Loewen, Gary (1952-2021)
David GARY Loewen: pastor, missionary, construction site supervisor; born 20 August 1952 in Burns Lake, British Columbia, Canada to John Loewen (30 September 1927 - 4 October 2007, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada) and Maria (Peters) Loewen (25 February 1927 - 27 January 2011, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan), the third oldest of eight children. On 6 August 1977, Gary married Eleanor "Ellie" Peters, daughter of Daniel D. Peters (1927-2003) and Elma (Tiessen) Peters (1929-2018). They had three children, Charlotte, Rosanna, and Daniel. After a brief battle with cancer, Gary died on 12 April 2021, in Abbotsford, British Columbia.
At a young age Gary’s family moved to Saskatchewan settling north of Saskatoon, near Warman. Gary was baptized upon his confession of faith in the summer of 1969, and became a member of the Warman Mennonite Brethren Church. It was during his time as a counselor at Redberry Bible Camp that Gary sensed a clear call to church ministry and he enrolled at Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, BC for biblical training,
After completing the four-year program at Columbia Bible College (CBC) Gary Loewen continued studies at the Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC). He enrolled for individual courses at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS), at ACTS Seminary (Langley, BC) and Regent College (Vancouver). He was an avid reader and kept up with current theological thought. He completed numerous on-line courses and enjoyed sermon and lecture series of his favorite theologians and scholars.
Between 1975 and 2005, Gary Loewen pastored Cedar Valley Mennonite Church, Mission, BC, Sterling Mennonite Fellowship, Winnipeg, Wellspring Christian Fellowship (church planter), Abbotsford, and Winkler Mennonite Brethren Church, Manitoba.
From 1980 to 1989, Gary and Ellie Loewen served two terms as missionaries in Brazil with Mennonite Church General Conference Commission on Overseas Mission, working with/for the Association of Evangelical Mennonite churches. The Loewens' assigned focus was church planting, leadership training, and establishing a seminary by extension program. They served 14 months with Mennonite Brethren Mission at the church building renovation project in Berlin, Germany in 2009-10. Following that, they enrolled in the Mennonite Brethren Mission training program in preparation for future ministry.
Loewen served on the Mennonite Educational Institute (MEI) and Columbia Bible College boards, as well as on various provincial and national committees for both the Mennonite and the Mennonite Brethren Church conferences. He also served as interim conference minister for Mennonite Church British Columbia.
Gary loved missions, and he loved to passionately communicate biblical truths that had been life-transforming in his own life. Gary regularly prayed Scripture-based prayers for his family, his church small group, local church staff, and church leadership teams, and interceded daily for the missionaries that his family supported. At the construction jobsite, Gary sought to represent Christ-like character in each of his interactions with developers, inspectors, trades folk and the day-to-day employees.
Gary Loewen will be fondly remembered for his humor and teasing, for his love of sports and initiating a round of golf or pickle ball, and for planning group barbeques, waffle parties, birthday dinners, and celebrations. Gary sought to meet life’s challenges with humility and confident trust in God, seeking to make Christ known in whatever he was doing, and relying on Him to "complete the good work begun in his life."
| Author(s) | Ellie Loewen |
|---|---|
| Date Published | December 2021 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Loewen, Ellie. "Loewen, Gary (1952-2021)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. December 2021. Web. 24 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Loewen,_Gary_(1952-2021)&oldid=172762.
APA style
Loewen, Ellie. (December 2021). Loewen, Gary (1952-2021). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 24 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Loewen,_Gary_(1952-2021)&oldid=172762.
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