USA > Ohio > Church of the Brethren in southern Ohio > Part 18
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LEVI A. BOOKWALTER
Levi A. Bookwalter was the son of Joseph and Susan Bookwalter, born in Montgomery County on December 1, 1856.
Preparing himself for teaching, he followed this pro- fession for twenty-six years.
On November 14, 1880, he married Catherine Ann Shock. They had two sons and three daughters.
Brother and Sister Bookwalter became members of the Lower Stillwater church in 1882. In 1884 he was elected to the office of deacon and in 1889 to the ministry. His ordination as an elder took place in 1897.
He presided as elder in the following Southern Ohio churches: Lower Stillwater, Trotwood, West Dayton, Happy Corner, and Middle District.
Brother Bookwalter was one of the first trustees of Man- chester College, representing this district. At various times he was moderator, reader, and secretary of district confer- ence, represented the district on Standing Committee, and was a member of the District Ministerial Board. He served on the District Temperance Committee, and was a member of
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the Historical Committee that compiled and published the 1920 history. He was one of the instigators of the summer assembly and was an ardent advocate of temperance.
His death occurred in 1932, resulting from an automobile accident.
SYLVAN BOOKWALTER
Sylvan Bookwalter was born February 27, 1866, in Darke County, Ohio, the son of William and Esther Baker Bookwalter.
He was married to Mary Studebaker in 1885. Two sons and one daughter were born to them.
He became a member of the church in 1896. In 1902 he was called to the ministry and in 1910 was ordained an elder.
In the free ministry he served well and long, and as presiding elder had the oversight of these churches: Constance, Prices Creek, Pleasant Hill, Potsdam, Salem, and Brookville.
His companion died in 1919. In 1920 he married Alice Flory, who passed away in 1946. He married Mrs. Edna Minnich in 1948.
He continued active in the local church and Sunday school until his death on October 10, 1951.
EARL M. BOWMAN
Earl Mckinley Bowman was born near Johnson City, Tennessee, on November 23, 1896, the son of Elder John Price Bowman and Tennie Etta Garst Bowman.
He attended high school at West Branch, Michigan, and completed his high school work in the academy of McPherson College, Kansas. Continuing at McPherson he graduated, A.B. degree, in 1922. Having received the M.A. degree in 1924 from the University of Pennsylvania and the B.D. degree from Crozer Theological Seminary, Pennsylvania, in 1936, he com- pleted residence work for the Ph.D. degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 1937.
On November 21, 1919, he was married to Leah Frances
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Miller, of Alvo, Nebraska. They have one daughter, Patricia Anne.
Brother Bowman was part-time pastor of the Bethany church, Philadelphia, from 1922 to 1925. Becoming pastor of the Washington, D.C., church in 1925, he continued here until 1930, when he was called to the Central church, Roanoke,
Earl Bowman and Wife
Virginia, where he served until 1933. At this time he returned to the Bethany church, pastoring the congregation and con- tinuing studies in Crozer Theological Seminary and the University of Pennsylvania. On September 1, 1937, he became pastor of the First church, Harrisonburg, Virginia. There he remained until September 1952, when he went to the Lititz church, Eastern Pennsylvania. On February 1, 1955, he is to become pastor of the Mack Memorial church, this district.
While at Harrisonburg Brother Bowman led the congrega- tion in the construction of a new sanctuary. He served the district there first on the Board of Christian Education and later on the Board of Administration. He served as moderator of district conference, as Standing Committeeman, and as a
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member of the executive committee of the Virginia Council of Churches, representing the denomination.
Brother Bowman was a member of the committee which presented the plan for the General Brotherhood Board and was elected a member of the newly established board, serving two terms, 1945-1951. He served as chairman of the Ministry and Home Mission Commission and as a member of the executive committee of the board.
WALTER BOWMAN
Walter Bowman was born February 9, 1923, at Norwalk, Ohio. He is the son of Dean and Evelyn Bowman. He was graduated from the Lodi high school, Lodi, Ohio, and received his A.B. degree from Manchester College in 1944. He took
Walter Bowman and Wife
his seminary training at Bethany Biblical Seminary, Chicago, receiving his B.D. degree in 1949.
From 1946 to 1948 Brother Bowman worked with the
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Brethren Service Commission in Europe. He was one of the five men sent to initiate Brethren Service work in Italy.
Frances Gibson became his wife on May 28, 1944, at Astoria, Illinois. They have four children: Wayne, Philip, Teresa, and Christine. Mrs. Bowman was with her husband in Brethren Service work in Europe.
