Recently, items belonging to Rev. Laurence P. Propst were donated by David Wolfel, the son of Florence Bassler Wolfel who passed on December 18, 2023 (shown above). Some of these items are in the display case outside of the chapel. Please take a moment and look at the display case. A big thank you to David for donating the items.
Rev. Propst, who served St. Paul’s congregation for 31 years beginning September 1, 1911 and ending on November 10, 1942, was Florence’s grandfather.
Rev. Propst and his wife Florence had two daughters, Grace and Vivian, and a son Cecil. Daughter Vivian married Ernest Wessel and their daughter was Grace Elizabeth Wessel. Cecil was the second son of the congregation to enter the ministry and was ordained by his father and Rev. Edward Meuser on May 25, 1930. Daughter Grace married Frank Bassler and they had one daughter, Florence Bassler who married William Wolfel.
In the early years, Rev. Propst traveled by horse and buggy. He was also pastor at St. John’s Pfeiffer’s Corner and St. Luke’s Redland (1919-1938) while at St. Paul’s. He was minister when the church began and completed the building of current sanctuary in 1932.
A plaque honoring the service of Rev. Propst can be found in the sanctuary.
Respectfully submitted,
Kerry Griffin
Archivist
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