19 Apr Obituary: Rev. Wayne Goldsmith, Longtime UB Minister

Rev. Wayne Goldsmith, 91, passed away April 16, 2021. He and his wife, Mary, who died in 2018, enjoyed 66 years of marriage together. A celebration of life service will be held June 12, 2021, in Fort Wayne, Ind. Details below.

For 45 years, Wayne served congregations fulltime in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Ontario. After retiring, he spent another 15 years serving many congregations as an interim minister, including in Fountain Hills, Ariz., in 2002.

The first United Brethren church he pastored was Parkwood Gardens UB church in Guelph, Ontario, 1985-1988. He went on to pastor churches in the former Michindoh Conference, which included churches in southern Michigan, northwest Ohio, and northern Indiana. He also served a number of stints as an interim pastor for UB churches.

Visitation: Friday, June 11, 2021, from 1-3 pm and 5-7 pm.
Visitation location: D.O. McComb and Sons Maplewood Park Funeral Home, 4017 Maplecrest Rd., Fort Wayne, Ind.
Celebration of Life service: 10:30 am Saturday, June 12, 2021. Visitation one hour beforehand.
Location: Central Ministries, 5801 Schwartz Road, Fort Wayne, IN.

Online obituary here.

30 Mar Obituary: Rev. Bill Miller, Former Pastor in California

William Miller

Rev. Bill Miller, 75, passed away Saturday, March 27, 2021. He was pastor of the Burbank UB church (Burbank, Calif.) 1984-1994, and had been secretary of the former California Conference. After leaving the fulltime ministry, he returned to the business world and worked as a management consultant. He held bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Business Administration from Biola University.

Bill and his wife, Mary, were in the planning stages of their 50th anniversary. They retained membership at the UB church in Pixley, Calif.

A memorial service will be held May 29 at the Congregational Church of Northridge, 9659 Balboa Blvd., Northridge, CA 91325. Condolences can be sent to Mary at her home: 17431 Tulsa St, Granada Hills Ca 91344.

16 Mar Obituary: Rev. John Wiseman, 95

Rev. John Wiseman

Rev. John Wiseman, 95, a former UB minister in western Pennsylvania, passed away March 7, 2021, in Pittsburgh, Pa. He was a navy veteran of both World War II and the Korean War, after which he went into the ministry. A private funeral service will be held at the convenience of the family with Marc Stephenson, pastor of First UB Church of New Castle, Pa.

11 Mar Obituary: Dr. Paul B. Baker, Longtime UB Pastor and Leader

Dr. Paul B. Baker

Dr. Paul B. Baker, a former United Brethren pastor in Pennsylvania, passed away Wednesday, March 10, 2021.

Visitation: 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. Friday, March 12, 2021.
Funeral service: 1:00 pm Saturday, March 13, 2021.
Location for both: King Street UB church, 162 East King Street, Chambersburg, PA 17201

Paul Baker grew up around Chambersburg, Pa., and became a Christian at age 13 in the Mt. Pleasant UB church in Chambersburg. He graduated from Huntington University in 1955, and then served two years as associate pastor of King Street UB church in Chambersburg under Dr. Clyde W. Meadows. He went on to pastor the Otterbein UB in Greencastle for four years, then returned to King Street as senior pastor in 1961 when Meadows was elected bishop. He continued as pastor of King Street until 1991.

During most of that period, beginning in 1967, Dr. Baker served as a conference superintendent in Pennsylvania Conference, and as the senior superintendent beginning in 1977. He was elected to many General Conferences, served on the denominational executive committee, joined the Huntington University Board of Trustees in 1970, and provided leadership on various other denominational boards and committees. He also served ten years on the board of the National Association of Evangelicals.

At the local level there in Chambersburg, Dr. Baker gave leadership to the UB ministries at Rhodes Grove camp and Piney Mountain Home, as well as to such organizations as the YMCA, Kiwanis, and the ministerial association.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by the Geisel Funeral Home in Chambersburg.

04 Mar Obituary: Dr. Kent Maxwell

Dr. Kent Maxwell passed away March 1, 2021, in Warren, Ind.

Maxwell grew up in the UB church in Dayton, Wash. He graduated from Huntington University in 1961 with a degree in Psychology, and received a Master of Divinity in 1964 from the Huntington College seminary. He was ordained as a UB minister.

Maxwell went on to earn a Doctor of Ministry in Pastoral Care and Counseling from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in 1980, and followed that with an MA in Counseling from Liberty University in 1991.

Dr. Maxwell served 1964-1978 as pastor of Crestview UB church in Lafayette, Ind. He then taught for four years at Winebrenner Theological Seminary (Findlay, Ohio). In 1982, he was appointed senior pastor of College Park UB church (Huntington, Ind.), serving there until 1989, and followed that with three years as pastor of New Hope UB church in Huntington. He taught at the Caribbean Graduate School of Theology 2002-2005, and he also pastored United Methodist Churches part-time.

Along the way, Dr. Maxwell served on UB boards and study committees at the conference and denominational level. His was a long and varied career in ministry.

