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08 Jan

January 8, 2026 |

Rev. Lynn E. Mefferd passed away January 6, 2026, at Heritage Pointe of Warren, Ind. He was a United Brethren pastor for 44 years and a missionary in Sierra Leone for ten years.

  • Visitation: 2-7 pm Friday, January 9, 2026, at Adkins Bailey-Love Mortuary, 35 West Park Drive, Huntington, Ind.
  • Funeral: 10am Saturday, January 10, at College Park UB church, 1945 College Ave., Huntington, Ind. There will be an hour of visitation prior to the service.

Lynn Mefferd was born in 1939, and was converted in 1946 at age 7. He cited his home church as Wren UB in Wren, Ohio, near Van Wert. In 1961 he married Betty Jean Myers, and that year they began pastoring the Zion UB church near Wilshire, Ohio. In 1963 they began five years at the Fairview and Convoy UB churches.

Mefferd graduated from Huntington College in 1965 and from the HC Seminary in 1968. He was ordained as a UB minister in 1968. That year, he and Betty were appointed as missionaries to Sierra Leone, serving in Freetown–Lynn as business manager, Betty as hostess for the many missionaries who stayed at the mission house. During one furlough, Lynn took a year of training at the School of World Missions and the Institute of Church Growth at Fuller Theological Seminary in California.

After leaving missionary service, Mefferd resume pastoral ministry:

  • 1978-1984 at Prescott Avenue UB church (now Lighthouse Community UB in Dayton, Ohio).
  • 1984-1989 at Decatur UB (Decatur, Ind.).
  • 1989-1991 at Convoy UB (Convoy, Ohio).
  • 1991-2004 at Dillman UB (Warren, Ind.).
  • 2004-2015 as pastor of Congregational Care at New Hope UB church in Huntington, Ind., serving alongside senior pastor Ray Seilhamer.

Mefferd was granted retired status in 2018. At the time of his death, he was a member of College Park UB in Huntington, Ind.

Mefferd’s online obituary says, “He had a servant’s heart and especially enjoyed caring for the people of his church congregations….He enjoyed reading books and singing songs to his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. He also enjoyed fishing, golfing, watching sports on TV, camping, traveling, doing puzzles, and eating ice cream. Pastor Lynn loved to sing in church and he enjoyed waking his daughters in the mornings with song.”

Mefferd is survived by his wife Betty, three daughters (Deborah, Joanne, and Cheryl), nine grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

Preferred memorials may be made in memory of Lynn Mefferd to:

  • UB Global, 302 Lake Street, Huntington, Ind.
  • College Park United Brethren in Christ Church, Huntington, Ind.

 

(Written by Steve Dennie)

06 Jan

January 6, 2026 |
Rev. Richard “Dick” C. Case, 82, passed away December 31, 2025, in West Lafayette, Ind.

 

Dick was born in 1943, and grew up in Wichita, Kansas, in the Bethel United Brethren church. He was converted in 1958. In 1964, he married Darlene Birdsall in Claire, Mich.

 

Dick graduated from Huntington University in 1966 and from the Huntington Theological Seminary in 1972.  He was ordained in 1974.

 

Dick pastored a nondenominational church for five years, and then served three years as pastor of the UB church in Kettering, Ohio. That was followed by nine years as campus minister of Hutchinson Community College in  Hutchinson, Kansas. In 1991, he began 13 years as pastor of Crestview UB church in Lafayette, Ind. In 2004, he became senior pastor of the Dillman UB church in Warren, Ind. He retired from there in 2013. In retirement, from 2014-2021, Dick was chaplain of the Heritage Pointe retirement center in Fort Wayne, Ind.

 

Dick is survived by his wife, Darlene, daughters Tonia and Amber, and six grandchildren.

 

A memorial service was held January 5, 2026, at Covenant Church in West Lafayette, Ind.

 

Written by Steve Dennie

08 Sep

September 8, 2025 |

Ruth Joanne Faber, widow of longtime United Brethren minister Ralph Faber, passed away September 2, 2025, in Hoopeston, Ill. She was 90. Ruth and Ralph, who passed away in 2019, were married 64 years and spent 35 years pastoring UB churches in Illinois (Manlius, Quincy, Rockford, Leaf River, and Claytonville) and Kansas (Abilene). Ralph served some of those years as conference superintendent and General Conference delegate. Funeral services for Ruth were held Monday, September 8, in Princeton, Ill.

Read more about Ruth and her family in her official obituary.

26 Aug

August 26, 2025 |
Rev. Paul “David” Graham passed away April 18, 2025, after a two-year battle with cancer. He was the son of Paul and Hazel Graham, who pastored United Brethren churches in the Midwest.

