Here is the Ebenezer Mennonite Church in rural Bluffton. This photo is believed to be taken in 1883 following an addition that was made to the building. The original church building was constructed in 1869.
When this photo was taken there were only two Mennonite churches in the Bluffton-Pandora Swiss Settlement. The other was St. John Mennonite, four miles to the north.
By 1890 there were between 800 and 950 Swiss Mennonites living here. At that time the congregation worshiped together on alternative Sundays at St. John and then at Ebenezer.
Dorothy P. Shroyer, 83, died at 12:10 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016, at the Mennonite Memorial Home, Bluffton.
She was born on May 26, 1933, in New Bedford, Mass., to John P. and Edwina V. (Furtado) Roza, Sr., who preceded her in death. On Aug. 20, 1955, Dorothy married George Raymond Shroyer who survives in Ada.
Icon viewers know that Jim Kinn is a pretty private guy. He didn’t announce his retirement publically. The Icon discovered his plans through anonymous sources. This column attempts to paint a picture of Bluffton’s retiring vehicle physician. His last day on the job was Dec. 27.
By Fred Steiner
If only auto service centers gave honorary doctor degrees. Jim Kinn’s wall would be covered with them.
Try blindfolding him. Then, drive your car through the Stratton Auto Group’s Bluffton Auto Repair Center lot.
The ArtSpace/Lima Photography Club will present its Annual Juried Exhibit from Jan. 6 through Feb. 11, in The Ellen Nelson Gallery at ArtSpace/Lima. For the 2017 exhibit, 86 artists from a 100-mile radius around Lima entered 222 photographs, 94 of which were accepted into the show.
Jurors for the exhibit were: Jordan Knepper, executive director of the Piqua Arts Council, and Andi Baumgartner, Assistant Professor of art at Bluffton University.