Elected to the ministry in 1940 in the Black River con- gregation, Northeastern Ohio, he was ordained an elder in 1950 in the Lanark church, Northern Illinois and Wisconsin. He ministered to the Lanark church for three years, and is at present pastor of the Fort Mckinley church, this district. While in Northern Illinois he served as district youth adviser, camp director, and member of the District Board of Adminis- tration and represented the district on Standing Committee. He is at present a member of the District Board of Southern Ohio.
FRANK EARLY BROWER
Frank Early Brower was born in Dayton, Ohio, to Ausban J. and Maude Early Brower on October 15, 1896. The family moved to West Alexandria, Ohio, then to a farm near Eaton, Ohio, where he completed his high school training.
Entering Bethany Biblical Seminary in 1916, he remained until 1920. In 1926 he graduated, A.B. degree, from Manchester College and then entered the College of Medicine of Ohio State University, in preparation for becoming a medical missionary for the church. He taught at Manchester College one year.
He was first married to Ruth Royer, the daughter of William and Martha Royer, of near New Madison, Ohio, on May 6, 1916. She was also training for the work of a missionary. But she contracted tuberculosis, and passed away in March 1929. Then Brother Brower was married to Gladys Zimmer- man of the Bear Creek church, this district. They have three children, one son and two daughters. They have lived in Miami County since 1944 and are members of the church in Troy, in which city he owns an office supply business.
He was elected to the ministry while in Bethany Biblical
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Seminary and ordained an elder by the Bear Creek church, this district.
His work in the local church has consisted of teaching Sunday school since a young man, acting as assistant elder of the Troy church, and serving as a member of the building
Frank Brower and Wife
committee responsible for the construction of the recently dedicated new building. He is a past president of the Troy Council of Churches.
For the district he has been a member of the Apportion- ment Committee for six years.
CLARENCE O. BRUBAKER
Clarence O. Brubaker, a native of Carroll County, Indiana, was born June 22, 1904, to Harley E. and Malissie Bailey Brubaker.
He became a member of the Howard Church of the Brethren, Southern Indiana, in 1925. He attended high school
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at Burlington, Indiana, and spent two years at Bethany Seminary.
On March 7, 1923, he was married to Roxie M. Myer, of Burlington. Until they took up regular pastoral work they were engaged in farming.
He was called to the ministry on June 28, 1946, and ordained to the full ministry June 1, 1948. He was made an elder on July 23, 1953.
During the summer of 1948 he served as temporary pastor for the Stanley, Worden, and Maple Grove congregations in Wisconsin. In September 1948 he became pastor of the Cedar Grove church, this district, serving until September 1953, when he was invited to become pastor of the Sugar Creek church, Northwestern Ohio.
J. FRANKLIN BRUBAKER
J. Franklin Brubaker was born in Greene County, Ohio, November 22, 1861, the son of Nicholas and Harriet Brubaker.
He united with the church when sixteen years old. After spending four years at Mount Morris College, Illinois, he taught in the public schools for several years.
His marriage to Elizabeth Brubaker took place on August 12, 1888.
Elected to the ministry on August 3, 1897, he was ordained an elder on August 2, 1910, by the Lower Twin church (West Alexandria) .
He served one term as trustee of Manchester College for the district.
He died at his home in West Alexandria on December 22, 1927.
ENOS E. BRUMBAUGH
Enos E. Brumbaugh is the son of John R. and Nancy Heckman Brumbaugh, born in Montgomery County, Ohio, on June 14, 1873.
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He married Daisy Warner on December 15, 1897. They have five children living: Emerson W., Hazel, Ethel, J. Mark, and Lois Faye.
E. E. Brumbaugh and Wife
The Salem church called him to the ministry in August of 1911 and ordained him an elder on August 23, 1919.
His ministry has been confined mostly to the Salem congregation. Besides doing the preaching he was its elder for twenty years. Also he taught the young men's class in the Sunday school for sixteen years. He was often called upon for marriages and has been a leader in community affairs.
For the district he was field secretary for the Brethren Home, at Greenville, for four years.
JESSE K. BRUMBAUGH
Jesse K. Brumbaugh, son of Jacob and Catherine Wago- man Brumbaugh, was born in Randolph Township, Mont- gomery County, Ohio, on August 26, 1837.
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After attending the local schools he took normal-school training, preparing to teach. He taught fourteen years in the public schools.
He was married to Mary E. Hocker, the daughter of a River Brethren minister, on December 4, 1862. Five of ten children born to them grew to adulthood. Two sons still live as this is written.
