A MISSION IS BORN -- In 1954 a group of Lutheran Christians with the cooperation of the American missions of the American Lutheran Church decided to hold regular church service in West Jefferson, Ohio. The first service was held on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1954. Hence, Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church was born on Christmas Eve. Rev. Melvin Oehrtman conducted the service that was attended by 104 people.
The next day being Sunday, December 25, scheduled services were held at the Grange Hall, on Twin Street.. There were 44 people present for Sunday worship. Mr. Malvern Reuter volunteered to act as Superintendent. Mrs. Clare McNutt was pianist. Mrs. W.H. (Bertha K.) Emmalhainz recalls the first Sunday as something she would never forget. She felt she had been given a glimpse of what missionaries experience going into a new field. Learning new names, some odd as her own, seeing new faces and meeting in the Grange Hall. Quite a change from what many were accustomed to. No beautiful windows, no carpeted floor, no altar, pulpit or lectern. No organ with beautiful music to add to the service. But they knew God was with them, even in the Grange Hall.
The first church bulletin was printed for church service on February 6, 1955. An important item to be determined was the name of the church. There were eleven names submitted. On the third ballot the name "Zion" was selected over the name "Martin Luther". On June 14, 1955, Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church was accepted as a regular congregation of the Ohio District.
On Sunday, October 30, 1955, Pastor Oehrtman welcomed one hundred and forty-two members into the charter membership of this new congregation; 79 confirmed members and 63 baptized members. Of those charter members of the congregation, the following individuals are still members of Zion: Esther Mae Baker, Dortha Feddern, Norma Hicks, Ron Hilliker, Louise Johnston, Janis (Feddern) Murray and Sally Sindledecker.
Another important decision to be made was to determine the location of the church. After much discussion, 1.94 acres of land were purchased at the end of Center Street from Riddle Sidner. On March 11, 1956, this property was officially purchased for $8,854.75. In the spring of 1956, Mr. Marlin L. Heist of Miamisburg was hired as the architect and the Mitch Construction Company of Springfield, Ohio, washered to build Zion.
The first elected officers of the Sunday School were as follows: Malvern Reuter, Superintendent; William Sweet; Assistant Superintendent; Harriett Harbage, Secretary; and Esther Mae Baker, Treasurer.
On May 27, 1956, the first Confirmation Class graduated and was introduced to the congregation. The names of those making up the first class are as follows: Margaret Mursch, David Johnson, June Ries, and Sharon Stephenson.
During that same year, the congregation expressed a need for a full-time pastor. Pastor Daniel Snider was installed as pastor of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church on January 6, 1957. It was determined a parsonage was needed to house the full-time pastor and his family. After much contemplation and discussion, the residence at 352 Marshall Avenue was purchased in the west end of town at the cost of $13,500.
The congregation prayed they would have a church of their own in which to worship and to study the Word of God. These prayers were answered when groundbreaking ceremonies for a new church structure were held on Palm Sunday, April 14, 1957. The church continued to grow and double services began being held on June 2, 1957. The present size of the congregation during this time was 216 confirmed members. The dedication for the new church was held on Sunday, October 6, 1957. The main auditorium of the new church would seat 140 people and an additional 100 more in the overflow. During the ceremony it was announced the loan for the church was approved for the amount of $36,300.
Pastor Daniel E. Snider fulfilled his calling at Zion and accepted a call at Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jackson Center, Ohio. The church then called Pastor Wilson Kotchenruther, who presided as Pastor from March 1962 to October 1965. Pastor Darwin E. Wilson followed from January 1966 through April 1972.
