140th ANNIVERSARY - "TO GOD BE THE GLORY"

After months of planning by members of St. Peter's Anniversary Committee - chairperson Lisa Albright, Margaret
Golem, Audrey Lembke, Hilda Albright, Ken Scholtz, Morrell and Iris Schwartz, Irene Swartz, Jerry and Lorraine
Krueger, Mary Golem and Pastor Sheilah Fletch - Thanksgiving weekend, October 12 and 13, 2002 turned out to
indeed be a weekend of celebration and thanksgiving as the congregation of St. Peter's Lutheran Church, Sullivan
celebrated 140 years of ministry and the close association we share with our brothers and sisters in Christ at St. James'
Lutheran Church, Williamsford.

"To God Be The Glory" was the theme chosen for the anniversary celebration.

One hundred and seventy-three people attended the anniversary celebration banquet, held at the Chesley Community
Centre. The parish's first Intern, Elina Horvath, of Elmira was guest speaker. Adding to the evening's enjoyment were the
Men's Chorus from St. John's Lutheran Church, Elmwood and Eva Lipskie with her unforgettable attire and Ladies' Aid
recitation! Gerald Golem was Master of Ceremonies for the evening, which included beautiful autumn decorations
arranged by Audrey and Yvonne Lembke and an impressive display of photos Margaret Golem had spent hundreds of
hours sorting through, assembling and labelling. Special thanks to Ken Scholtz, Jerry and Lorraine Krueger, Gerald
Golem and Donna Hatten for their help in setting up the photo displays.

St. Peter's History Book 1992-2002 was also released at the banquet. As I told those in attendance "writing a history
book is a lot like having a baby. Coming up with the idea is the easiest part! Then there's months of expectation and
waiting, some intense labour and great relief when the baby finally arrives! A lot of work has gone into the book and as
editor of it, I really hope you enjoy reading it."

There have been some people who have questioned the price of the book, which sells for $15. Copies of the book are
still available and may be purchased by contacting Margaret Golem (363-6474). When we did our 1992 book the
provincial government had money available through the New Horizon's grant program, which enabled us to hire a
publisher, pay the typists, etc. We tried to find similar sources of funding this time, however, there is nothing like that
available, with the exception of the Ontario Trillium Foundation. As most of you are probably aware, Trillium grant money
is generated through the province's gambling casinos. Our parish's Social Action Committee and several individuals in
both congregations wrote letters to our elected officials opposing the introduction of a casino in nearby Hanover a couple
of years ago. Despite the inticements of cash for the community, we believe gambling has a negative effect on families and
communities and we expressed those sentiments in letters. When it was learned that the only grant money that was
available was through the Trillium Foundation, members of the Anniversary Committee decided that it was wrong to on
one hand oppose the casinos and yet with the other hand, accept funding generated from them. And so, we decided that
we would indeed publish a book and that the entire cost of it would be covered through the sale of the book. Our only
expense was the actual printing and binding - everything else from the research and writing to typesetting and photo
scanning was done voluntarily. I feel St. Peter's congregation owes a huge debt of thanks to Margaret Golem for all of the
research she did, Grant Nicholson for his work scanning photos and Paul Lehman and Tanya Reay of The Hanover Post
staff for their efforts in printing the book.

After the book was released, some errors were pointed out and a sheet listing those corrections has been printed. If you
purchased a book, be sure to get a copy of the correction sheet. Believe me, it is much easier to spot errors when you're
relaxing in a chair than it is when you're staring at a computer screen late at night with your printing deadline only hours
away! We tried our best to make the book error-free, but remember, only Jesus Christ was, is and ever will be perfect!
However, we have received several positive comments from outside of the parish about the book and I believe it is a
book that will become more valuable as years roll by.

The anniversary weekend also included a special worship service on Sunday afternoon with a former organist, Brenda
Nicholson, as guest organist and special music by Peter Ruprecht, Jennifer Golem and Amy Nicholson. Dr. Arnie Weigel
of the Waterloo Lutheran Seminary was our special guest speaker. Following the service, lunch was served in the church
basement, thanks to the efforts of Irene Swartz and the ELW ladies. Beautiful anniversary cakes were made and
decorated by Shirley Rolston of St. James.

As well, the children of St. Peter's Sunday School had all sorts of memorablia ready which was dedicated and later
placed in a time capsule in the old altar. It should be fun to see the childrens' reactions to their art work and stories when
the capsule is opened, hopefully in the year 2012. Special thanks to the children and teachers Lisa Albright and Karen
Lembke for their efforts with the time capsule and to Morrell Schwartz and Ken Scholtz for creating a box to place it all
in.

As ELCIC Bishop Michael Pryse wrote in his anniversary greetings, "Anniversaries provide us with a special opportunity
to give thanks for God's faithfulness and continued blessing upon our life and ministry .... at the same time, anniversaries
also provide us with the opportunity to look forward and commit ourselves to fulfilling the church's mission in the present
and in the future."

Ours is a sovereign God who delights in loving and serving. Our lives are most fulfilled as we become more like Him. As
the writer of Hebrews puts it in Chapter 12, verses 1-3:

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our
eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning
its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from
sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart!"

Respectfully submitted,

Mary Golem

Secretary of the Anniversary Committee