Uniting with the church in 1865, he was chosen a minister in 1884 and made an elder in 1897. Becoming joint elder with John H. Brumbaugh, he served until 1908, when West Milton was formed from the Salem congregation and he was made elder of the new congregation. After a year he shared in the eldership of the church with S. A. Blessing until 1915. His ministerial services were confined largely to these two con- gregations. He was a farmer, retiring and moving to West Milton in 1902. He was a leader of congregational singing and held classes of vocal music.
As minister, song leader, teacher, counselor, and elder, he served his church well and long.
He passed away in 1927, and his wife in 1930.
RALPH W. BRUMBAUGH
Ralph W. Brumbaugh, a native of Bethel Township, Miami County, Ohio, was born December 11, 1898, to Elmer and Ella J. Brumbaugh.
He completed his public-school training in the Bethel Township high school.
His marriage to Vada V. Horner, on July 29, 1922, took place in the East Dayton church.
They have six children: Ralph, Jr., Dale, Paul, Anna Mae, Esther, and Ray.
He was called to the ministry by the Middle District church on August 31, 1940. He assisted here in the preaching until he moved to the Brookville congregation in 1951. His work in the local churches has also included being a Sunday-school teacher and a Sunday-school superintendent. He is a farmer by vocation.
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BERRYMAN F. CLICK
Berryman F. Click was born at Harrisonburg, Virginia, to Lewis N. and Catherine Wright Click.
He completed three years in high school and took further training in the Training School of Bethany Biblical Seminary.
On June 28, 1923, he married Marjorie Cline Corbin, at Harrisonburg.
The Constance church, Kentucky, licensed him in 1944 and ordained him in 1946. He assists in the work at Constance.
HUGH L. CLOPPERT
Hugh L. Cloppert was born August 30, 1885, in Mont- gomery County, Ohio, to Herman and Cora Hubley Cloppert.
Hugh Cloppert and Wife
He completed high school at West Milton and attended Ohio Northern University, Ohio, for two terms.
His marriage to Maude Bowman occurred on February
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24, 1907, near Clayton, Ohio. They had four daughters and one son. After her death on November 4, 1932, he married Mrs. Altha B. George of Dayton, Ohio, on March 10, 1934. She was deceased March 3, 1951. On May 3, 1952, he married Viola Riley, of the East Dayton church. They reside in this congregation.
He was elected a minister in June of 1912 and ordained an elder in 1926.
Churches served in Southern Ohio include Happy Corner, Fort McKinley, East Dayton, and Cincinnati. Outside this district he served Middlebury, in Northern Indiana; Zion Hill, in Northeastern Ohio; and Belvedere in Southern California.
For the district he has been a member of the Auditing Committee and of the Ministerial Board. At present he is the chairman of the official board of the East Dayton congregation.
E. S. COFFMAN
E. S. Coffman is the son of J. B. and Sarah E. Coffman, of Dayton, Virginia. He took two years' training at Bridge- water College, Virginia, and one year at Bethany Biblical Seminary.
On May 9, 1906, he married Bessie Phares, at Bridgewater. They have one son and one daughter.
He was elected to the ministry in April 1914 by the Beaver Creek church, Virginia, and was ordained an elder by the West Dayton church, this district.
As pastor he has worked in these churches: Staunton, Virginia; Kansas City, Kansas; Harrisonburg, Virginia; Geiger Memorial, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and West Dayton, Ohio.
He served the General Brotherhood Board in evangelism for seven years. During the last ten years he has ministered to the Beaver Creek church, Virginia, and the North Fork church, West Virginia. Although beyond three score years and ten he speaks twice each Sunday.
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MCKINLEY COFFMAN
Mckinley Coffman, son of Charles D. and Estelle Schafer Coffman, was born at Fairplay, Maryland, on September 22, 1896.
McKinley Coffman and Wife
Following the completion of his high school work, he attended Blue Ridge College and Columbia Business College.
On June 7, 1923, he was married at Hagerstown, Maryland, to Elizabeth Fahrney of Frederick, Maryland. They have five children: Mrs. Jane Pellam, Katherine, H. Mckinley, Margaret Anne, and Barbara Lou.
He was elected to the ministry by the Manor church, Middle Maryland, on November 29, 1917, and ordained an elder on September 12, 1926, by the Grossnickles congregation, same state.
