ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Births
• Engagements
• Weddings
• Anniversaries
• Obituaries
• Tribute: William Winner

Births

Jacques and Amber (Ruggless) Roos of the Auckland, New Zealand, congregation are absolutely thrilled to announce the birth of their daughter (first child), Autumn Elizabeth Roos. Arriving on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, Sept. 27, 2007, she weighed 5 pounds 9 ounces and was 18½ inches long. Proud grandparents are Maurice and June Halliday of Cape Town, South Africa, and Julia Ruggless of Portland, Oregon.

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Scott and Tracey Williams of the Elkhart, Indiana, congregation are delighted to announce the birth of their first child, Lincoln Scott. He was born Dec. 4, 2007, weighing 8 pounds 12 ounces and was 22¾ inches long.

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Glen and Sharon Maguire (van Belkum) are pleased to announce the birth of their twins, Daniel and Jade, born Oct. 29, 2007. Sharon attends the Auckland, New Zealand, congregation. Big brother, Liam, and older sister, Sinead, are thrilled with their new brother and sister.

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Eddie and Sara (Griffith) Monk of the Portland, Oregon, congregation, are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Samuel Adam Monk. Samuel was born Oct. 31, 2007, weighing in at 8 pounds 9 ounces and measuring 20¾ inches in length. His big brother, Eddie (17), and sister, Anna (3), enjoy playing with Samuel.

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Engagements

William and Linda Leonard of Borculo, Michigan, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Alison Michelle Leonard, to Aaron John Leimback, son of Joe and Cindy Leimback of Charlotte, Michigan. Fred Kellers will be performing the ceremony. The couple attends the Grand Rapids, Michigan, congregation and plans to reside in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A May 4th wedding is planned.

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Weddings

It was a special Sabbath on Jan. 12, 2008, for the Vancouver, British Columbia, congregation. Following regular Sabbath services, the congregation, along with family and friends, were guests at the wedding of members Don Mathison and Vera Thomas. Vancouver elder Lorne Davies, a longtime friend of the bride, officiated the wedding ceremony.

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On Saturday evening, Aug. 4, 2007, Monica Yepez and Jeffrey James Servidio were married in Quito, Ecuador. Immediately following the customary civil ceremony, the groom's father, Jim Servidio, performed the religious ceremony. He surprised the couple by speaking Monica's vows in her native Spanish. The 80 attendees were given a Spanish translation of the ceremony.

Official witnesses for the couple were the bride's sister, Ana Amelia Yepez, and father of the bride, Horacio Yepez. Ana Ortiz, mother of the bride, was in attendance. Parents of the groom, Jim and Judy Servidio, were delighted to be able to attend the beautiful formal wedding along with brother of the groom, Judd Servidio. Wedding guests enjoyed a catered meal and danced into the wee morning hours. The couple honeymooned in a lush part of Ecuador featuring tropical foliage and waterfalls.

Monica and Jeff are at home in Austin, Texas, and are members of the Austin congregation.

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Joshua Creech, son of Glenn and Ronda Creech, and Elizabeth (Lizzy) Miller, daughter of Kathleen and Dan Miller, were united in marriage June 10, 2006. The wedding was performed in Cincinnati, Ohio, by Ed Smith, an elder in the Cincinnati East congregation. Caleb Creech, the groom's brother, served as best man, and Sarah Davis, a friend of the bride, served as maid of honor.

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Anniversaries

Milton and Elaine Jiles were honored by their relatives and Church family after Sabbath services on Dec. 1, 2007, with a cake in recognition of their 50th wedding anniversary. They were married Dec. 2, 1957, and have lived in the New Orleans, Louisiana, area most of their marriage. They have five children, eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Milton spent 35 years as a graphic designer before retiring, and Elaine currently serves as a respiratory therapist at a local hospital. Milton loves woodworking, fishing, gardening and home improvement projects. Elaine enjoys spending her down time with her family. She hopes to be able to focus more time on this, since she is about to retire.

