Features

[OCT. 28, 2002]  Kingdom Life Ministries has purchased the former APAC building at 2500 Woodlawn Road as a new worship center for its expanding congregation.

Pastor and corporate president Joe Bennett of Lincoln said the church closed on the 10,000-square-foot building on Thursday night. He said reasons for the purchase are that the ministry ran out of room and that the cost of installing new bathrooms and making other needed alterations to the former worship center at 620 Pulaski would have been prohibitive.

[Photos by Lynn Spellman]
[Pastor Joe Bennett (right) and wife Melody]

On a rental basis, the 168-member congregation held a conference in the Woodlawn Road facility on Oct. 11-13 and officially began holding worship services there Oct. 20. The move from Pulaski Street is 60 percent complete, Bennett said, with the office 80 percent moved and in operation.

Head deacon Cam Shafer of rural Lincoln assembled three work crews among the congregation, and they accomplished most of the cleaning and other tasks in three days. At the building formerly leased by APAC Customer Services, the sanctuary has been repainted, the carpets and windows have been cleaned, and the floors stripped and waxed. In addition, crews hung a new set of double doors and did some yardwork.

Lucky Eichner of Lincoln, a three-year member of the congregation, said, "You wouldn’t believe the disaster it was Tuesday [Oct. 8] for us to hold a service there [the following] Friday. It was just a transformation from Tuesday to Friday night." Partitions and wiring from the APAC operation still had to be removed when Eichner started vacuuming as part of the cleanup committee. She also served on the hospitality team.

Bennett praised both the former owner, whom he would not name, and APAC for being wonderful to work with. He said they helped make the purchase and move go quicker and more smoothly than the process might have gone.

Of the two large rooms in the Woodlawn Road facility, one will be used as the sanctuary, with seating for up to 300, and the other as a fellowship hall. Several projects are planned in addition to work already completed. The first changes will focus on the church’s ministry to children. Bennett said nursery, nursing mother and children’s church rooms will be created.

Kingdom Life Ministries was incorporated under Bennett’s leadership in January 1994. He has been active in ministry for 22 years and a pastor for 14 years, beginning in the Church of God. When he began an independent church, it was at first called Spirit Life. After preaching for nearly a year on the kingdom of God, he felt called to name his new group Kingdom Life.

For a year and a half the new congregation was "in transit," seeking a church home. For five months each the group met in the Lincoln Junior High School gymnasium, Lincoln Recreation Center ballroom and Waynesville Christian Church.

In 1998 Kingdom Life Ministries purchased the Pulaski Street property. At first it faced winters there without heat and summers without cooling. Only recently have a furnace and air conditioning been installed. Bennett said the church has not yet decided whether to sell that building or turn it into a downtown outreach center.

[to top of second column in this article]

The sign at 630 Pulaski cites two Biblical passages. In the King James translation they read: "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost" (Romans 14:17); and "The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it" (Luke 16:16). Bennett interprets these passages to mean that all people can enter the kingdom of God, but they must be diligent — not just sign up as members but give their heart and life to God. Righteousness and peace and joy are part of this commitment.

The two assistant pastors at Kingdom Life Ministries are Curtis Sutterfield and Doug Read. Sutterfield, director of the Logan County Salvation Army, has been with Bennett for 13 years, since his years in the Church of God. Read, a graduate of Moody Bible Institute, was born in Africa and grew up in the Philippines.

Eichner said of the Kingdom Life church, "I just feel at home there. They’re very caring, loving people." She expects the new facility on Woodlawn Road to provide for growth and a good future.

The church is affiliated with Master Builders, a network and fellowship of churches of like vision. Bennett said all the churches are of the charismatic Pentecostal type and all are mission-minded both at home and abroad. Despite "minimal doctrinal differences," all have a vision to impact their city and region. Bennett said the group constitutes a unique mix of churches, ranging from Calvinists to Armenians, who work together to strengthen the individual congregations, facilitate fellowship among them and carry out mission projects. The national leadership team consists of seven members from Detroit, San Diego, North Carolina, Georgia, Minnesota and Knoxville, Tenn.

Kingdom Life Ministries in Lincoln is the Midwest regional center for Master Builders. As such it hosted the Oct. 11-13 conference, which drew about 100 people, including members of the local congregation and pastors and elders of about five other churches. Altogether there are 10 to 12 churches from Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana and Minnesota in the Midwest region. The pastors meet monthly.

Bennett said both the local congregation and the Master Builders network are growing. Locally, the church has more than doubled in membership during the past year, with slightly over 100 attending Sunday services. Master Builders, which began five to six years ago, drew only three churches to its first Midwest conference, the Lincoln congregation and two from Detroit. Now Detroit and Lincoln are centers for separate regions.

Kingdom Life services are held Sundays at 10 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 7 p.m. The congregation also holds a potluck and open fellowship on the third Sunday evening of each month.

Bennett has done mission work in Africa and Poland. He and his wife, Melody, have four children: Summer, 16; Joseph, 14; Jacob, 10; and Elizabeth Faith, 19 months.

