Illinois Mennonite Mission Board

Illinois Mennonite Mission Board (Mennonite Church) is a subsidiary organization of the Illinois Mennonite Conference. Its purpose is "to work as the missionary and financial auxiliary of the Illinois Mennonite Conference in the following ways: (1) to create and promote missionary interest, and to assist the various congregations in systematizing and extending the work of evangelism. (2) To organize and supervise the missionary work of the Illinois Mennonite Conference not under the direct control of an organized congregation or the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities. (3) To perform such benevolent or charitable work as may be deemed advisable by the Board, or as the Conference may direct. (4) To acquire and hold title to real estate and other property, to lease, operate, maintain, and sell or otherwise dispose of the same. (5) For the aforesaid purpose to solicit funds, to receive and hold all donations, bequests, endowments and annuities, etc., as may come under the control of the Board, or as Conference may direct."

The Board in 1958 was made up of (a) one member elected by each local church; (b)  the superintendent of each extension work (at least two years old) within the Conference; (c) two members elected by Conference; (d) the Conference member of the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities.

The Board held its first annual meeting 13 September 1923. The first officers were as follows: President S. R. Good; Vice-president J. A. Heiser; Secretary John Roth; Treasurer S. D. Schertz; and fifth member A. C. Good. The officers in 1958 were: President Ralph Irnhoff; Vice-president Kenneth G. Good; Secretary Ivan J. Kauffmann; Treasurer Russell Massanari; fifth member or field worker Chris Graber; colporteur John Harnish.

The Pleasant Hill, Arthur, Highway Village, and Dillon churches were established prior to 1958 during the time the Board was in operation and have been influenced directly or indirectly by the Board. The official organ of the Board was the Missionary Guide, published bimonthly beginning with November 1944. Harold Zehr served as editor for a number of years. The Board also printed a report of its annual meeting. The 1955 budget was $10,450.

The present Board was preceded by the "Illinois District Mission Board," organized 26 July 1917 under the old Illinois Mennonite Conference. The first officers were: President S. R. Good; Vice-president J. J. Summers; Secretary A. H. Leaman; Treasurer J. V. Fortner; fifth member J. D. Conrad. Its first mission project was the Garden Street Mission in Peoria, which was established in May 1919, and turned over to the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities in 1921. The second project was Pleasant Hill, near Peoria, which was opened as a mission Sunday school on 21 November 1920. After the Amish and Mennonite merger in 1921 and the creation of the new Illinois Mennonite Conference, the Mission Board was given a new name and constitution but continued on the same pattern of organization and work.

Bibliography

Weber, Harry F. Centennial history of the Mennonites of Illinois, 1829-1929. Goshen, IN: Mennonite Historical Society, 1931.

Author(s)	Ivan J Kauffmann
Date Published	1958

Cite This Article

MLA style

Kauffmann, Ivan J. "Illinois Mennonite Mission Board." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1958. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Illinois_Mennonite_Mission_Board&oldid=88185.

APA style

Kauffmann, Ivan J. (1958). Illinois Mennonite Mission Board. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Illinois_Mennonite_Mission_Board&oldid=88185.

---

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 10. All rights reserved.

©1996-2024 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.