Working in the free ministry until 1924, Brother Coffman became pastor of the Grossnickles congregation in January of that year. He served here until 1928, when he became pastor at Fruitland, Idaho, where he continued until 1934. As pastor of the Troutville church, Virginia, he remained there from
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1934 to 1938. In the latter year he went to Sebring, Florida, continuing in this church until 1942 and also acting as field secretary for the district.
Then followed a period on a farm in Maryland rebuilding his health. During this time he acted as supply minister for various congregations, the last being for the Woodberry church for a few months over a year. From September 1951 to Novem- ber 1952 he directed the work at the Friendship church, Baltimore, Maryland.
He came to Southern Ohio in November 1952 as pastor of the Hamilton-Middletown parish, where he continues his ministry.
He has served on district boards in Idaho, Florida, Virginia, and Maryland, and as moderator of district conferences in Idaho, Florida, and Maryland. Also he has been a Standing Committeeman several times. He was on the National Youth Cabinet for one term.
Brother Coffman and his wife have just returned from a trip to Europe, where they visited Brethren Service workers, including a son and a daughter who are attached to the work at Kassel House. Another daughter is an exchange student in Europe.
CLAUDE V. COPPOCK
Claude V. Coppock, born November 25, 1885, in Miami County, near Tipp City, was the son of John and Mary Heikes Coppock.
He became a member of the Middle District church in January 1908. This church called him to the ministry on January 22, 1910. On September 13, 1917, this same congrega- tion ordained him to the eldership.
Jointly with Elder J. P. Miller he served this church in the free ministry for five years and then alone for six years.
In 1921 the Southern Ohio Mission Board asked him to assume charge of the Bremen church, in Fairfield County; here he remained for one year, thence going to the Circleville, Ohio, church for the Mission Board. After three years here he became pastor of the Sidney church, remaining with this
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congregation for seven years, 1925 to 1932. Then he returned to Middle District, serving as part-time pastor for nineteen years, or until 1951.
In the fall of 1951 Brother Coppock went to Wakarusa, Northern Indiana, as pastor. In 1953 he took up the work at the Beech Grove church, Southern Indiana, where he now is.
Brother Coppock married Ethel Oaks on December 7, 1907. They raised an adopted daughter. Sister Coppock died on October 19, 1949. On May 25, 1952, he married Mrs. Gertrude Metzler, of Wakarusa, Indiana.
Besides in the public schools of Miami County and some correspondence study, Brother Coppock spent some time in the Training School of Bethany Seminary. He has been the presiding elder of the Sidney church besides the churches at Stonelick and Middle District.
HARLEY M. COPPOCK
Harley M. Coppock, the son of John W. and Mary Heikes Coppock, was born on the Coppock homestead in Miami
Harley Coppock and Wife
County, Ohio, near Tipp City. His parents moved to Taylor County, Kentucky, when he was six years old, and returned to the Ohio home, which was within the bounds of the Middle District church, when he was fourteen. A short time later
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he united with this church and was baptized by his uncle, Elder Jacob Coppock.
On December 5, 1905, Olive Elsie Pearson became his wife, and their home was established near Wabash, Indiana. After a year here they moved to Emporia, Kansas, and later to Hartley, Texas. In 1912 they moved to near Miami, New Mexico, where again they had access to Brethren services. In 1920 the family returned to the Ohio community.
In December 1921 the Middle District church called Brother Coppock to the ministry. He was soon made pastor of the church, without salary, and later given the oversight of the church. The pastoral responsibility lasted for more than ten years. Following this period he assumed charge of the Cincinnati church and continued for eleven years.
Sister Coppock's health calling again for a higher altitude and a different climate, the family moved to Clovis, New Mexico, and remained here two and one-half years. Then they returned to Miami, where he became pastor of the church. Later Brother Coppock's ministry was shared between the Miami and Colorado Springs churches.
While in the West he has carried many district respon- sibilities, and is currently field secretary and secretary for ministerial affairs of the District of Colorado. He acted for the Ministry and Home Mission Commission of the General Brotherhood Board in investigating and developing Brethren work among the Indians in Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico. Time has been given also to the organizing of the work in the Flat Creek and Turkey Creek churches in Kentucky. As this is being compiled Brother Coppock is investigating the possibility of starting work among the Negroes of a section near Austin, Texas.
Elder Coppock served as moderator of district conferences in Oklahoma and Colorado, several times on Standing Com- mittee, and for many years on the Mission Board of Southern Ohio. He has been elder-in-charge of churches in Ohio, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Colorado.
Four sons and four daughters were born to Brother and Sister Coppock. One son, Nevin, lives on the homestead near Tipp City.
