Wayne Zion Church continues sesquicentennial celebration

     On Sunday, July 31, Wayne Zion Lutheran Church will continue its anniversary celebration for 150 years of ministry with a service honoring the senior members of the congregation. Rev. Dr. Karen (Dirks) Nelson, a former member, will be our guest preacher that day. Pastor Karen is the daughter of the late Gerald and Betty Dirks, whose family have been members of Wayne Zion for seven generations. When invited to be our guest, Pastor Karen responded, “I am excited to be able to spend some time at Wayne and get the chance to say thank you for the firm foundation of faith that was laid early on in my life.”

   The Gerald Dirks family has four siblings: Kevin, Karen, Kraig, and Keith. Kraig is on staff at Wayne Zion. Karen was baptized, confirmed, and married here. She married Gary Nelson on May 28, 1978, and they currently live in Cedar Falls, where she is the associate pastor at Cedar Falls First United Methodist Church. They are the parents of three adult children: Nikki (Jacob) Pauli, Kyle (Katie) Nelson, and Deanna Nelson, and have eight grandchildren.

   Rev. Dr. Nelson received her Master of Divinity at Dubuque Theological Seminary in 2001, and her Doctor of Ministry in 2010. Along with her ministry position, she is also currently serving as program director for the Lilly Grant “Thriving in Ministry” program at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary.

   Rev. Dr. Nelson began her call in the church in 1996 as associate pastor at Marion First United Methodist Church. In 2002, she moved to New Horizons UMC in Coralville. From there, she became a field outreach minister for the Iowa Conference UMC in Des Moines in 2011. Then, in 2016, she transferred to Lisbon United Methodist Church, before taking the program director position in 2019, and the Cedar Falls position in 2021.

   Throughout the celebration service on July 31, video clips of many senior members (age 80 and above) will be shown, with the participants responding to interview questions regarding their memories of life growing up in this congregation. The oldest participant is 99 years of age. Using their talents to bring this to life were Pete Temple and Kathy Harms doing the interviewing, Byron Freese as videographer, and Dale Heeren editing the many hours of video into segments for use during the service. Special music during the church service will include favorite and familiar hymns.

   Following the service, there will be a receiving line for Rev. Dr. Nelson, along with a cake and coffee reception for our senior members in the social hall. A group photo is planned to capture all seniors in attendance.

   The public welcome, and family members, relatives, and friends are invited to attend worship at Wayne Zion Lutheran Church in rural Monticello on Sunday, July 31, beginning at 9 a.m.

   Visit our website waynezion.org for details of all our planned Sesquicentennial celebrations