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St. Timothy Lutheran Church
Goose Creek, South Carolina
40th Anniversary Celebration
September
4 and 5, 2004
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St. Timothy
Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized by the South Carolina Synod
of the Lutheran Church in America in 1964. The original membership
met at Goose Creek High School. In 1969 the church acquired the
current property on Goose Creek Blvd. in Goose Creek, SC, and construction
began on the first church facility and was later expanded in 1976.
Since it's beginning in 1964, the membership of St. Timothy has grown
to approximately 530 baptized members with approximately 160-170 regularly
attending members. The largest component of the participating
membership is families with children.
The anniversary research
and planning committee is meeting at the church every Thursday morning
from 9-10 a.m. through June and July. Anyone is welcome to join us and
share ideas for the celebration. Look at some of the information
the committee has compiled so far:
Check back later as more
information develops.
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1964: First Church Service
First service for St.
Timothy Lutheran Mission Church, March 16, 1964
The first service
for St. Timothy Lutheran Mission Church was on March 15, 1964 at Goose
Creek Elementary School. Charter Day was on August 9, 1964. All
interested persons had the privilege of signing their names below a
statement that they would become members of St. Timothy Lutheran Church
on the day of organization. The charter roll was kept open until organization.
Organizational Sunday was on All Saints’ Day on November 1, 1964
at the Goose Creek Elementary School.
Here is a list
of those Charter Members. Typographical or spelling errors are
suspected. Only one print-out has been found at this time. (if
you know any information about any of these people, please contact the
church office).
Mr. & Mrs. Donald Anderson
Mr. & Mrs. A.N. Barbieri
Mrs. Lillian Brackett
Mr. & Mrs. W.D. Brendt
Mr. & Mrs. H.D. Butcher
Mr. & Mrs. David Carroll
Mr. & Mrs. James & Beverly 446 Lazy Hill Rd., Moncks Corner, SC
Mr. & Mrs. Darrel Chiles
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Corbin
Mr. & Mrs. T.E. Denno
Mr. & Mrs. R.A. Dordal 204 Easy St., Goose Creek, SC
Mr. & Mrs. William H. Harmon 822 Old Lexington Hwy, Chapin, SC 29036
Mr. Marvin Hill
Mr. & Mrs. James Hintz
Mrs. Sylvia Hodges
Mr. & Mrs. W.T. Jackson
Mr. & Mrs. V.F. LaCario 2181 White Pines Dr., Pensacola, FL 32526
Mr. & Mrs. J.B. Lackey (funeral for Mr. Lackey, 81 years, in 1983
at St. Timothy)
Mrs. Janet Lange
Mr. & Mrs. Bruce Laudig
Bruce C. Laudig, Jr.
Lesley Laudig
Mr. & Mrs. Gene R. Lull
Mr. & Mrs. Alfred Lutz
Mr. & Mrs. Malvan Mann 224 Messina St., Moncks Corner, SC
Billy Middleswarth )
Miss Carolyn Middleswarth
Mr. & Mrs. W.F. Middleswarth 102 Caddy Ct., Summerville, SC 29483
Mr. & Mrs. Tibor Mikes 1738 Peer Dr. , Houston, TX 77043
Mrs. Elsie Von Mutius
Walter G. Von Mutius still in Goose Creek
Mrs. Barbara Nitchman
Mr. & Mrs. Gordon Ricker
Mr. & Mrs. A.W. Romeis
Mr. & Mrs. Marvin Saude
Mr. & Mrs. F.C. Shaffer
Miss Cheryl Smith
Mr. & Mrs. Eugene Smith 7677 Outer Lincoln, Newburgh, IN 47630
Miss Marsha Smith
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Stear
Mr. & Mrs. Jack Stevens
First Church Council. Elected October 25, 1964
Roland A. Dordal
William T. Jackson
F. Middleswarth
Bruce C. Laudig
Charles Corbin
Robert F. Stear
William H. Harmon
J.B. Lackey, Sr.
Darrell L. Chiles
Amendeo N. Barbieri
Malvan W. Mann
Victor F. LaCario
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1966: Rev. John F. Fischer Installed
The Rev.
John F. Fischer began his service at St. Timothy in January 1966
and remained until October 1981. Rev. Fischer, a Charleston native,
attended Charleston High School and graduated from the College
of Charleston in 1958. He was the city Tennis Champion for 5 years
prior to entering the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary where
he graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Divinity degree. Before
coming to St. Timothy, he served as pastor in Wilksboro, NC, and
Gilbert, SC. He held the position of Secretary of the Western
District of South Carolina Lutheran Synod. Pastor Fischer, his
wife June, and three children lived in the parsonage in Greenview
Acres. During his service at St. Timothy, the building program
was begun. On December 3, 1967, ground breaking services were
held. On July 7, 1968, the Dedication Service was conducted. Then,
in 1978, the additions to the church were completed.
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Rev. Fischer Installed
Rev. Fischer's Family
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 1982:
Pastor Earl T. Knaus, III
Pastor Earl T.
Knaus III conducted his first service at St. Timothy on June 20, 1982.
