The Rev. Dr. Henry G. Church Jr., 75, Warsaw, entered heaven on Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, after a short illness. He passed away at 3:42 p.m. at Lutheran Hospital, Fort Wayne.
He was born Sept. 14, 1941, in Los Angeles, Calif., to the Rev. Henry G. Church Sr. and Velma Audrey Church. On July 3, 1962, he was married to Bonnie Elizabeth Blews, who survives.
From his youth he had wide interests, earning an associate degree in music from Modesto Junior College, the bachelor’s degree in speech from Seattle Pacific University, a master’s degree in marriage and family counseling from the University of San Francisco and the Ph.D. in theology from the University of Malawi.
An ordained elder in the Free Methodist Church, Henry served churches in Seattle, Wash. (including a deaf congregation where he preached in sign language); Corralitos, Calif.; Sacramento, Calif.; and Winona Lake. He and Bonnie served as missionaries in Africa for 30 years and in the Middle East for four years, retiring to their home in Warsaw in 2016. Fluent in several languages, Henry established Bible schools in Malawi and Zimbabwe based on an instructional model he developed. This model is still in use worldwide in religious education.
Henry served as Africa area director for Free Methodist World Missions. In recent years, he served as executive director of Impact Middle East. He was a member of the Warsaw Optimist Club, the Area Ministerial Association and the board of directors of Impact Middle East.
He will be lovingly remembered by his wife of 55 years, Bonnie Elizabeth Church, Warsaw; and two sons, Eric (wife Becky) Church, Diamond Head, Miss., and Evan (fiancée Annette) Church, Ypsilanti, Mich., and Saint Louis, Mo. Also surviving are two grandchildren, Serena and Connor Church; and his brother, Daniel Church, and his wife, Lorinda (Bonnie’s sister), Lakeside, Ohio.
He was preceded in death by his parents.
Visitation will be from 3 to 5 and 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13, at Redpath-Fruth Funeral Home, 225 Argonne Road, Warsaw.
His funeral service will be conducted at 11 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 14, (Henry’s 76th birthday) at Winona Lake Free Methodist Church, 902 College Ave., Winona Lake, and officiated by Pastor Rick Neir and assisted by Pastor Doug Balzer.
Burial will follow with a graveside service at Oakwood Cemetery, Warsaw.
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Memorials to Impact Middle East, designated for refugees: impactmiddleeast.org.
Condolences may be sent at www.redpathfruthfuneralhome.com.
