The Mail-Journal, Volume 22, Number 50, Milford, Kosciusko County, 11 December 1985 — Page 19
Mennonite dies on Titanic
By RUSSELL KRABILL Guest Feature Writer Annie C. Funk, a Mennonite missionary to India, was one of the 2,207 passengers on the ocean liner, Titanic, when it received its mortal wound on the night of April 15,1912. The ship was on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City when she struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic. The three and one-block long ship was considered “unsinkable.” It had a double bottom and 16 water tight compartments. When a lady on board asked a deck hand whether the Titanic was indeed unsinkable, he replied, “Yes lady. God, himself, could not sink this ship.” The overconfident crew had received warnings of icebergs in the area but ignored them. Suddenly the passengers felt a slight jolt. An iceberg had ripped a huge gash in the underbelly of the ship. Two and one-half hours later it sank beneath the waves, taking with it 1,503 persons. Annie Funk was among the casualties. The rest of the passengers were saved in life boats. The general location of the accident has been known all along, but it was not until recently, 73 years later, that the exact location of the ship was discovered. It was found about 500 miles south of Newfoundland, sitting upright on the floor of the Atlantic, 13,000 feet below the surface of the water. A group of scientists, using sophisticated equipment, discovered the great ship in remarkable preservation. Who was Annie C. Funk and why was she a passenger on this luxury liner, along with “Seven Titanic passengers worth half a billion?” Annie Funk was a General Conference Mennonite woman who went to Janjgir, India, as a missionary in 1906 at the age of 32. She was born on April 12,1874, the daughter of James B. and Susanna Clemmer Funk. She grew up in Eastern Pennsylvania, in the beautiful Butter Valley, about
NIPSCO refiles EED rates
Northern Indiana Public Service refiled electric economic development rates with the Public Service Commission of Indiana Friday, Dec. 6. ‘ ‘The rates were originally filed on February 28, in an effort to help create jobs, stimulate economic development and increase industrial production in our service area,” said I. J. Roberts, vice president of marketing and contracts. “This refiling demonstrates our continued commitments to these goals.” The PSC in May 1985 approved economic development rates for NIPSCO but made changes and additional requirements which the utility said rendered the rates ineffective and thwarted the intended purpose of the proposed rates. fl QoCIAVSECURi'rvj fl p Wl| EM Q. I employ a gardener — handyman. Do I have to deduct Social Security taxes from his wages? A. If you pay a household worker SSO or more in cash wages in a calendar quarter, you may either deduct Social Security taxes from the wages or pay both shares of the tax yourself. You also must pay the employer’s share of the tax. For details, call any Social Security office.
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three miles from the Hereford Mennonite Church, located at Bally in Berks County. Here her uncle, Christian Clemmer, served as an elder for many years. When she was about 14 years of age, she made a public confession of Christ and was baptized by Rev. C. A. van der Smissen. Annie was a rather retiring person but was active in the church. She taught a Sunday school class and helped start a Junior C.E. society. She attended the West Chester State Normal School where she took a teacher’s course. After that, she went to Northfield where she spent several years in the Moody Training School. With this preparation she went south to assist in a mission among the black people at Chattanooga, Tenn. She then accepted a call to come to Patterson, N.J., to serve as house secretary at the Young Women’s Christian Association. Before she left for India, her associates at Patterson, as an expression of their appreciation, presented her with a folding organ for use on the mission field. When Annie was approached by the secretary of the mission board regarding her interest in serving in India, she wrote: “Several years ago I promised the Lord that if the way would open to go to the foreign field, I would do my duty. Ever since I came to know Jesus as my personal Savior and to realize what He did for me, I longed to give the message. Now the door is open wide enough for me to do my duty to the extent of ‘being willing to go-’ She accordingly set sail for India in November of 1906. When someone remarked to her concerning the dangers of the voyage, she replied, “Our heavenly Father is as near to us on sea as on land. My trust is in Him and I have no fear.” Annie’s strong physical constitution adapted itself well to the rigors of the hot climate of India. Furthermore, her dedication and
In the interim, several states, including Illinois, have taken NIPSCO’s lead in Indiana and filed similar rates that were approved, Roberts said. “In discussions with political, industrial, labor and civic leaders in northern Indiana, we continue to experience a keen interest in economic development rates. Therefore, we are again asking the PSC to consider our proposal for the rates and to hold public hearings on the matter.” The utility executive said that if the rates are approved, discounts of up to 40 percent could be realized initially on new or additional requirements by eligible industrial and commercial customers, with reduced discounts in succeeding years. The rates, as proposed, would be in effect from the date of approval through December 31,1990. Roberts said the rates to other customers would not be increased as a result of the new economic development rates. “Although we cannot predict to what extent our customers, new or existing, will utilize the new rates, revenue from the new business will more than cover the incremental cost of providing the service. “Couples with our already low natural gas rates, the new electric rates could help make our service area even more attractive to companies seeking to locate here or to expand existing facilities,” he said. “Utility rates, of themselves, are not major factors in industrial relocation or expansion,” Roberts said. “However, these new rates provide an additional advantage or selling point in our ongoing effort to attract new industry and encourage expansion in the communities and rural areas we serve.”