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JACOB COPPOCK
Jacob Coppock, son of Samuel and Delaney Coppock, was born on August 8, 1844, near Tipp City, Ohio.
His formal education was limited to the elementary school. However, during his active ministry he displayed unusual acquaintance with the Scriptures and Christian doctrine.
Susie Studebaker became his wife on January 16, 1868. Four girls and two sons were born to them. The two boys died in infancy. One daughter is Mrs. Galen Walker, now of Nampa, Idaho.
He became a member of the old Hickory Grove church at the age of twenty. This church made him a deacon in 1879, called him to the ministry in 1881, and ordained him an elder in 1899. His membership never was in any other congregation.
While he never was designated as a pastor his influence and services in the local church and in the district were marked. He held many evangelistic services and as an elder had charge over several churches, among them Hickory Grove, Covington, West Dayton (now Mack Memorial), East Dayton, Middle District, and Loramie. He helped establish the Breth- ren Home at Greenville and served on its board for several years. He helped initiate and direct the popular Sunday- school institutes of the district. His influence extended beyond this district in his service as a trustee of Manchester College. He was influential in having Otho Winger become its president.
He passed to his reward on August 11, 1925, at his home near Tipp City.
Brother Coppock was a forceful preacher, an efficient administrator, a friend of the young, a proponent of progress, a firm believer in the church, and a safe counselor.
X. L. COPPOCK
X. L. Coppock, of Clovis, New Mexico, is a native of Southern Ohio, the Middle District congregation, and a brother of Harley M. and Claude V.
He was trained at Bethany Seminary. The first full-time
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X. L. Coppock and Wife
pastor of the Greenville church, this district, he has since served in Iowa, Colorado, Missouri, Kansas, and New Mexico.
He married Martha E. Evans, of Union, Ohio, a member of the Salem congregation.
E. FRIEND AND MABLE MOTE COUSER
E. Friend Couser was born September 4, 1899, in Adams County, Ohio, to Elder Joseph and Phoebe Post Couser.
He graduated from Manchester Academy in 1918 and from the college in 1926, A.B. degree. Afterward he spent eighteen weeks at Bethany Biblical Seminary.
On June 3, 1922, he was married to Mabel E. Mote, of Brookville, Ohio. They have two daughters and one son.
In 1918 he was elected to the ministry by the East Dayton church and ordained an elder by the Beaver Creek congrega- tion in 1934. After serving the Beaver Creek church as pastor from 1936 to 1947, he served the Bradford church for some time.
He was a member of the Mission Board of Southern Ohio for seven years. His vocation is that of a public-school teacher.
Mabel Couser was born in Dayton, Ohio, on May 14, 1899, to John L. and Alice Brenner Mote.
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She finished high school at Brookville, Ohio, and spent three years in Manchester College.
She was licensed to the ministry in 1938 by the Beaver Creek church, and has assisted her husband in the preaching at Beaver Creek and Bradford.
In the district she spent several years on the District Women's Work Cabinet. In the local church she has been on the ministerial board and has participated in the missionary activities.
E. F. Couser and Wife
J. W. Couser and Wife
JACOB AND MARY COUSER
Jacob Wilber Couser, son of Joseph and Phoebe Post Couser, was born at May Hill, Ohio, on July 8, 1904. He graduated from the Bellbrook high school.
His marriage to Mary Catherine Miranda, the daughter of George and Ella Miranda, took place on September 22, 1928. They have five children: Richard Allen, Daniel Wilber, Bar- bara Love, James Jacob, and Cheryl Kay.
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Brother and Sister Couser were elected to the ministry at the same time, March 1943, by the East Dayton church. He was ordained an elder in 1949. She was given a permanent license in 1944.
He was the teacher of the young married people's class at East Dayton for fifteen years and for three years the super- intendent of the Sunday school.
In 1944 the Mission Board of Southern Ohio asked them to take over the work in the southern field: Bethany, May Hill, Strait Creek, and Marble Furnace. Since 1951 their work has been confined largely to Strait Creek and Marble Furnace.
J. A. CROWELL
J. A. Crowell, son of Devault and Katherine Zerbe Crowell, was born near Bradford on August 12, 1876.
After finishing high school at Bradford he entered Juniata College, Pennsylvania, where he took his B.E. degree. Later he entered Columbia University, New York City, and received the M.A. degree, in education.
His marriage to Ida Mary Seibt occurred on April 27, 1904. They had two children, M. Lucile and James S.
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