Mennonite World Review - October 2019
Obituaries are emailed to MennObits before MWR is printed. Wording may vary in printed version.
Ewert, Anna ; . . Yoder, Anne Marie Guth ; . .
Mennonite World Review - October 14, 2019 - 97th Year, No. 21 - p. 15
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Yoder, Anne Marie Guth
Anne Marie Yoder, 94, of Goshen, Ind., died Sept. 20, 2019. She was born Feb. 24, 1925, to Marie Nafziger and Christian Guth in Folking, France.
She was not able to continue formal schooling after age 12 due to her family’s precarious situation. World War II dominated her adolescence as the family was evacuated to southern France, then returned to Germany-annexed Lorraine, with a brother in hiding and her father in concentration camps. The postwar period held new opportunities as she worked in Mennonite children’s homes and spent a happy year as an exchange student at Goshen College. After her return to France, she met John Howard Yoder, and they were married July 19, 1952.
With John she began a series of moves as she raised her family of six surviving children in France, Switzerland, Ohio, Indiana, Argentina and Palestine. Prairie Street Mennonite Church became her church home in Elkhart, where the family lived most of this time. After John’s sudden death in 1997, she eventually moved to Goshen, where her final years were spent surrounded by loving neighbors, friends and family.
She was blessed with empathy for those not at home in U.S. culture and those suffering from poor health and other burdens. She hosted Oaklawn day treatment patients and nurtured an amazing number of friendships around the world. She took delight in being in nature and in singing. She seemed to have a French or German song to fit every occasion.
Survivors include six children, Rebecca Yoder (Thomas) Neufeld, Martha Yoder (Rod) Maust, Daniel (Thea) Yoder, Elisabeth (Wahba Ayyad) Yoder, Esther Yoder (Jeff) Strahan and John-David (Lynda Nyce) Yoder; a brother, Robert (Annette) Guth in France; a sister-in-law, Mary Ellen (Albert) Meyer; 14 grandchildren; a step-granddaughter; five great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John Howard Yoder; a daughter, Rachel Christine Yoder; and two brothers, Jean Guillaume Guth and Adolphe Guth.
A memorial service will be held Oct. 26 at Prairie Street Mennonite Church, Elkhart.
Memorial contributions may be made to Mennonite Central Committee, Mennonite Mission Network or Mennonite World Conference.
Mennonite World Review - October 28, 2019 - 97th Year, No. 22 - p. 15
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Ewert, Anna
Anna Ewert, 105, of Mountain Lake, Minn., died July 22, 2019, at The Lodge, an assisted living facility of the Good Samaritan Society. She was born Jan. 14, 1914, to David H. and Agatha (Baerg) Ewert on their farm in Carson Township. She grew up on a dairy farm and graduated from Mountain Lake High School.
She committed her life to Jesus Christ at Carson Mennonite Brethren Church and was baptized July 21, 1929. She taught Sunday school, supported Sewing Circle mission programs and set an example of gracious servant-living.
At age 40 she was accepted to serve with Mennonite Central Committee, which was recruiting workers to serve in Europe. MCC assigned her to serve as a matron, cooking, cleaning and caring for young men in alternative service with the Pax program. A year later, MCC reassigned her to Greece to support a group of Pax volunteers in difficult circumstances. After a year she was reassigned to Vietnam. She served with MCC from 1955 to 1960.
The stories she told of her experiences ignited the next generation from her family and church to serve with MCC and MB Missions. After her MCC assignment, she lived with her parents and sister Lena in the original 1885 Bingham Lake Mennonite Brethren Church building her father had converted into a house after the congregation moved to a new sanctuary in Delft in 1949. After her 100th birthday she moved into The Lodge.
She worked as a nurse assistant at Mountain Lake Hospital from 1961 until her retirement at age 72. During retirement, she and Lena made and donated numerous quilts and comforters for MCC relief efforts, relief sales and gifts. She was a mother-like figure to her 39 nieces and nephews and many others. She leaves a legacy of servanthood that lives on through the impact of her life on others.
She is survived by her youngest brother, Adam, of Houston, Texas.
She was preceded in death by 10 siblings, George (Alma), Susie (William) Schroeder, David M. (Minnie), Margaret (John C.) Rempel, Mary (Theodore) Lepp, William (Erma), Jacob (Linda), Henry (Matilda), Lena, and Abram (Delora).
Services were held at Community Bible Church, Mountain Lake. Burial was in Carson Mennonite Brethren?Cemetery of Delft.
Memorials may be sent to the Carson Center at Tabor College, Hillsboro, Kan., or to MCC.