unselfish service endeared her to the people and her ministry was fruitful. It was nearly six years later, in the spring of 1912, that Annie received a disturbing cable gram from her pastor in Pennsylvania informing her that her mother was very ill and that she was to return home at onCe. After hastily packing, she took the train to bombay. On March 19, 1912, she sailed for England on the SS Persian. Arriving in England, she discovered that the SS Haverford, on which she was booked, was delayed for six or more days because of a coal strike. Since she was anxious to get home, her travel agent, Thomas Cook and Sons, suggested that by paying an extra fare she could secure second class passage on the new SS Titanic. Not knowing her change of plans, her friends back home were baffled to see her name listed in the papers with the other 1,500 Titanic casualties. They were sure that it must be another Annie Funk because she was to come on the SS Haverford. It was not until later that the mystery was solved. She had written a note from the Titanic, which was sent back to land by the pilot boat: “I had to get out a few more gold pieces (to pay for passage on the Titanic) but I gladly did that to get home six days earlier and will let my people know from New York.” The Titanic set sail from the Southampton harbor on April 10, 1912. We do not know the details of her voyage. We do know that she spent her 38th birthday on the Titanic. We can speculate that she found some Christian friends on board. It would be interesting to know how she spent the two and one-half hours after the accident. Books have been written giving the details as to how various passengers responded. At the end, there were prayers and Christian hymns. We can be sure that Annie participated in these. The ship carried 2,207 people, but had life boats for only 1,178. There is an unconfirmed story, which was to have appeared in a British newspaper, that Annie gave up her place in a life boat to a woman with children. When Annie’s friends heard this story they said it was just like Annie to do something like that. The church members back in Pennsylvania were shocked when they learned of Annie’s tragic passing. There were numerous memorial services held for her. Interestingly, Annie’s mother had improved enough so that she could attend the memorial service in the home church. The impact of her life and death were powerfully felt throughout the whole church. In an article in the May 2,1912, issue of “The Mennonite,” sketching the life of Annie Funk, A. S. Shelly concluded with the following appeal: “A vacancy in the ranks of the Master’s army of laborers has occurred. How shall it be filled? Who will step forward into the breech?” One of the persons who often told how she responded to this challenge, was Martha Rose Burkhalter of Berne. She was 23-years-old at the time. Five years later Martha went to India as a missionary to carry on the work which Annie had begun. In 1908, Annie had founded a girl’s school at Janjgir, India, which was later named Funk Memorial School. Martha Burkhalter was principal of this school for nine years. In fact, she gave most of her life to missionary work in India. Only eternity will reveal the wide influence Annie C. Funk will have had in history. Meanwhile her body is entombed in the bottom of the ocean awaiting her Master’s resurrection call.
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Santa Claus lives in Nappanee
By MARK HUFFMAN Staff Writer “His eyes — how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.” ‘ Sound familiar? While Clement C. Moore used this epic to describe an encounter with St. Nicholas in 1822, the same descriptive words could be placed on Nappanee resident Ray Worden 163 years later. Moore would be pleased to know that there is a Santa Claus that still epitomizes the true spirit of Christmas — that of giving. While Worden’s beard may not be quite as “white as the snow,” due to years of wear, his eyes admittidly still twinkle whenever he sees a child smile as a result of his role playing — one he has played for 38 years. Ordinarily clean-shaven, Worden dons his S7O muttonchops about five weeks before Christmas and can rarely be seen without them until after the Yuletide season. One year he even went so far as to ask a local beautician if she could color his whiskers white if he let them grow out. After she told him that she could, but it may burn his face, he agreed that*such a folly may not make Santa so jolly; thus he has had to settle for the factory produced ensemble. “This is my sixth set of whiskers, I’ve also gone through three suits,” he commented. “Yes, and it’s about time for a new beard,” Mrs. Claus, er, make that Worden, chimed in. The Wordens have been married for 25 Christmases, enough to make Mrs. Worden familiar with the Christmas Eve ritual. “Ray doesn’t get home until after 10 p.m., so I usually stay home and make pizza for when he and the kids get back.” The “kids” are 22-year-old Merline and 23 year-old-Ryan, who also has had experience playing St. Nick. “My son fills the suit better than me now,” Worden laughed. While he has sl2s+ invested in that suit, Worden never charges to play the jolly old elf, and shuns those who do. “It takes the fun Saudis and oil prices VIENNA, AUSTRIA - Saudi Arabia, the traditional backbone of QPEC’s high-price policy, confirmed recently it has begun offering discounts on oil sales in violation of the groups pricing accords.