[Lynn Spellman]

[OCT. 21, 2002]  Don Peasley, new owner of the former Kerrigan Funeral Home, wants to become better acquainted in Lincoln and to expand his business throughout Logan County.

Peasley plans an open house Sunday, Oct. 27, to meet the public and to showcase the redecorated Kerrigan-Peasley Funeral Home. Hours for the open house at 401 Delavan St. in Lincoln are 1 to 4 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

Peasley has been involved in the funeral business for 17 years. In February 1992 he graduated from Mid-America College of Funeral Service in Jeffersonville, Ind., which is across the Ohio River from Louisville, Ky. He served his apprenticeship at Duker & Haugh Funeral Home in Quincy, and he became a licensed funeral director in May 1993.

A native of Atlanta, he worked part-time at Quiram Funeral Home there beginning in 1985. Since becoming licensed he has worked at various funeral homes in Bloomington, Decatur and Peoria.

Peasley said he is willing to serve anyone in Logan County, including clients of any religious faith. He tailors his service according to the needs and wishes of the family. In redecorating, he aimed to make the rooms lighter and the atmosphere more homey in order to help families feel comfortable.

Among the changes to the earth-tone decor of the funeral home are new off-white draperies, some new furniture, new paintings and pictures, and new lamps and candlesticks. In the entry, red curtains were removed to reveal leaded glass windows, brightening the room and giving more emphasis to the fireplace of blue Italian ceramic tile.

Further changes are in the planning stages. Peasley said he hopes to convert the current office to a children’s room, furnished with a couch, television and VCR. His office is located upstairs. "As a bachelor, I don’t need all four bedrooms," he said. He also plans to make the fireplaces more functional.

The funeral home is a large three-story Victorian building with gables and a red tile roof. The design features ornamental scrollwork and both stained glass and leaded glass on two stories. The business occupies the lower floor, and Peasley recently moved into the second-floor living quarters. The third floor is open for a ballroom, which was never finished.

The front entrance was originally on Ottawa Street, where a ramp gives handicapped access to the business. The roof was originally slate. Old photographs show a side porch on the southeast side of the home where the carport now stands and a circular drive off Delavan Street. A fountain once graced the side yard. Peasley believes that at one time the building was divided into apartments.

The funeral business dates to 1933, when John Kerrigan opened it in the 100 block of North Kickapoo Street. In 1948, when John’s son Richard "Dick" Kerrigan returned from World War II, he bought the business from his father. In the same year he also bought the house at 401 Delavan and moved the business there.

[to top of second column in this article]

Dick Kerrigan owned Kerrigan Funeral Home until his death on March 24, 2002. Joe Rabbitt, a native of Streator, was the manager for the past several years. He has returned to his hometown to work at a funeral home there. Peasley bought the business from the Kerrigan estate. He has two part-time employees, Bud Moon and William (Ron) Gober.

Kerrigan-Peasley Funeral Home has facilities for holding two visitations at a time. The business conducts traditional funerals, cremation services and memorial services as desired by the family. It helps with notifying Social Security, securing a minister and organist, making arrangements with a cemetery, writing and placing the obituary, and other services requested by the family. Peasley sells caskets and vaults. If needed, he can recommend a grief counselor. For Roman Catholic services a kneeling rail is available, and draperies can be opened to display a picture of Jesus Christ.

Peasley said it is sometimes difficult to ascertain names of family members for an obituary. Usually, however, the problem is solved by contacts within the family.

One of his more unusual experiences involved sending cremains to Estonia. He said the process involved "interesting paperwork" but that it was "just part of the business."

Peasley has observed several changes during his 17 years in the funeral business. For one, he said many funeral homes have substituted a CD player for the organ. However, Kerrigan-Peasley Funeral Home offers both. Peasley said he prefers to have an organist at every funeral, but the choice is up to the family.

What was once a "wake" is now more often called a "visitation." Another change is that obituaries now sometimes entail a fee. In the past, he said, obituaries were always free, but currently there is sometimes a charge or a space limitation.

"We’re seeing more and more prearrangements," Peasley said. Many people have funeral files in which they specify such items as obituary wording, verse for prayer card or folder, musical selections, and pallbearers. Some people also choose to prepay for their funerals.

Peasley grew up in Atlanta, where he was active in 4-H. He has been a member of the Atlanta Rescue Squad since 1985 and an emergency medical technician with the fire department since 1994. He said he will have to quit his involvement as an EMT but intends to continue with the rescue squad.

Peasley’s mother, Linda Peasley, and sister Krystal Peasley live in Atlanta. Another sister, Shellie Reed, lives in Albuquerque, N.M. Peasley crews at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, which launches over 700 balloons in three waves.

[Lynn Spellman]

Announcements

[OCT. 21, 2002]  Central Illinois Community Blood Center and Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital announce the appointment of Mrs. Shirley Helton to the CICBC board of directors.

