Published: October 05, 2007 11:33 pm         

St. John’s to ‘Give God Glory’ on 110th

St. John’s Lutheran Church in Covington will celebrate its 110th anniversary during the 10:30 a.m. service Sunday.

The theme is “Give God Glory,” and the Rev. Kevin Wyssmann will speak. A dinner will follow the service at noon, and a reception/reminiscence program will be at 1:30 p.m.

Wyssmann is a graduate of Covington-Douglas High School and former member of St. John’s Lutheran Church. He currently is senior pastor at Christ’s Greenfield Lutheran Church in Gilbert, Ariz. He has been at the Arizona parish since his placement by the seminary in 1982.

On June 23, 1897, St. John’s Lutheran Church was organized with eight charter members. It was the second congregation of Lutheran Church Missouri Snyod to be organized in Oklahoma Territory. The first one was in Okarche. Services were conducted in the Lone Star sod school by the Revs. J. Hamm, of Okarche, and E. Maehr, of Fairmont.

In fall 1900, several acres were given to the congregation, and a church was built. The first resident pastor, the Rev. Theodor Bauer, taught a Christ-ian day school.

The Rev. H.F. Meyer served as pastor from 1920 to 1939, with the Rev. Frank C. Fellbaum as pastor from 1940 to 1943. In 1942, the congregation voted to discontinue German services. The Rev. R.D. Barlag was pastor from 1945 to 1947. During his time, Saturday school was started and electricity was installed.

The Rev. Edwin Coyner was pastor from 1948 to 1954. He started vacation Bible school. In 1949, a merger brought together the American Lutheran Parish, Bethlehem congregation of Covington and St. John’s congregation.

Beginning that year, services were held in the brick church the Bethlehem congregation had built in town in the 1920s. The Rev. Paul Hoyer was pastor from 1954 to 1958.

In 1959, the Rev. Carlton Kjergaard was installed as pastor, and a new parish hall was dedicated. The new parsonage was dedicated on March 14, 1965. The present church building was dedicated on July 16, 1967.

On May 12, 1985, the bell tower was dedicated. It housed the old traditional bell from the pioneer church.

Kjergaard retired from active ministry May 30, 1993, after 34 years of service. The Rev. Glen Kollmeyer, of Enid, was interim pastor from 1993 to 1994. On Aug. 14, 1994, Richard Docekal was ordained into the ministry at St. John’s and was installed as pastor. He was pastor until 1999, when the Rev. Jerry Brown took over as pastor.

In 1995, the sanctuary was carpeted. The cross on the bell tower was backlit in 2002, and in 2006 Kidz Church was started. One of the biggest additions to the worship service is the voices of the Praise Singers.