They were visited by Jim Jenkins and Vernon Hargrove in the fall of 1966 and were baptized in March of 1967. The Church has become their life over the years, as they have served and continue to serve in various capacities within the congregation, including hosting several church functions at their home each year. They serve as deacon and deaconess in the New Orleans congregation.

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Obituaries

Lloyd S. Chambers, 70, of Phoenix, Arizona, died Jan. 7, 2008, after a brief illness. He was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1937. After serving a hitch in the Navy, he lived most of his life in Arizona, where he enjoyed a successful career managing a State Farm Insurance agency. He married Judith Norling in 1965, and they enjoyed 42 years of marriage.

Lloyd was an avid outdoorsman, having hiked throughout the High Sierras, the Grand Canyon and many trails in the Phoenix region. He also loved to camp and to play golf; he was an accomplished artist and he traveled widely. His greatest joy was his family.

Lloyd was well known and well loved in the Church in Phoenix, where he graciously served publicly and behind the scenes since becoming a member in April 1973.

He is survived by his wife, Judy; his son, Lloyd "Chuck" Chambers; his daughter, Kimberly DelBarto; and six grandchildren. Judy and Chuck and his wife, Lissa, are also members of UCG. Lloyd's oldest grandson, Corey Chambers, currently attends ABC.

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John A. Ammel, age 80, of Parker, Kansas, and a member of United Church of God in Kansas City, died Jan. 6, 2008. He was born Aug. 30, 1927, at Tonganoxie, Kansas, the fifth of seven children. He graduated from Tonganoxie High School in 1945 and attended college at Friends Bible College in Haviland and also Bethany Nazarene College in Bethany, Oklahoma.

John served in the U.S. Army for one year, worked for the Coleman Company in Wichita for a short time and then entered the education field as a teacher and elementary principal for 39 years. He spent most of his 39-year career at Parker from 1967 to 1992.

On June 11, 1950, he was united in marriage to Donna Faith Bradley. Both were baptized July 1, 1958. John and Faith were two of the pioneers of the fledgling Kansas City congregation after first attending in Springfield, Missouri. They faithfully attended Bible studies and church services for all these 50 years. John had a reputation for being very studious and a good researcher who was constantly studying to have an answer for the hope of God's Kingdom. Those who talked with him on any given Sabbath walked away with some food for thought.

He was preceded in death by one son, Dwight, who died at age 9, and four brothers. He is survived by his wife, Faith; three children, David, Milton and Miriam Ammel; two brothers; one grandson, Joseph Ammel; and one step-granddaughter, Shanta Dickerson.

Funeral services were conducted on Jan. 9 by Lowell Crosby, UCG elder in Kansas City.

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John Heard Baggett Jr. of the New Orleans, Louisiana, congregation died Dec. 11, 2007, at the age of 89, after contracting pneumonia while recovering in the hospital from a neck injury.

He was the beloved husband of the late Phyllis Felthauser Baggett who died in 1996, and is survived by their three children: Fred Baggett, Chris Rogillio (a UCG member) and Stephanie Baggett. He is also survived by a brother, Virgil Baggett of Jackson, Mississippi; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

He was a native of Macon, Georgia, and a resident of Slidell, Louisiana, for the past 38 years. He retired after 40 years as a machinist for the L&N Railroad. He also served as a lead machinist during the Korean War.

He and his wife, Phyllis, were baptized on the same day in 1983 and enjoyed a wonderful marriage. He greatly treasured God's truth, God's people and getting to know more of God's people at various Feasts over the years. John was always able to find the humor in life, and was kind and even-tempered.

At the age of 87 when their home flooded during Hurricane Katrina, he and his family survived in the attic of his daughter's home, remaining in the attic for two days until the water level receded enough for them to evacuate to Houston, Texas. He often spoke of the hospitality and generosity of the Houston congregations in providing them with food, clothing and housing until his family could return to Slidell.

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Longtime member of the Church of God, Virginia "Helen" Watts died peacefully on Jan. 14, 2008, at her home in Loves Park, Illinois. She had suffered with congestive heart failure for many years and had been bedridden for several weeks.

