Audio and transcribed interviews of church and community members of their recollections.
All of these are works in progress with new material added when received. If you have photos, corrections, suggestions or new material, please send to Alan Keffer at alankeffer@gmail.com
Anderson, Stanley
The oldest great grandchild of John A. & Anna Buckwalter, son of Betta Lee Anderson who was the daughter of Alice Buckwalter Keffer, Stanley lived with his Buckwalter great grandparents and grandmother Alice on Wenger Rd sporadically in his elementary school age years, attended the Mt Pleasant Christian Day School at its original location and offers unique recollections of the community in the late 1940’s from a young boy’s perspective.
Bergey, Clayton & Maude
Clayton Bergey and his wife and four sons moved to Mt Pleasant from Doylestown, Pa in March 1910 by converted bread delivery wagon pulled by a team of four horses. Already a deacon in Pennsylvania he was accepted as a deacon at Mt Pleasant Mennonite church and ordained as minister in 1922, a post he held until his death in 1975, though inactive his latter years. His wife Amanda died in 1925 and he remarried Maude Miller in 1927.
Bergey, Jr., J. Harold
Eldest son of James and Mary Bergey, great grandson of Clayton Bergey, Harold attended Mt Pleasant Christian Day School, graduating from Great Bridge High School and then from Eastern Mennonite College where he also served the Virginia Mennonite Conference as conference youth pastor until returning to Mt Pleasant with wife Rose. Licensed in 1989 and ordained a couple of years later, he served as pastor of Mt Pleasant Mennonite Church until 2004 after which he was appointed Overseer of the Eastern District of the Virginia Mennonite Conference and managed Bergey’s Bread Basket with several of his siblings.
Interviews
Transcripts:
March 28, 2022
Audio
March 28, 2022
August 2, 2022 – Part 1
August 2, 2022 Part 2
March 27, 2024
Bergey, James & Mary
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Buckwalter, Harold
Long time Harbor Chaplain with the Seaman’s House, ordained minister of Norview Community Chapel and founding minister of Landstown Mennonite Church, now Restoration Church at Landstown. Beloved leader and humble servant of Christ.
Kurtz, Ken & Ruth
Ken Kurtz was born and raised on the farm his grandfather, Sam Kurtz, bought in 1920 from A.D. Wenger, Sr, a farm he eventually owned and expanded until changing careers and founding Coastal Door Supply, a garage door and construction material wholesaler, converting the farm buildings to warehouses and office. He met Ruth when she came to teach a year at the Mt Pleasant Christian School. Long involved in the Mennonite Disaster Service and having served on Church Council, holding many church offices in his long life, Ken is uniquely positioned for insights about the community.
Lehman, Jr., Jacob R
Jake’s grandfather moved to Norfolk County, Va from Lancaster County, Pa in 1912 when the Mt Pleasant Mennonite community was young. Growing up on the farm his grandfather purchased and which he eventually acquired and expanded, Jake was a member of the Mennonite church until he married Carol, a Methodist, and joined the Mt Pleasant Methodist Church. A fervently outspoken disciple of Christ he became lay leader and filled many other evangelistic roles over the years. You can take the boy out of the Mennonites, but you can’t take the Mennonite out of the boy.
Miller, Ira & Maggie
Ira Miller and Maggie Buckwalter arrived in the Mt Pleasant community within months of each other in 1910. Ira from Springs, Pennsylvania when 16 years old, and Maggie from Ephrata, Pennsylvania. They were married in 1913 and had four sons, Francis, Vernon & Ivan. A prolific contributor to “The Sugarcreek Budget”, Ira was a colorful writer and master carpenter, building many of the homes in the community as it grew.
Miller, Ivan & Orpha
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Miller, Merlin L.
The eldest son of Ivan and Orpha Miller, Merlin grew up in the Mt Pleasant Mennonite Church. While in 1W Service in Columbus, Ohio he met Linda Graber and their romance continues 50 plus years later. Returning to Chesapeake, Merlin got involved in the church’s jail outreach at Chesapeake City Jail and was later named a Deacon in the church, rising to assistant pastor in the late 1990’s. He also founded Colonial Barns, now known as Emerlin. He later served as pastor of the Landstown Mennonite Church, now the Restoration Church at Landstown. While there he became interested in foreign mission work, particularly in Ukraine and pursuing that work has worked in Indonesia, China, Albania, South Sudan, Switzerland, Ukraine, Poland and others.
Interview
Transcript: Merlin L Miller 2024 04 09
MP3 Audio: Merlin Miller April 9, 2024 Part 1
MP3 Audio: Merlin Miller April 9, 2024 Part 2
Morris, Betty Miller
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Scaggs, Sam
Like many others, Sam married into the Mennonite Church. Falling under conviction while dating Beverly Buckwalter he gave his life to Christ and following His lead and became a church founder, missionary, pastor, mentor and one of the first to bring the gospel to Albania after it freed itself from communist athiesm. His is a remarkable story of faith, optimism and a life lived for Christ.
Shahini, Dini & Klementina
Growing up in communist Albania, Dini & Klementina braved the disapproval of the regime and persevered through persecution and the upheaval of the fall of communism. Responding to the call of Christ they assisted in founding the first Mennonite in Albania, emigrated to the U.S. where they successfully found their American dream and were members of Mt Pleasant Mennonite Church and then gave it up to return to Albania to found the Lezha Academic Center, an internationally recognized christian school whose graduates excel in professions around the world and to pastor the church they had helped begin.
Troyer, Merv & Nina
Raised Amish in Ohio, Merv became friends with some Mennonite boys from Mt Pleasant also doing 1W service in Cleveland and while accompanying them on a trip home met Nina Miller. The romance was brief but the marriage long and fruitful as together they founded Virginia Door Co and operated several golf courses in Hampton Roads. Generous with their hard won good fortune, always smiling and supportive of the church and school, leading citizens who put God first.
Wenger, Harold
A native of Chesapeake, Va and early a member of Mt Pleasant Mennonite Church, Harold graduated from Eastern Mennonite College and began a career as a missionary to Africa with his wife Christine in increasingly responsible positions in various African countries, interspersed with terms as an ordained Mennonite pastor. After retiring to Arizona, Christine unfortunately passed away after a long unsuccessful battle with cancer. Unusual for any Mennonite, particularly so for a leader, Harold converted to Catholicism late in life and after Christine’s death married Elba, now his partner in the pursuit of Jesus.
Zook, David
David Zook, son of Henry Zook, born and raised in the Deep Creek Mennonite Church, married neighbor Sharon Slabaugh after a hitch in the Navy. When the Deep Creek church closed, they moved to Mt Pleasant Mennonite Church. He is retired from the Virginia Beach Fire Department.