Mrs. Helton grew up in Logan County and attended nurses training at Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in Springfield. She later moved to Dwight, where she worked as a floor supervisor and in hospital emergency rooms for about 20 years. Her husband, Ralph, served as superintendent of schools for 30 years. Upon retirement, they returned to Lincoln.

Mrs. Helton is a member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church and has taken an active part in the community for many years. She is a member of the Lincoln Women’s Club and of the Emblem Club at the Elks. She serves as a volunteer for Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital, participating in various activities for the hospital. She was a volunteer for the American Red Cross for 15 years.

[to top of second column in this article]

Central Illinois Community Blood Center is a nonprofit, FDA-licensed blood provider and provides all of the blood used at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital. CICBC is governed by a local volunteer board of directors who make decisions regarding safety, supply and cost, with local needs in mind.

Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital and Central Illinois Community Blood Center are grateful to Mrs. Helton for sharing her time and expertise to help save lives in this community.

"Having an adequate blood supply available to patients in the community is such an important need," says Helton. "We want people to know that blood donated in the community stays in the community first. Every time you donate blood, you are helping to give a friend, neighbor, family member or even yourself, a chance at life," she added.

For more information about the Central Illinois Blood Center, please call (217) 753-1530.

[CICBC press release]

The Chamber Report

Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of Commerce

Bobbi Abbott, Executive Director

303 S. Kickapoo St.

Lincoln, IL 62656

(217) 735-2385

chamber@lincolnillinois.com
www.lincolnillinois.com

Honors & Awards

[OCT. 21, 2002]  For the second year in a row, the Lincoln College Food Service is one of 10 companies in a four-county area in central Illinois to be honored for hiring people with disabilities. The accomplishment was recognized with a brief ceremony in the Lincoln College Alumni Room on Oct. 15.

Victor Sabatini, a rehabilitation counselor with Illinois Department of Human Services, says the award acknowledges the tremendous support Lincoln College provides. "It is quite an accomplishment for Lincoln College to be named in the top 10 for the last two years," he said. "This award speaks volumes of the partnership between Lincoln College, Logan Mason Rehab and Department of Human Services."

Ronald L. Schilling, executive vice president and acting president of Lincoln College, said the award is a great honor for Lincoln College. "One of the key principles of Lincoln College is to give everyone a chance to succeed. We feel the college is committed to this by giving opportunities to those individuals with disabilities. We are honored and hope to continue this partnership with Logan Mason Rehab and DHS.

[to top of second column in this article]

[Job coach with client]

Tom Tibbs, Logan Mason Rehab supportive employment program supervisor, says the idea of forming a partnership started in 1988 and has grown to nearly 30 clients working at Lincoln College. "We’re much like the coaches who inherit a great team; the rest just fell into place."

The job coaches at Lincoln College — Teresa Crawford and Marlene Ely, both of Lincoln, and Cindy Williams of Beason — all agree about job satisfaction. "We all love our jobs and appreciate the treatment that our clients get from the kitchen staff at Lincoln College." Crawford and Williams have both worked for Logan Mason Rehab for over 15 years, while Ely has been a job coach for seven.

[Lincoln College news release]

Main Street Corner News

Main Street Lincoln

Cindy McLaughlin, Program Manager

303 S. Kickapoo

Lincoln, IL 62656

Phone: (217) 732-2929

Fax: (217) 735-9205

E-mail: manager@mainstreetlincoln.com

Job Hunt

Lincolndailynews.com makes it easy to look for a job in the Logan County area.

The Logan County Housing Authority is accepting applications for the position of Receptionist/Program Aide. The position requires an office professional who has excellent telephone skills, good computer and typing skills, and outstanding customer service skills,  with the ability to deal with people of all age groups.

We offer an excellent benefit package, competitive wages and a friendly work environment.

Applications and a job description may be picked up at the office located at 1028 N. College St., Lincoln, IL 62656. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

E.O.E.

Employers, you can list available jobs by e-mailing ads@lincolndailynews.com. Each job listing, up to 75 words, costs $10 the first week, $20 for eight days to one month.

Classifieds

For Sale: Two recliner rockers, $25 each, both in excellent condition; and one TV stand, $15. Call 735-4063, ask for Debbie; or e-mail red2cd@ccaonline.com.

Dave Sinclair has authorized an Immediate Inventory Reduction at ALL FIVE of his St. Louis Dealerships. Over 2,400 New Cars, Trucks, Vans and Sport Utility Vehicles On Hand. The Largest Inventory in 500 Miles. Oct. 28 and 29 ONLY! This AD Will Not Appear on Radio or TV. Absolutely NO Overnight Parking Permitted. Security Will Be on Site. No Franchised Dealers Allowed. Call 1-888-SINCLAIR. www.davesinclair.com.

Looking for a used topper that will fit a 5x8 truck bed. E-mail: lincoln2CD@cs.com. Phone (217) 735-4063.

To place a classified ad, e-mail ads@lincolndailynews.com or call (217) 732-7443.