wfn.org | Media anniversary

[BethAH <BethAH@mbm.org>]

August 1, 2001
Beth Hawn
Mennonite Board of Missions
(219) 294-7523
<NEWS@MBM.org>

August 1, 2001

Mennonite Media celebrates 50th anniversary

HARRISONBURG, Va. (MBM)  A reunion of Mennonite Hour singers, a
breakfast recognizing former staff, singers and boards, and an
open house at Mennonite Medias offices were among the highlights
of a weekend celebration marking the agencys 50th anniversary,
which was held in conjunction with the Virginia Mennonite
Conference Assembly.

The past literally came to life in the Friday evening service of
the assembly, highlighting the work of Mennonite Media over the
last 50 years. The service featured a mock re-creation of a
Mennonite Hour broadcast as it was done decades earlier on the
very same stage of Lehman Auditorium at Eastern Mennonite
University, and included the actual people who participated in
the program: Norman Derstine as announcer, Henry (Hank) Weaver as
director cueing the participants, and Richard Weaver as recording
engineer.  Slides from 50 years ago on an overhead projection
screen accompanied the production, featuring photos of Mennonite
Hour singers in their heyday with the voice of Mennonite Hour
host B. Charles Hostetter (now deceased) presented via audio
tape.  Mennonite Media director Burton Buller gave a presentation
on the agencys future and the challenges that lie ahead in the
area of media ministry.

After the service, members of various Mennonite Hour ensembles
performed hymns and songs from the broadcasts, including the
original Crusaders for Christ quartet, Eugene Souder, Roy
Kreider, Aaron King and Paul Swarr.  The four were students at
EMU (then Eastern Mennonite College) when they began regular
broadcasts in March 1951.  The program was renamed The Mennonite
Hour the following year.

The Mennonite Hour was significant around the world as two
speakers at the assembly shared. Mark Wenger, assistant moderator
for Virginia Mennonite Conference, recalled listening to the
program on reel-to-reel tape that his parents took along to
Ethiopia where they served as mission workers.  Owen Burkholder,
head of the conference, recalled hearing The Mennonite Hour
broadcast in remote northern Alberta, where it served as a
lifeline to the broader Mennonite Church.

The quartet and other ensembles also sang at a Saturday morning
breakfast that recognized past and present members of the
Mennonite Media staff.  Kenneth J. Weaver, executive director
from 1963 to 1999, reflected on highlights of the past 50 years.
Vasil Magal of Brussels, Belgium, speaker on Russian broadcasts,
brought greetings.

Mennonite Media staff held an open house Saturday afternoon at
their offices in Harrisonburg.  The event featured displays,
tours of the video editing suite and recording studio, as well as
a reception for visitors to meet current staff in Seventh Heaven
Cafi (formerly Punk N Brus), a forthcoming bakery and deli that
will be housed in the Mennonite Media building.

Mennonite Media, a ministry of Mennonite Board of Missions,
produces electronic and public media for the general North
American audience through:

7 Third Way Cafi (www.thirdway.com), a ministry web site.
7 Public service radio and TV spots.
7 A syndicated newspaper column, Another Way.
7 Video products for churches and other users.

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Kent Fellenbaum       PHOTOS AVAILABLE