On October 6, 1968, the congregation observed the 11th anniversary of the church building dedication along with a mortgage burning ceremony to mark the end to the original debt. On December 7, 1968, Zion purchased the residence and property at 163 South Center Street which was adjacent and just north of the church to serve as a new parsonage. This property was purchased from the estate of Minnie Marie Britton for $28,000. A loan of $36,000 was secured to purchase the property and remodel the home. One of the beneficiaries of the estate, Clyde and Ruth Johnson, were members of Zion when the property was purchased. The parsonage located at 352 Marshall Drive was later sold in 1969 for $16,000 to the Worley family (Malenie Hadidon's parents), who were members of Zion. Her mother, Donna Green, is still a member. The mortgage for the parsonage was paid off in 1971, just after three years.
With rapid growth, the congregation saw the need to increase the size of their facilities. A fund raising drive was launched in 1969 "Faith in Action", for a new sanctuary. After many years of hopes and dreams, the members of Zion Lutheran Church witnessed the dedication of the present sanctuary on March 28, 1976. A loan of $118,000 was secured for this purchase. The mortgage was paid off in 1991.
During this time, Pastor Wilson was called to Detroit, Michigan. Pastor Douglas R. Behm became pastor of Zion on August 20, 1972, and officiated at the dedication of the present sanctuary on March 28, 1976. The architect was Robert Myers of Holroyd & Architects of Columbus and the builder was Howard Zimmer of Howard Zimmer Builders, Inc., Hilliard, Ohio.
During the next twenty years the church had a series of pastors and interim pastors including the following: Pastor Max Raymond Culver, interim pastor June 13 through August 1, 1976; Pastor Stephen Kimpel, January 1, 1977 through August 23, 1981; Pastor Charles Sandrock, interim pastor, September 6, 1981 through January 24, 1982; Pastor W. F. Bittikofer, January 31, 1982 through February 28, 1982, interim pastor; Pastor Charles Sandrock, March 7, 1982, interim pastor; Pastor James W. Budke, April 17, 1982 through May 15, 1987, and Pastor Robert L. Michelfelder, October 26, 1987 through August 21, 1996.
On September 1, 1996, Pastor Valerie Kinlan became interim pastor of Zion. Upon approval of the Synod, she agreed in 1997 to a three-year contract, which would expire the last day of June, 2000.
Pastor Kinlan brought to Zion a new perspective. She was not only the first woman to serve as Pastor, but she brought with her a deep commitment to see Zion expand and to grow. The church developed its own mission statement. A new sign as well as a new paved parking lot was constructed. Upon the passing of member Dick Castor in February 1997, his family purchased new green paraments for the sanctuary in his memory. The parsonage at 163 South Center Street was sold on June 11, 1997 for $122,608. The money was invested for future growth of the church. In 1999, Melissa Richeson-Story, a liturgical artist (degreed) and a member of the Liturgical Art Guild of Columbus, was hired to design white paraments. The title of the paraments is "Alleluia!"‚ There are three themes to the pieces. The main theme of the work is "prayers as incense" based on Psalm 141:2, "Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.". The second theme was of ascension, "What God begins, God completes" and "How the Word comes from God and returns to God.". Her work was paid for through the memorial fund from the church treasury at the cost of $2,500. In 1999, plans were developed to remodel the kitchen and also to build a wheelchair access restroom. This project was completed in September 2000, at the cost of $39,000.
Upon the retirement of Pastor Kinlan in 2000, Pastor Dennis W. Koch was installed on September 24, 2000. He shared his thoughts to the members of Zion that he had been led to us by the Holy Spirit to be our Pastor and together we would make the Grace of God known and cherished in Madison County.
On October 30, 2005, Zion held a celebratory worship service and luncheon in honor of the congregation's 50th anniversary. The year-long celebration began in December 2004 - marking the first gathering of Lutheran Christians at the Grange Hall. Participating in the October 2005 service were former pastors Daniel Snider, Darwin Wilson and Stephen Kimpel. More than 150 people gathered on this special occasion. Several of Zion's original members were in attendance, including Dortha Feddern, Janis (Feddern) Murry, Esther Mae Baker, Norma Hicks, Louise Johnston, Ron McNutt and Sally Sindledecker.
Zion is poised to move into the future, cherishing its strong heritage.
