3 in 90s reflect on lifetimes with historic church

Chet Herrington, 95, left, and Oscar Garner, 96, both attended Lakewood Church of the Bretheren for decades, as did Dorothy McCamey, who lives in the same senior home. THE BLADE/AMY E. VOIGT Enlarge | Photo Reprints

Their memories are of a simpler time, when people caught streetcars from Toledo or rode in horse-drawn buggies to get to church.

A controversial topic in the church congregation in the 1940s? Buying a piano.

Church-goers sat around a stove, something the fire marshal might not approve of now, one longtime church member said.

Chester Herrington, 95, Oscar Garner, 96, and Dorothy McCamey, 95, reflected on several decades of attending Lakewood Church of the Brethren in Wood County's Lake Township.

The three, who live in a senior home in Pemberville, are lifelong members of the church.

"They're a wealth of knowledge and history," said Pastor Joe Routh, who has led the church since 2007. "We can really pull a lot of nuggets of wisdom from them."

Their lessons are about being patient and steadfast in one's faith, the pastor said.

The three members' longevity isn't unique at the church.

Mr. Herrington's son Dick, who grew up in the church, as did his father, can list 10 others who lived at least into their 90s.

"All of them were clean-living all their lives. They didn't drink. They didn't smoke," said Chester Herrington, a 1935 Walbridge High School graduate. "I never did. Oscar never did."

Mr. Garner, right, talks of being the son of a volunteer pastor at Black Swamp Church of the Bretheren, now Lakewood Church of the Bretheren. THE BLADE/AMY E. VOIGT Enlarge | Photo Reprints

But having an elderly congregation also raises concerns over the church's future. On Sundays, attendance hovers around 53, compared with about 80 to 100 about 10 years ago.

"Will we still be alive or still functioning in 50 years? How do we adapt ourselves to that and still maintain our core beliefs?" said Dick Herrington, 71, of Perrysburg Township. "That's definitely a question."

The church, called the Black Swamp Church of the Brethren when it was founded in 1840 with six members, became the Lakewood church in 1958. It is at 27009 Lemoyne Rd., south of Walbridge.

Mr. Garner, a 1934 Lake High School graduate, was the son of Black Swamp's volunteer pastor, and the family's home often was full of visiting pastors.

"It was fun sometimes," he said. "Some were pretty jolly."

Back then, men and women entered the church through separate doors, and the sound of hissing gaslights lulled children to sleep during the service.

"I've seen change," said Mr. Garner, who recalled riding to church in a Model T Ford. "It took us four hours to go 60 miles in the Model T Ford.… Maybe [you would] have four flat tires when you get there."