 

David, born in 1945 in Celina, Ohio, attended Huntington University and went on to pastor UB churches for 16 years, 1971-1987. During that time, he earned a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology and became a Marriage and Family Therapist.

 

In 1987, the Grahams moved to Chico, Calif., where David worked as a therapist before retiring in 2015.

 

Read more in Rev. Graham’s official obituary.

02 May

May 2, 2025 |
Mabel Mundy, 84, passed away April 28, 2025, in Huntington, Ind.
For 27 years, 1987-2014, Mabel worked in the United Brethren National Office. She spent the first 16 years as executive secretary in the Missions department, working for three different directors—Bishop Jerry Datema (until 1993), Kyle McQuillen (1993-2001), and Gary Dilley (2001-2003). For a time, prior to the arrival of Donna Hollopeter, she was also interim director of the Women’s Missionary Fellowship.

 

In June 2003, Mabel switched to a different role, as accounting clerk. In that role, she worked with Finance director Marci Hammel until 2014, when Mabel finally retired at age 74.

 

Mabel possessed a variety of skills which made her a superb administrative assistant—detail oriented, organized, great relational skills, a servant spirit, and really smart. She was also highly dedicated, one of those employees who goes far beyond the job description and sometimes had to be told to go home. Point of interest: on the side, Mabel was part of a clown ministry.

 

Visitation: 3-7 pm Sunday, May 4, 2025. Location: Myers Funeral Home, 2901 Guilford Street, Huntington, IN 46750.

 

Funeral: 11 am Monday, May 5, 2025, with visitation one hour beforehand. Location: Bippus Calvary Church, 7955 N 900 W, Huntington, IN 46750.

 

Mabel was born in Huntington in 1940 and lived her entire life in the area. She and Bill were married in 1959 and had two sons and two daughters. Bill passed away in 2019, after 60 years of marriage, and one son also preceded her in death.

 

Memorial Contributions can be made out to UB Global, Church of the United Brethren, or Bippus Calvary Church all in care of Myers Funeral Home, 2901 Guilford Street, Huntington IN 46750.

 

 

(Author: Steve Dennie)

05 Mar

March 5, 2025 |
Rev. Roger Overmyer, a United Brethren pastor for 48 years in Ohio and Pennsylvania, passed away Saturday evening, March 1, 2025.

 

Overmyer graduated from the Kentucky Mountain Bible Institute in 1957, and the next year began pastoring a United Brethren church in Youngstown, Ohio and was ordained in 1960. That was followed by 18 years as pastor of First UB church in Findlay, Ohio. In 1980 he began pastoring the Seneca and Victory Heights UB churches near Franklin, Pa. The two congregations united in 1984, and he continued serving them until July 2006, when he retired from the United Brethren ministry.

 

In 2008, Overmyer became Pastor of Visitation at Oak Grove Church, a non-UB congregation in Mercer, Pa. Also since 2008, he has been president of Portage Holiness Camp near Bowling Green, Ohio.

 

Roger and Darlene were married in 1956 and had three children.

 

The family is planning a memorial service later in the year.

 

Read more about Roger’s life and legacy in his obituary.

(Submitted by Steve Dennie)

22 Jan

January 22, 2025 |

Rev. Philip R. Marxson, 83, passed away January 20, 2025. He and his family served as missionaries in Sierra Leone for six years, 1981-1987, and later pastored three United Brethren churches in Indiana and Ohio.

A Celebration of Life service will be held April 12, 2025, at Salem Church of God, 6500 Southway Rd #1, Clayton, OH 45315. Visitation will be from 10:00 to 11:00 am. The service will begin at 11:00.

Phil grew up in Shelbyville, Ind. He and Sondra were married in 1963 and had three children: Lisa (wife of Bishop Todd Fetters), Kristen, and Michael.

The family served three terms as United Brethren missionaries in Sierra Leone, starting in 1981. Phil was administrator of Mattru Hospital, while Sondra was a nurse and, in the second and third terms, matron at the hospital.

After returning from Sierra Leone, Phil entered Huntington University. He graduated in 1989 with a degree in Bible & Religion, and went on to receive the Master of Christian Ministry in 1991. He was ordained in 1993.

Phil and Sondra served three United Brethren churches: Bethesda UB outside of Huntington, Ind., 1989-1991; Otterbein UB in Rockford, Ohio, 1991-1993; and Olivet UB in New Lebanon, Ohio, 1993-2004. He retired in 2004.

After retiring from the United Brethren ministry, Phil served nine years as chaplain at BrookHaven Retirement Community, and also worked eight years at Gilbert Fellers Funeral Home, both places in Brookville, Ohio.

