Justin Hayes who was recently ordained by the Winona Lake, Ind., Grace Brethren Church, has arrived at the U.S. Navy Chaplain’s School in Rhode Island.

Dan Thornton is the new executive pastor at Maranatha Grace Brethren Church of Hager-stown, Md. Dan formerly served as senior pastor at the Peninsula Grace Brethren Church in Soldotna, Alaska. He and his wife, Sue, plan to move to Hagerstown in early summer.



Shane Edwards has been licensed to the ministry by Community of Hope, a Grace Brethren church in Surrey, B.C. This sum-mer, he, his wife, Cheryl, and their six children are moving to Medicine Hat, a city of 61,000 people located in the southeastern part of the Canadian province of Alberta, to begin a Grace Brethren church there.

Rick Dale has joined the staff of the Grace Brethren Church of Lexington, Ohio (Jason Carmean, pastor), as associate pastor of family ministries.



Erik Dubasak, pictured with his wife, Terrah, is the new pastor of the Grace Brethren Church of Ormond Beach, Fla.

Former Grace Brethren church-planting ex-ecutive and long-time pastor, Lester Pifer, celebrated his 90th birthday and 70 years in the ministry with an open house at the Grace Brethren Church of Columbus, Ohio, on March 27. He currently serves as pastor of seniors at the church. He helped establish more than 200 churches during his 33 years with Grace Breth-ren Home Missions, and has himself led con-gregations in Tennessee, Indiana, Florida, and Ohio. He was instrumental in developing the Grace Brethren Investment Foundation which

has helped many churches obtain building loans. He served as moderator of the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches, and has held seats on several FGBC boards. He currently leads the Columbus church’s Cancer Support group and the “Keenagers” senior’s ministry. In September 2000, he began to lead a men’s Bible study held each Monday at a Columbus area restaurant that now has more than 60 attending each week.

Andrew E. “Andy” Auxt, 91, a well-known Grace Brethren layman from the Mid-Atlantic District of Grace Brethren Churches, Hagerstown, Md., Febru-ary 9, 2010.

Betty C. Curtner, 92, known for teaching Bible stud-ies to younger women at the Grace Brethren Church, Lexington, Ohio, March 14, 2010.

Henry Dalke, 92, former Grace Brethren pastor, Alhambra, Calif., December 29, 2009.

June Elizabeth Hall, 94, former Grace Brethren pastor’s wife, Ashland, Ohio, March 2, 2010.

Marvin A. Good, 91, founding member of the Grace Brethren Church, Sebring, Fla., March 15, 2010.

David Plaster, 60, pastor of the Grace Brethren Church of Columbus, Ohio, Lewis Center, Ohio, March 6, 2010.

See Obituaries for complete information.