Faith Lutheran in Hawks celebrates 100th anniversary
Faith Lutheran Church in Hawks celebrated its 100th anniversary with a special service Sunday. The Rev. Harry White served as guest speaker and a former member, the Rev. Michael Schaedig, who now serves as a pastor in Harrison, was lector, while the current pastor, the Rev. Jack Ferguson, served as liturgist at the service. Faith came to be when two Lutheran churches in Hawks combined in 1970. Hope Lutheran, affiliated with the American Lutheran Synod, and St. Michael Lutheran Church, a member of the Missouri Lutheran Synod, merged to form Faith Lutheran. With the help of Pastor John Ferne of Hope and Pastor Harry White of St. Michael, the old St. Michael building was renovated and enlarged to accommodate the larger congregation. Hope Church, vacated after the merger and later burned in 1973, has an interesting history.
IN THE FALL of 1880, the Rev. Christian Schwan, a traveling minister, began making stops in Hawks every three or four weeks. He conducted services in the Trapp Schoolhouse and later in the Kranzo living room. A single man all his life, he stayed in the homes of parishioners as he made the rounds between Metz, Hagensville, Alpena, Hawks, Cheboygan, Ritzville and his home base of Moltke. In 1904, the group named itself Hope Congregation and in 1905 began construction of a church on land owned by William Sorget. Dedicated in 1908, the new church served the congregation for more than 60 years. Pastors to serve at Hope Lutheran included Christian Schwan (1880-1897); Leonard Schmidt (1897-1938); Herbert Dimke (1938-1940); Carl Althoff (1940-1946); Oscar Bertram, supply pastor, (1946-1947); Oscar Braunschweig (1947-1951); Leonard Schmidt, supply pastor (1951-1952), Jesse Essinger (1952-1956); William Scherer (1956-1964); Harry Jaeger (1964-1969); and John Ferne (1969-1970).
According to Hope?s anniversary book in 1955, its longest serving minister had second thoughts about staying in the wild north country. Sent from Neuendettelsau, Germany to do mission work in America, he asked his superiors for a transfer after one year at Hawks. He said the hardships of the winter were too much for him, not to mention a paltry salary of less than $100 per year, paid annually. His superiors wrote back that this was his field and they were sure that ?the people would feel honored to bury their pastor.? Pastor Schmidt took this to heart as he served his entire parish ministry at Hawks before retiring at age 63.
JUST A few hundred feet to the south, St. Michael Lutheran Church had its start as part of St. Michael Lutheran in Belknap. Around the turn of the century Missouri Synod Lutherans made the journey to St. Michael in Belknap for worship. Desiring a closer location to attend church, they constructed a chapel on two acres of land donated by August Elowsky and Ferdinand Dettloff. On December 10, 1910, Hawks became an independent congregation but was still served by the Belknap pastor.
Those men who served as pastor of St. Michael in Hawks were: Harry Essig (1906-1913); Karl W. Schoenow (1913-1919); Louis Heinecke (1919-1925); Arthur Wacker (1925-1929); William Schoenow (1929-1937); Otto Koenig (1937-1954); Herman Heinecke (1955-1963); and Harry White (1965-1970). >From its founding until 1925, St. Michael in Belknap and St. Michael in Hawks had the same minister. From 1925 until 1963 one minister served St. Paul Lutheran in Posen and St. Michael in Hawks. A series of vacancy pastors served the congregation from 1963-1965. In 1965 Pastor White, who was serving
FOLLOWING THE merger of Hope and St. Michael Hawks, Rev. White served until 1977. When Pastor White took a call to Harbor Beach, Pastor Raymond Prough, pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran in Onaway, served as vacancy pastor. In 1979 he accepted a call to serve the dual parish of Holy Cross and Faith staying at that post until 1992. Pastor Chris Rasper served in that capacity from 1992 until he resigned in 1999. Karl Neff filled in as interim pastor until the congregation, no longer a dual parish with Holy Cross, called the Rev. Jack Ferguson in 2000.
CHOIRS FROM St. John Lutheran, Rogers City, Peace Lutheran, Rogers City, and Faith Lutheran provided special music at the service.