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out of it,” he remarked, adding, “I’ve seen advertisements where you can ‘talk to Santa on the phone for s2s* — it just doesn’t seem right.” Ironically, the telephone rang about the time Worden finished his sentence. It was a request for him to play Santa for the VFW, a request he gladly accepted. “We don’t have anything going on next Saturday do we mom?,” he asked as his wife shook her head, knowing that it wouldn’t matter if they had. Worden works at United Telephone of Warsaw in his “spare” time, a company he has been affiliated with for 35 years. Originally from the Decatur area, he came to Nappanee, by way of the North Pole, in 1957. “When I found out that there was no Santa Claus I decided I was going to be him,” Worden, who began playing the role as early as age 14, remarked. “It just doesn’t seem like Christmas anymore when a kid stops believing in him, Christmas ‘is’ Santa Claus — it’s for the kids,” he added. While Worden hastens to estimate how many children have sat on his lap he admits, “There are some children who are the grandchildren of those who’ve sat on my lap.” Luckily he has strong legs, although Mrs. Worden may not agree, “Santa’s getting too old to go up and down steps,” she laughed. On Oct. 17, Worden was worried that he may not be able to “do his thing” this Christmas, when he got an infected foot and had to have a toe amputated. But he endured and luckily the toe
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has not affected his “Ho-ho-ho,” as he prepares for another Christmas. With over 50 stops annually, Worden has become familiar with many area children — making it easy for them to believe. “I know many of them by name, which impresses them. One girl from Warsaw can’t figure out how I know her name.” While “visions of sugar plums” may not be “dancing in their heads” these days, Cabbage Patch and other dolls remain the favorite among children. “I usually try to discourage a kid from asking for something I may not think he’s old enough for, such as a 88-gun, and ask him if there’s something else he’d like,” Worden said. Quick on his toes, having more than a few left, Worden usually has a response to every child’s question or request, although he admits he was taken by surprise one year. “Once, a two-year-old boy, who’s mother was getting a divorce, asked for a new daddy — I didn’t know what to say,” he deadpanned. However; he is used to the more conventional questions. “A lot of times a kid will ask if he can pull my beard and I’ll just say ‘lf I can pull your hair’ — it always works,” he laughed. Mrs. Worden also has done her share of “cover-up” work. “I’ve lied a lot over the 25 years Ray has played Santa,” she admitted, looking back on the times her own children would ask questions about their father — Santa. But, according to Worden, the “cover-up” is all worth it when he sees the kids eyes light up. “Two
Wed., December 11,1985 — THE MAIL-JOURNAL
years ago, at a family gathering, a four-year-old girl came up to me and said ‘Santa, I know you were here last night because I heard Bootsy bark,” then she added ‘Don’t worry about next year, I’D tie Bootsy up,”’ Worden reminisced, the corners of his mouth moving upward. The bells on Worden’s own boots may lead one to believe that Bootsy “did” hear something that night, even if he didn’t see it. However, he will hear a different chime this season. “I got new
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SHOVELING NORTH — Santa Claus (alias Ray Worden) clears a path from his sanctuary away from the North Pole, at 1005 E. Centennial in Nappanee, to his awaiting sleigh. (Photo by Mark Huffman)
bells for Ray this fall at Shipshewana,” Mrs. Worden said, revealing the notion that preparing for Santa is a year-round job. Moore used the verse “He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf” in describing St. Nicholas in 1822, one wonders how he would describe Worden in 1985, perhaps as — “One who thinks of others before thinking of himself.” Yes, Virginia and Bootsy — there is a Santa Claus, at least in Nappanee.
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