Glendon and Eupha celebrate their anniversary
By Bob Weaver 2004
Rev. Glendon McKee has died at the age of 89.
Glendon has been an omnipresence in the lives of countless students and
parishioners in Calhoun County, a teaching career of 30 years and a ministry
spanning 55 years.
During my childhood days of church going, he was the man who came to Hur to
marry and bury, preach the Sunday sermons, baptize, eat Sunday dinner and
come in times of trouble.
In my darkest days of being an alcoholic, his quiet voice spoke to me to hang on,
believe and do good. His was the great impression of living a Christian life, so
powerful it produced ringing memories of steadfastness, messages to try and live
by.
I am sure that many of you who read this today, have your own story about
preacher McKee.
Glendon met Eupha Hicks while they were working at the long-gone Spencer
State Hospital. They just celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary.
Over sixty years ago my friend Ronzel Lynch and I produced a radio program
called "The Life of the Rev. Glendon McKee," which was broadcast over a
Parkersburg radio station. We were students at Calhoun High School.
Ronzel discovered the old reel-to-reel tape a few years ago, and what a treasure
it was. Even then, McKee was one of my heroes.
The radio program concludes with Rev. McKee delivering a sermon at the Mt.
Zion United Methodist Church. He has said to me again and again, that if he could
have kept his health he would have preached to his dying day.
This day after his death, we leave you with his preaching words recorded in
1957:
"The world has an open sore. A great wound across it. And that wound is not
healing. And we think about humankind resisting the opportunity to sit at the feet
of Jesus and be healed."
It ought to make us tremble that the church of God today is so empty of
people ... so few inquiring of him - the balm that heals the soul of man. The healing
power of the Holy Spirit to cleanse men and make them whole."
I could write a book about him, teaching, preaching and living.
Thank you Rev. McKee for your wonderful life.
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