Helen was baptized in 1967 and attended the Church of God in Cape Girardeau and Poplar Bluff, Missouri; Mount Vernon and Rockford, Illinois; and most recently in Beloit, Wisconsin.

Helen was born July 14, 1922, in Alton, Illinois, daughter of the late Amos and Earline Ervin. She was united in marriage to Victor Metcalfe in 1940. In 1943 she wed William E. Watts.

Survivors include two daughters: Anita Asbury of San Antonio, Texas, and Bonnie Strass (Gregory) of Loves Park. In addition, she is survived by one grandson, Patrick Coffman of Marion, Illinois; and two great-granddaughters, Stacey and Jeri Lee Coffman of Sesser, Illinois.

She was preceded in death by Victor Metcalfe and William Watts.

Funeral services were Jan. 19, 2008, at Honquest Funeral Home in Loves Park. She is greatly missed by many friends and family.

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Tribute: William Winner

The Church mourns the loss of longtime pastor William Winner, age 71. On Jan. 16, Mr. Winner underwent what appeared to be successful surgery to remove a tumor on his pituitary gland that, among other things, was pressing on his optic nerve and slowly taking his vision. Early on the 17th while sitting in the chair talking to the nurse, his heart suddenly stopped and all attempts to revive him failed.

Mr. Winner was called into God's Church in his late teens and was the first student from the state of Maryland to attend Ambassador College. While in college he met Carolyn Travis of Alabama, and they were married in 1962 immediately following graduation and his ordination.

Their first pastoral assignment took them to Wichita and Liberal, Kansas, for the summer months before moving to Melbourne, Australia. While in Melbourne their son Mark was born. From Melbourne the Winners were transferred to Western Australia where they established the Perth congregation. During their four years in Perth their daughter Tami (Rehor) was born.

Following a year of sabbatical in Pasadena, California, they returned to Kansas, pastoring Wichita and Salina. Five years later they transferred to pastor in Gadsden and Anniston, Alabama. The Winners have always said they have a boomerang effect, as they returned to Australia in 1983. Mr. Winner served for six years as director of ministerial services for Australia and Asia.

In 1989 he and his wife returned to the United States to pastor Wheeling, West Virginia, and Steubenville, Ohio, and later Cambridge, Ohio. Since the beginning of United they also served Morgantown, West Virginia, and Marietta and Athens, Ohio, and most recently, Huntsville, Birmingham and Gadsden, Alabama.

For nearly 50 years Mr. Winner served God's Church, beginning with baptizing tours in 1960 and 1961. These tours took him up the West Coast and completely across the southern part of the United States. In fact, one of the members he was pastoring in Birmingham at the time of his death was a man he baptized on his 1961 tour.

The Winners always wanted to serve the Church wherever God wanted them to be. No matter where he and Carolyn served, they were deeply appreciated as a couple who loved God and His people.

Mr. Winner loved God's Word and loved to impart knowledge and understanding of the Bible to God's people. There is a scripture in Jeremiah that describes his service to God in his role as a church pastor. God said, "I will give you shepherds [or pastors] according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding" (3:15). Mr. Winner stated that he would prefer to prepare a sermon for God's people than eat a physical meal. He was truly a capable, modest and gentle man, and a man of character, integrity and dedication.

As Bob Fahey said in his eulogy, "In retrospect I think he lived by James 3:17: 'But the wisdom that is from above is first pure [right motives], then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.' To me that describes Bill Winner."

He was deeply respected by his friends and peers, and he leaves a big gap in the ministry of the Church of God. We will miss his presence, his experience, his wisdom and his example. His death underscores the need to follow Christ's exhortation to pray that God send more laborers into the harvest.

—Bruce Gore

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Announcements: Members are welcome to submit announcements of the births, engagements, weddings, significant anniversaries (25, 40, 50, 60, etc.) and obituaries in their families. Please include a self-addressed envelope if you would like photos returned. Most items are 50 to 100 words and should not exceed 250 words. Please e-mail (preferred) or give them to your local pastor to forward to United News.