Rev. Knaus had been the associate pastor of the Ebenezer Lutheran Church
in Columbia since June 1979. He was born in Richmond, Va, and graduated
from Upper Merion High School in King of Prussia, PA, in 1967. He received
a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from the University of Miami
in Coral Gables, Florida, in 1971. He received a master’s degree in
divinity from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia in 1979.
 Earl
and his wife, Christine, are parents of three children: Christopher,
Joy, and Bradley. Bradley was only 12 weeks old when his dad began his
service as St. Timothy’s pastor.
Under Pastor Knaus’s leadership St. Timothy’s membership was nearly
doubled in six months. Youth group membership jumped from four to twenty
youth. Local chapters of Lutheran Church Women and Lutheran Church Men
also thrived during this period. New Member Classes, lasting five weeks
each, were held continuously. Pastor Knaus served St. Timothy until
1984.
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 1984:
Pastor Ben Moravitz
The Rev. Albert
B. Moravitz, Ben, led St. Timothy from 1984 to March 1994. During his
service a preschool program was developed. Also in 1992, St. Timothy
began producing yearly musical performances involving a great many of
the congregation. Helping Hands of Goose Creek, an outreach program
to help members of the community in need of assistance of food, furniture,
or lodging, was started by St. Timothy and several other Goose Creek
churches. St. Timothy Lutheran was Pastor Ben’s first church. He was
30 years old at the time and a graduate of Newberry College and
 Lutheran
Seminary. He said that growth was one of the reasons he was attracted
to Goose Creek. Ben was interested in offering contemporary as well
as traditional worship services. He played the guitar and often shared
his music during services. Pastor Moravitz stayed at St. Timothy for
ten years.
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 1995:
Rev. Cliff Riis
Rev. Cliff Riis
served as interim pastor at St. Timothy between October 1995 and November
1996. His dedicated spiritual leadership helped St. Timothy remain a
stable and active congregation. Pastor Riis was born in Floral Park,
NY in 1926. He enlisted in the army in 1944, served in the Phillipines,
and returned home in 1947. After graduating from Concordia Collegiate
Institute in Bronxville, NY, he went on to Concordia Seminary in St.
Louis, MO. In 1961, Pastor Riis left the Missouri Synod to become part
of the Lutheran Church in America (LCA), now called the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Pastor Riis founded Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church in Greenville, SC, served at Trinity Lutheran Church
in Georgetown, and at St. Johannes in Charleston for 19 years until
he retired. Pastor Riis and his wife Jean have been married since 1953
and have two children—a son, James, and a daughter, Ann. We wonder if
they grew up hearing stories like the ones he used to tell during the
children’s sermon. Who can forget those wonderful characters Barnaby
and Fanny Fratchit-Cratchit?
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 1996
- Present: Rev. W. Stephen Johnson
The Rev. W. Stephen
Johnson began his ministry at St. Timothy Church in November, 1996.
Previously, he was the pastor of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Wooster,
Ohio for 11 years. Born in Maryland, he grew up and was educated in
Ohio. He is a graduate of Wittenberg University (BA Business Admin),
the Ohio Military Academy, Trinity Lutheran Seminary, and did post-graduate
study at Pittsburg Theological Seminary. Pastor Johnson came to Pastoral
Ministry as a second career, his first being that of a businessman,
as the owner of an auto repair business. A third, parallel, career was
as an Army Reservist. After two years as a combat engineer, he was commissioned
in the Corp of Engineers. He served as an Engineer Officer for nine
years, until he left service to begin his seminary education. Three
years after his ordination, Pastor Johnson returned to the Army Reserve
as a Chaplain, where he served an additional 14 years. He retired from
the Army Reserve in February, 2002.
Pastor Johnson
and his wife, Candice, are the parents of two married sons. Brian, and
his wife Carole, live in Gastonia, NC. Alex, and his wife Tyann, live
in Kernersville, NC with their daughter, Taylor, and son, Carson.
Pastor Johnson
came to St. Timothy after a period or rapid membership decline, precipitated
by the closing of the Navy base and shipyard. After a period of stabilization
and healing, the congregation again grew, from 360 at the close of 1996,
to 650 today.
Under his leadership,
ministry has grown on several fronts. A third worship service on Sunday
evening continues our diversity of worship experiences. Many musical
groups, including children’s, youth and adult choirs, band, flute choir,
brass ensemble and Joyful Noise, to name a few, now enhance our worship
experience. Our Children’s Center ministry continues to provide a high
quality pre-school/kindergarten program, known throughout the community.
Several safety upgrades to the educational wing and the recent rebuilding
of the playground witness to our commitment to this vital outreach ministry.
A women’s group, Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America,
was started, as was the men’s Saturday Morning Bible study. Christian
Education and Youth Ministry were enhanced with the addition of staff
support. Both programs are thriving under the direct leadership of our
current director of education and youth ministry, Linda Hallberg. Centerpeace
Ministries, a ministry of healing for those suffering the spiritual
wounds associated with trauma and abuse, helps us reach out to bruised
and broken lives. Our Wellness Ministry and Neighborhood Care teams
help us care for one another with intentionality. Now, as we anticipate
the expansion of our facilities, we are poised for further growth and
outreach.
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