OSAGE COUNTY — Osage County Agritourism’s first annual Country Church & Cookie Trail tour on Dec. 13 included five beautifully decorated churches in and around Chamois. The first two, …
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OSAGE COUNTY — Osage County Agritourism’s first annual Country Church & Cookie Trail tour on Dec. 13 included five beautifully decorated churches in and around Chamois. The first two, Pilgrim Lutheran Church in Freedom and St. James UCC Church in Morrison were featured last week.
The third stop on the tour was St. John’s UCC Church in Chamois, where church board President Roger Paulsmeyer began the presentation by leading the group in singing “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” accompanied by Diane Martellaro on the church’s organ.
Mary Howard then read a brief history of the church written by Susan Sundermeyer, who was not present due to health reasons.
“You might say our church got its start in 1879 and 1880,” Howard read, “when Reverend Christian Ludwig Haas, traveled 25 miles by train from Jefferson City, where he was serving the Central Evangelical Church, to hold services here in Chamois. He must have been successful because, in 1885, a group of hardworking, German-born American settlers purchased a tract of land in the youthful, 29-year-old community called Chamois.”
The church was originally called St. Johan’s Evangelical Church, and the present sanctuary was built in 1894. A St. Louis firm was contracted to provide the church bell, weighing approximately 1,400 pounds.
“Ringing the bell can lift you right off the floor,” Howard recounted. “I only rang it once. I thought there would be nothing to it, and I rang that bell, but I didn’t let go of the rope, and lo and behold, it pulled me up two or three feet in the air.”
The Evangelical and Reformed Church joined with the Congregational Christian Church in 1957, at which time, the United Church of Christ was formed.
Debbie Cramer continued the presentation with a short history of the church’s decorations, including the move to an artificial tree. “At one point, whenever the men went out to get a tree,” Cramer said, “they decided, rather than cut the tree down and then load it on the truck, they were going to back the truck up to the tree. So they had a great idea. They wouldn’t have to lift it. They cut the tree down, it fell over on the truck, and they couldn’t find the truck. So, that probably contributed a little, too.”
The outdoor Nativity scene was made in the late 1940s. “So it’s over 75 years old,” Cramer said. “It’s been out there every year. Our donkey went missing one time, and it was quite a stir because, you know, everybody doesn’t say donkey. So, United Church of Christ has lost their ... And we wrote a letter to the (Unterrified Democrat), and it showed up in the (Letters to the) Editor, and explained how important that donkey was to our church, and miraculously, it showed up at the cemetery, and we were able to retrieve him and bring him back. So the whole set is there.”
The presentation ended with Roger Paulsmeyer and his wife, Sherrie, singing “The First Noel” and “Away in the Manger.” This was followed by a short closing prayer and a group rendition of “Joy to the World” before visitors moved to the church hall to collect their cookies. Coffee and water were also provided.
From there, the tour moved on to Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church. Fr. David Means expressed his joy at getting to conduct a 55-person choir before moving the group immediately into singing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”
In his presentation, Mark Mehmert noted that the church was formed in 1865. In 1871, the church purchased a former store, which served as the first church building. The current structure was dedicated in 1912 and remodeled in 1980. It was mentioned that the church statuary was misplaced during that renovation, and pieces were found in peoples’ homes and porches, but all the pieces were eventually recovered and returned to the church.
Fr. Means then led the group in several more songs. “I have put together a little song sheet of some of my favorite songs that we don’t always use this in the liturgy,” he said. Those songs were “Good King Wenceslas,” “I Saw Three Ships,” and “Do You Hear What I Hear?”
What set Means’ song choices apart from the others was that they were all split into male and female parts and sung that way.
Most Pure Heart of Mary provided a wonderful dinner of soup, sandwiches, salad, and dessert in lieu of cookies, and the group took an hour to eat and socialize before re-boarding the bus.
The Country Church & Cookie Trail tour ended at St. Peter’s Church (Deer Creek) outside of Chamois. Due to the tight turn and steep hill, the bus parked at the base of the incline. Most attendees walked up to the church, but vehicles were on hand to ferry those who needed it.
St. Peter’s has no electricity but was beautifully lit with lanterns and toasty warm from the wood stove that Ralph (Rube) Cramer started that afternoon.
Mary Zeilman began the presentation with a history of the church, which was also prepared by Susan Sundermeyer. “A group of six men founded a church here at Deer,” Zeilman read. “The year was 1865. They wanted their church to be like the ones they left behind in Germany — an Evangelical church, a church in which their children would not forget their native German language and their German heritage. They named their church St. Peter.”
Zeilman added that 11 years after the founding of St. Peter’s Church, land was purchased for the building of the current structure. The church acquired 20 acres of land for $100. “The original building was 20 by 32 feet, and later, an eight-foot addition where you all came in and got your cookies was added, and they also added the steeple with the bell,” Zeilman said.
After the history, Roger and Sherrie Paulsmeyer sang “O Holy Night,” accompanied by Mary Ann Gelven on the piano.
Pastor Jason Hilkerbaumer closed the tour with a prayer. “Gracious God, we thank you for this time spent together in this sacred place where history and faith meet in the simplicity of this church. As we reflect on the season of Advent, we are reminded of the hope, peace, joy, and love that came into the world through the birth of your Son, Jesus Christ. May this visit stir our hearts to be more present in this season of waiting and preparation. Help us to carry the spirit of Advent with us in our daily lives, sharing your life with those around us. Bless each person here, and may we continue to walk in faith, guided by the love and grace that you freely give. We pray this in the name of Jesus, our Savior, amen.”
Osage County Agritourism hosts four events per year — the Be A Tourist in Your Own County bus tour in the summer, Taste of Osage County in early to mid-September, the Farm-to-Table Dinner in later September, and the Country Church & Cookie Trail tour in December.
Next summer’s Be A Tourist in Your Own County bus tour will be “Exploring Hope” on May 7, centered around the Hope area east of Linn. The tour will visit the one-room school, and lunch will be served at Salem Presbyterian Church. After lunch, attendees will visit the Hope Creek Longhorn Ranch and view Bob Campbell’s Allis-Chalmers tractor collection. He has over 20 fully restored Allis-Chalmers tractors.
Taste of Osage County will be on Sept. 13. The Farm-to-Table Dinner will be at The Rooted Farm, which was featured in the UD’s March 2024 agricultural insert on Sept. 27.
For more information about upcoming events, go to www.visitosagecounty.com.