(submitted by Steve Dennie)

08 Oct

October 8, 2024 |

(post by Steve Dennie)

Philip Burkett, age 67, passed away October 4, 2024, in Marlette, Mich. He had been in hospice care after a lengthy battle with a brain tumor. He was an ordained UB minister for many years, and he and his wife, Darlene, were part of the team that founded the United Brethren mission in Macau.

Both visitation and the Celebration of Life service will be held at the Cass City Missionary Church. Address: 4449 Koepfgen Road, Cass City, MI 48726

Visitation: 4-8 pm Friday, October 18.
Funeral: 11 am Saturday, October 19, with visitation one hour beforehand.

Phil’s life was wrapped around ministry. He grew up as a United Brethren preacher’s kid and missionary kid. He was born in Sierra Leone May 4, 1957, as the fourth son of Marion and Frances Burkett. They returned to Michigan in 1958, serving pastorates in Michigan and Kentucky. They returned to Sierra Leone in 1971. Phil spent his first three years of high school there, and finished up in Michigan.

Phil graduated from Huntington University in 1979 as a music major. As a senior, he received the top student awards in music, drama, and Alpha Chi. He and Darlene Connor, a fellow music major, were married in 1979, and then relocated to Louisville, Kent., where he earned a Master of Church Music at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

His first pastorate was at Gethsemane United Brethren Church in Jackson, Mich. He started as an associate pastor, and eventually became senior pastor. In 1986, he received the Master of Christian Ministry from the HU School of Christian Ministries.

In 1987, Phil and Darlene joined Luke and Audrey Fetters and a Chinese coworker in starting United Brethren mission work in Macau, a peninsula on Mainland China which, until 1999, was under the control of Portugal. Phil and Darlene served four years in Macau. They then accepted a UB pastorate in Toronto, Ontario, where they also helped start a Chinese ministry.

In 1996, Phil became Worship Arts Pastor at College Park UB church in Huntington, Ind. During the next 14 years, he taught classes at HU at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and completed a Doctorate of Worship Studies from the Robert Webber Institute for Worship Studies.

In 2011, Phil became lead pastor of Cass City Missionary Church in Michigan. He had a significant and powerful impact on many lives and was loved by his congregation as he continued to serve his Lord there. His ministry of 13 years in Cass City found him involved in community ministries as well, including directing community choirs.

Phil and Darlene celebrated 45 years of marriage this past May. Both children are married. Jeremy’s family lives in Baltimore, Md., and Carissa’s family lives in Portland, Ore.

27 Sep

September 27, 2024 |

Ewart Carlson Becker passed away, at the age of 87, on Monday, September 23, 2024 in his home in Traverse City, Michigan. 

Carlson was a longtime minister in the United Brethren Church, but prior to that he served as the senior pastor for Union Church in Huntington, Indiana (1964-68). His service as a UB minister began in 1968 when he stepped into the Minister of Camping position in the Michigan conference. He served at Camp Living Waters from 1968 to 1977. While there, he was ordained as an elder in the UB church (1970). In 1977, he moved to Huntington, Indiana to serve as the Director of Stewardship for the UB national office. Then in 1989, Carlson began four years of service as the Associate Director of Missions. The next move for Carlson was back to Michigan to serve as the senior pastor of Northland Church in Traverse City. 

He and his wife, Naomi, served side by side since their wedding day in 1959. In retirement, Carlson and Naomi were compelled to serve in Macau to provide pastoral leadership to Living Stone Church and to mentor another individual to take over leadership there. In 2008, the couple returned to their home in Michigan and remained active in their local church.

A Celebration of Life service for Carlson will be held on Saturday, October 19 in Traverse City, Michigan at Bayview Wesleyan Church (720 Wayne Street). Visitation begins at 10:00 am and the service will follow at 11:00 am.

More information can be found in his obituary. 



17 Sep

September 17, 2024 |

The Reverend Richard Frederick passed away at the age of 87 years on September 11, 2024 at Heritage Pointe in Warren, Indiana. Richard attended Huntington College from 1955 to 1959 as an undergraduate and later received his Masters of Divinity there as well. He was ordained as an elder in the United Brethren Church and served at Dillman, Mt. Zion, Grayston Avenue UB and Lancaster UB churches. In 1985, Richard joined and was ordained in the United Methodist Church and pastored three more churches until he officially retired in 2016.

Richard’s funeral service was held on Monday, September 16, 2024 in Applegate Chapel at Heritage Pointe. You can learn more about Richard, his family and his legacy of ministry in his obituary.