Isssue #6 - 06/19/2024 << Back to Home

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The Wartburg Report - Issue #6, Juneteenth Edition, 2024

If you are new to this newsletter, welcome. The Wartburg Report was created to bring you the latest campus news and events, including what's happening at our beautiful Chapel, the Friedrichs Residence, Lohman Village, the Meadowview, Waltemade, Rehab, and our new Berkemeier Memory Care Center. We need your contributions: We welcome your feedback, suggestions, news, noteworthy stories, and articles. Please reply to this email to tell us what you would like to include in future issues, such as photos, special events, parties, art work, poetry, stories, and news you would like to share with your Wartburg neighbors.

Juneteenth

Wartburg Founder’s Fire for Freedom

(Shared by Rev. Kimberli Lile, Director of Spiritual Care - June 18, 2024)

June 19, 1865, marks the day that America finally proclaimed freedom for all women and men. It was the same year that President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 15th after fighting the fight that ended the institution of slavery in this country.

That same year, our Wartburg founder, the Rev. William A. Passavant, who was a prolific writer and editor in the Lutheran community and a pastor dedicated to the abolition of slavery, contemplated the death of Lincoln and the death of slavery. From the essay of Douglas C. Stange, Librarian of the Andover-Harvard Library, written approximately one hundred years later, we are privileged to have scholarship that captures the fire for freedom in Passavant:

“. . . when Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, Passavant, while reflecting on the eminence of the President, spoke also on the subject of slavery:

The Demon-Spirit of Slavery must die — God has reached forth the red-right hand of his wrath against it— and if we will not let Him smite it to death without smiting us, He will smite us. We cannot save slavery now, if we were willing to die for it. The only election given us now is to tear it from us and let it die, or, cling to it and die with it. It must and will die. That is one grand consolation in this day of sadness.

Lutheran and Missionary, IV (1865), 102.

With the exception of Schmucker of Gettysburg and Hasselquist no other man in American Lutheranism exerted as much influence as Passavant did in preaching the removal of slavery from our land.

Early in Stange’s essay, he reveals the source of the title of his work: “William A. Passavant: A Servant to All Men, Black or White,” when he writes,

With Passavant we find a man who thought in terms of a universal ministry to mankind. In 1842, when writing to his mother, the twenty-one-year-old youth said:"... I am the servant of all men—black as well as white, Catholic and Protestant." His statement was not an immodest boast but was occasioned by his very earnest work amid the Negro population of Baltimore.

G. H. Gerberding, Life and Letters of W. A, Passavant, D.D. (Greenville, Pa., 1906), 87.

From a very young age, our Wartburg founder had a fire for freedom for all and did not hesitate to take a stand for the many black believers he encouraged in the Christian faith from Baltimore to Pittsburgh. Following his pastorates in both places, Passavant’s gift for organizing for the good of many helped found hospitals, schools, a college, a seminary and several orphanages. Wartburg was founded in 1866 as a home for children of families destabilized during the fight for freedom for all, and this is where we find ourselves together in community today.

Here's what's happening at Friedrichs in June:

  • Friedrichs Supportive Housing Will Be Having A Luncheon On 7/11/2024, Going To City Island! We Will Be Leaving Friedrich At 12pm To Return Back By 4pm. The Price Will Be $40 Per Person. If You Wish To Attend, Please Let The Office (Glenda) Know on or before 6/21/2024. Thank you.
  • Scrabble every Monday and Friday at 1:30pm
  • Exercise with Laura every Tuesday at 11:30am
  • Tai Chi with Tom every Thursday at 10:00am
  • Reiki with Lori every Thursday at 10:00am
  • Stew Leonards Tuesday June 18 at 1:45pm
  • Birthdays: Sara M: 6/12, Pamela W: 6/15, Allan M: 6/19, Ron W: 6/19, Ron M: 6/24, and special celebration for Glenda R: 6/25 in Gatz Center
Note: the above Friedrichs events are also available in printed form, which were slipped under your apartment door. All activities in Community Room are cancelled until further notice. In case of emergency, call (914) 513-5000.

Generations Making Connections:

A chance meeting and conversation took place in the Friedrichs lobby between resident Sue Coviello, who is over 100 years old, and Faith, the teenage granddaughter of Clyde Herring.

Book Published By Friedrichs Resident:

One of our newest residents, Allan Minsky, has published a book available in only digital version. It is modestly priced at $2.99. If you should wish to purchase a copy, then please use the link below to do so. It cannot be Googled to find the website location. The book includes both aphorisms interspersed with some humor.

Excluding the cover and copyright pages, there are 55 pages of aphorisms and humor. The pages are "not" numbered. Note: the the book is available only in digital format.

Two example aphorisms are as follows: "Hardship builds character." "God compensates." You can order it here.

Announcing "True Stories: Exploring Memoir." 
(A new Sarah Lawrence College Program for Wartburg Residents)

Emily Bloom from Sarah Lawrence College is pleased to invite you to a new summer reading group on the topic of "True Stories: Exploring Memoir." Classes will begin on June 24th and meet on Mondays and Wednesdays at 2:00pm in Steinkamp.

This summer, in addition to the usual reading group, Emily is also going to offer an additional hour-long writing workshop for anyone interested in trying their hand at writing personal narrative. This latter hour is optional and you're welcome to join just the reading group or both sections. There will be a short break in between for anyone who wants to leave after the reading discussion. For the workshop, Emily will offer prompts and then make time for writing together and discussing (no need to share unless you want to). If you have questions, you can reach Emily at ebloom@wartburg.org. We are looking forward to seeing you this summer and discussing your memoirs!

By the way, Emily recently authored her own amazing memoir entitled "I Cannot Control Everything Forever: A Memoir of Motherhood, Science, and Art." Her book is on USA Today's Bestseller List. Emily's memoir is an incredible journey worth reading. Every parent (man and woman) should read her memoir. She seamlessly integrates motherhood with art, science and history.

Check it out on Amazon:

Meadowview General Store News:

Gloria Mcgalagly of Lohman Village wants all Friedrichs and Lohman residents to know that the Meadowview General Store is stocked and open for business.

Stop by on Wednesdays from 12:30 PM to 2 PM in the Meadowview gathering lounge to check out the Meadowview General Store. You can purchase personal care items, candy, greeting cards, puzzle books, gifts and much more. You never know what small treasure you may find. So make it a habit to visit the store regularly.  

Friedrichs Parking Spaces:  

Attention all Friedrichs tenants who have parking spaces. If you haven't already done so, please make sure that you are parking in your correct parking space that has been assigned to you. If you do not know your space, please come to the Friedrichs office and Glenda will be glad to let you know.

Delicious Recipe: RIBBON ANGEL FOOD SHERBET CAKE 

  • 1 angel food tube cake
  • 1 pt. lime sherbet
  • 1 pt. orange sherbet
  • 1 pt. raspberry sherbet
Freeze cake in its pan. Remove frozen cake from pan and cut into 4 layers. Reassemble
cake with1 pint of softened sherbet spread between each layer. Wrap in plastic wrap
and aluminum foil; freeze again. Yields l6 servings.

- (Contributed by Beverly Yannantuono (Friedrichs Resident)

 

Words of Wisdom

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world." - Harriet Tubman

Words of Faith from Mother Teresa

"Every human being comes from the hand of God, and we all know something of God's love for us through each person we encounter. Whatever our religion, we know that if we really want to love, we must first, before anything else, learn to forgive." - Contributed by Beverly Yannantuono (Friedrichs Resident)

 

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