He is survived by his wife Carol, with whom he was united in marriage in 1963, and their three children.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by D. O. McComb & Sons Funeral Homes-—Pine Valley.

26 Feb Obituary: Rev. John Richardson, 87

John Richardson

Rev. John E. Richardson, 87, passed away February 24, 2021, in Rockford, Ohio. He was an ordained United Brethren minister who had pastored various churches in the Van Wert area.

Richardson was born in Flint, Mich., in 1934 and became a journeyman tool-and-die maker. He graduated in 1954 from Fort Wayne Bible college and was ordained by the Missionary Church in 1962. In 1978 he received a masters degree from the Huntington University Graduate School of Christian Ministries.

Richardson’s career including pastoring four United Brethren churches: Etna Avenue (now New Hope) in Huntington, Ind.; Wren and Greenbriar, on a circuit outside of Van Wert, Ohio; and the UB church in Elgin, Ohio.

He was preceded in death by Peggy, his wife of 54 years, and Mary, his wife of 11 years.

Visitation: 1-4 p.m. Monday, March 1, 2021.
Funeral: 4 p.m. Monday, March 1, 2021.
Location: Cowan & Son Funeral Home, 616 S. Washington St., Van Wert, Ohio 45891

View the online obituary.

23 Feb Obituary: Rev. Earl D. Peters, Retired UB Minister

Rev. Earl D. Peter (right), 95, a retired United Brethren minister, passed away February 18 in Fayetteville, Pa.

He grew up in Biglerville, Pa., and in 1947 served as a sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. He graduated in 1957 from Huntington University, and from the HU seminary in 1958. He was ordained in 1958.

Peters was a United Brethren pastor for 23 years, and served on many study committees for Pennsylvania Conference and at the denominational level. He was elected as a delegate to General Conference six times, and also served on the Church Ministries board. Within Pennsylvania Conference, he served on the Piney Mountain Home board for 23 years, and was chairman for 18 years.

His wife, Melva Peters, passed away in August 2020.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Dugan Funeral Home in Shippensburg, Pa. Private services will be held at the discretion of the family.

19 Feb Obituary: Rev. Glenn Flint (Feb 18, 2021)

Rev. Glenn Flint (right), a former United Brethren minister, passed away Thursday, February 18, 2021, after a long struggle with blood cancer (Multiple Myeloma). He was 59 years old. Glenn is survived by his wife, Jean, whom he married in 1982, and their two married daughters.

Glenn grew up in the Munson UB church of Waldron, Mich. He graduated from the Huntington University Graduate School of Christian Ministries in 1986 and was ordained that year as a UB minister. He served in ministry at two UB churches in the former Michindoh Conference before joining the staff of Emmanuel UB church (Fort Wayne, Ind.) in the early 1990s as the worship pastor. He served 2000-2002 as associate pastor of Anchor UB in Fort Wayne, and since 2002 has been Director of Music & Worship Ministries at Fairview Missionary Church in Angola, Ind.

Glenn’s brother, Steve, is Pastor of Worship and Care at King Street UB church in Chambersburg, Pa.

12 Feb Funeral Service for Rev. Russell Birdsall

The funeral service for Rev. Russell Birdsall will be held Saturday, February 13, at 11:00 a.m. It will be held at College Park UB church (Huntington, Ind.), and will be livestreamed on the church’s Youtube channel at 11 a.m. You can watch it here.

05 Feb Obituary: Rev. Russ Birdsall: Missionary, Dean, Pastor

Rev. Russ and Nellie Birdsall

Rev. Russell Birdsall, 93, passed away Wednesday, February 3, 2021, at his home in Huntington, Ind. He was a United Brethren missionary in Sierra Leone, Dean of Students at Huntington University, a UB pastor in Huntington, fulltime superintendent of Central Conference, short-term UB missionary in Macau for a number of terms…and beloved by everyone who knew him.

A funeral service will be at 11 am Saturday, February 13, at College Park UB church in Huntington, Ind. Dr. Ray Seilhamer will officiate. Visitation will be available 3-7pm on Friday, February 12, at the Bailey-Love Mortuary in Huntington (35 West Park Drive).

Russ grew up in a United Brethren preacher’s home, a son of Rev. Stanley Birdsall. He and Nellie, his wife of nearly 70 years, met at Huntington University and were married in 1951. He graduated from HU in 1953, and was ordained in 1957 after graduating from the HU seminary.

On September 4, 1957, Russ, Nellie, and their young daughter, Sharon, boarded a ship for Sierra Leone, where they served as UB missionaries for the next 11 years.

In July 1968, the family returned to Huntington at the request of Dr. DeWitt Baker, another former Sierra Leone missionary, so Russ could become dean of students. He did that until 1976, followed by two years as director of church relations for the college.

In 1979, Russ began ten years as pastor of New Hope UB church in Huntington, Ind., followed by three years, 1990-1993, as fulltime superintendent of Central Conference.

Between 1994 and 2006, Russ and Nellie served seven times in Macau as short-term missionaries, always going at their own expense. They taught in the English Language Program, conducted Bible studies, and provided pastoral care for the other missionaries.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Bailey-Love Mortuary in Huntington.