nov. 7, 1921, and has been a resident of Spokane, Washington, for the past 25 years.

He served in the U.S. Army where he was stationed in New Guinea from August 1942 until January 1946 during World War II. He was a wheat and cattle rancher most of his life. He married his wife, Geraldine, in 1976. She preceded him in death. He has been a member of God's Church since August 1974. His hobbies were rock hounding and woodworking. He loved to make pen and pencil desk sets, as well as canes for his family and friends.

He is survived by his stepson, Randy Muller, and son, Mark Muller, both of Pendleton, Oregon; and daughters Tracy Cook of LaGrande, Oregon, and Chana Gover of Imbler, Oregon. A memorial service was held Nov. 2, 2007, with Mark Mickelson officiating.

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Longtime member in the Eugene, Oregon, UCG congregation, Albert Morice Summey, 84, died very peacefully on Sept. 30, 2007, due to extensive lung cancer diagnosed five weeks earlier.

Al had been a member of God's Church for 54 years, beginning with the Radio Church of God. It was home, and though the names of the Church have changed, it was always the truth that kept him attending. At the 1996 Feast of Trumpets, he was ordained a deacon. Al's favorite Bible verse was Romans 8:14.

He was born on Nov. 5, 1922, to Henry Daniel and Minnie Lee (Richards) Summey in Dallas, Texas. He was the youngest of six children, all of whom preceded him in death.

At age 20, Al entered the armed forces. He served as a radio operator in Normandy, Northern France, Central Europe and Germany, where his only brother was killed. Al was discharged November 1945 and awarded a Bronze Star for bravery.

He resumed work at a hearing aid company and met Katherine Burleson. They were married in 1946 and began their 61 years of marriage. He attended telegraph school, moved to Oregon in 1948, and worked for the Southern Pacific Railroad. In 1956 Al started working for the Eugene 4J school district, and continued working there until retirement in 1985.

Survivors include his wife, Katherine; three sons: Michael (and Karen), Keith (and Barbara) and Rod (and Connie); and six grandchildren: Laura, Shauna Siebert (Tristan), Jackie Rockwell (Dan), Sara, Katie and Kyle.

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Marvin Shinault, 79, of Scott City, Missouri, died Aug. 11, 2007, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

Mr. Shinault was born March 1, 1928, in Haverty Grass, Maryland. He married Mary Kay Graham on Oct. 1, 1972; she survives and is also a member of the United Church of God. Mr. Shinault had been a member since 1981.

Mr. Shinault is survived by a son, Marvin K. Shinault Jr., of Gail, Illinois; five daughters, Katie Slusher and Serena Shinault, of Scott City; Brenda McDowell of Denver, Colorado; and Kathy Whaley and LeNeta Jones, both of Rock Springs, New York; 10 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a son and two brothers. He was a U.S. Army paratrooper in World War II.

Mr. Shinault's attendance with United was hampered by poor health. In the last several years, despite his heart only functioning at 10 percent of its capacity, he pushed himself to be at services, to worship his God and fellowship with the brethren. Marvin Shinault was a gentle friend.

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Leona Marie Fanning 86, of Overbrook, Kansas, died Nov. 25, 2007, at the Brookside Manor nursing home in Overbrook. She was born Oct. 4, 1921, in Wichita, Kansas, the daughter of John and Nellie Ross Orindgreff. She had lived for many years in the Melvern community. She was the clerk of the board for Unified School District #456. Leona was baptized in July l968. She remained steadfast and faithful to her calling and convictions to the very end. Because of poor health she was unable to attend services for the past few years.

Survivors include two daughters, Jean Talbott of Plano, Texas, and Kathy Coffman of Overbrook; a brother, Charles Orindgreff of Wichita; a sister, Ruth Phipps of Augusta, Kansas; six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Funeral services were conducted by Dwaine Hudson Nov. 28 in Lyndon, Kansas.

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Announcements: Members are welcome to submit announcements of the births, engagements, weddings, significant anniversaries (25, 40, 50, 60, etc.) and obituaries in their families. Please include a self-addressed envelope if you would like photos returned. Most items are 50 to 100 words and should not exceed 250 words. Please e-mail (preferred) or give them to your local pastor to forward to United News.