Sunday services can be viewed on Facebook live. The church was organized on March 26th, 1862, 1862-When we think about this year and what was going on at that time, we can sit in total amazement. There was a division between the North and the South. It was the 2nd year into the America Civil War. Abraham Lincoln was President of the United States. A year earlier in 1861, 11 southern states declare
d their secession from the United States and became the Confederate States of America. It was a long bloody war. Most of the war was fought in the southern states, but here in the little northern community of Ida, MI was a settlement of hardworking farmers. They were German immigrants. To them, the war must have seemed like it was on the other side of the world. Here, they focused on their families and their way of living. There were no paved roads to travel on. By horse and buggy, there were families that bundled up to worship at East Ida Immanuel Lutheran Church. Think about muddy, bumpy roads in the dead of winter with wobble, wooden wagon wheels. It is exactly 2 miles between our two churches. Today it is a short 3-minute drive. In 1862, when the world was much bigger, East Ida was a long way for those that lived west of Lewis Avenue. It is not clear when or how a division in the Ida church started, or if it even was a division as this could be a myth, but it is told that while the nation was divided by North and South, Ida had its own division between East and West. Lewis Avenue was a border line. The ground on the east side had rich clay where the crops thrived and the farmers prospered. On the other side the ground was sandy, useless, and scrubby. People on the west side of Lewis Avenue were called "sand frickets" by their eastern neighbors. Either due to dissension or distance, just about a year from the time that the 11 southern states seceded from the Union, some seceded from East Ida and 13 charter members formed what was know as West Ida Immanuel Lutheran Church. The founding members were: Michael Schober, Fred Albrecht, Christian Sadewasser, Chris Bentschneider, Matthias Strabel, Michael Strabel, Hans Bruegert, Fredrich Vogelsang, Joachim Vogelsang, John Kleinert, G. Meier, and Frederich Lefien & their families as principle members. As many of the members were German immigrants the worship was conducted in German until 1918. The Rev. Willam Kroenke of Riga served as administrator until the congregation called their first pastor the Rev. J.J. Oetjens. The home of Joachim Vogelsang was the gathering place of worship until the first West Ida Lutheran Church was built & dedicated in 1862. The church had outgrown the original log cabin and a new and larger structure was built to take its place in 1881. The church still stands today serving the community and its members. It has withstood being struck by lightning and fire and over the years the church has been repainted, new stain glass windows installed, a piano & keyboard joined the organ to provide music, new doors were added and updated heating and electrical. There was an addition built with class rooms, bathrooms, kitchen, office and a fellowship hall. While it is a place of worship, Immanuel is also home to a community food pantry, and to New Beginnings/Mercy House which is a program that assists mothers and their children. There are Sister's Bible Study Groups that meet bi-weekly, Hungry Seekers (youth) and much more. This is a link to the FindAGrave site that lists all of the burial in our cemetery, starting in 1863 to the present. If you would like more information about the church's historical records, please call the church office and someone will be more than glad to assist you. Please leave a message and someone will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=2455304&CScn=West+Ida+&CScntry=4&CSst=24&CScnty=1284&
