Faith,

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committee selected for this building included William E. Weis, Peter Goeler, Robert Orgis, Raymond Tack and Melvin Tremmel. Land purchased was that owned by Mary Hanson at the corner of Wendell and Nason streets.

The officers of the new congregation were Bishop Mc-Gavick, president; Very Reverend Paschal Hirt, V.G., vice president; Rev. Joseph Graf, pastor; Peter Goeler, treasurer; and Wilmer Straub, secretary.

Ground breaking ceremonies were held Sept. 5, 1938, and by Oct. 30, the cornerstone was laid. When the mission-styled church was finished, the financial report showed a total cost of $16,393.02.

On Dec. 6, 1938, the church was blessed and the stone altar consecrated by Father H.J. Untraut of St. John’s, Marshfield. The solemn dedication was celebrated by Bishop Griffin on Pentecost Sunday in 1939.

Organizations instrumental in the development of the parish included the following: Christian Mothers Society was established Feb. 5, 1939, with 34 charter members. The officers of the group were: president – Mrs. Victor Fischer; vice president – Mrs. William E. Weis; secretary – Mrs. H. T. Callahan; treasurer – Mrs. Ervin Drews; and consultors – Mrs. Raymond Tack, Mrs. Hugh Doherty and Mrs. John Fritsch.

The Holy Name Society was organized in January 1939. There were 48 charter members listed. Officers were president – William E. Weis; vice president – Hugh Doherty; secretary – Henry Rust; treasurer – Raymond Tack; consultors – Albert Chamberland and Fred LaBarge.

In 1945, a house was purchased from George Kolb on the corner of Wendell Street south of the church. The house received extensive renovation by Father Bernard Henry. He became the first resident pastor to live in this house.

In November 1951, the Schulmerich Bell System was installed under the supervision of Rev. Father Pitzenberger.

Two parking lots were purchased, one west of the church and the other south of the rectory. These were acquired from Peter Goeler and Raymond Tack.

The clergy who were appointed successively to the parish are: Father Joseph Graf – June 1938 to November 1945; Father Bernard Henry – November 1945 to Nov. 16, 1949; Father Arthur Cramer – Nov. 16, 1949, to May 24, 1951; Father Leo Novitt – May 24, 1951, to July 2, 1951 (interim pastor); Father Paul Pitzenberger – July 2, 1951, to June 1, 1953; Father John McMahon – June 1, 1953, to Feb. 17, 1954; Father Eugene Comiskey – Feb. 17, 1954, to June 30, 1954; Father James Sheridan – June 30, 1954, to May 29, 1956; Father Carl Wohlmuth – May 29, 1956, to Dec. 17, 1959; Father Andrew Bofenkamp – Dec. 17, 1959, to 1991; Father John Malik, 1991-1992; Father Steve Brice, 1992-1994; Father Paul Gilter, 1994-1996; Father Charles Stoetzel, 1996-2011; Father Sam Martin, 2011-2019; Father James Weighner, 2019-2020; Father Barry Saylor, 2020-present.

Currently the parish consists of 309 families and 740 members.

In 2020, the Diocese of La Crosse made Christ the King a standalone parish due to the parish’s steady growth in the number of parishioners. This move allowed for Christ the King to have its own pastor instead of sharing with a neighboring parish, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Marshfield. To fit the needs of housing a pastor, the church built a new rectory and sold the previous one. The new rectory was completely funded through parishioner donations.

Christ the King currently offers religious education classes for all students in grades 1-10, as well as Sunday School for preschool-age children and youth group for teens in grades 8-12. The parish is continuing to grow every year. The annual picnic has become a summer must-do for families. The annual pancake breakfast hosted by the men’s group (Holy Name Society) served a record-breaking amount in March 2024. The women’s group (Parish Council of Catholic Women, or PCCW) continues to support the parish by offering funeral luncheons, monthly celebrations and special events. The church’s middle school, high school and youth group students actively volunteer at community events such as the Feed My Starving Children mobile pack, Vacation Bible School, COME meals at St. John’s Lutheran Church and the Marshfield Rotary Winter Wonderland. Christ the King’s four committees — including family life, education, social justice and sacred worship – focus on spreading the Gospel through works both in the parish and the community.

Trinity Lutheran Church Trinity Lutheran Church was organized on May 21, 1882, under the leadership of the Rev. J. Schuette, who at that time was serving a number of congregations in the Auburndale area. For quite a few years, services were held in the Spencer Town Hall before the first church building was erected.

After the Spencer congregation had been organized as a joint parish with St. John’s congregation two miles north of Spencer, Schuette established his residence in Spencer. On Nov. 3, 1883, he accepted a call to Milwaukee. On May 25, 1884, Rev. F. H. Siebrandt became the pastor of the newly organized parish, and served until July 1893 when he accepted a call to Merrill. His successor was Rev. J. H. Todt, who served the parish from 1893 until 1899. During his pastorate, the first new church home – a brick veneer structure, 32 feet by 55 feet, was dedicated in 1896. In 1899, Todt followed a call to Manistee, Mich. In the same year, the Rev. A. F. Imm was called and he served until 1909, when Pastor E. J. Schmidt took up the duties of church shepherd. He served until Oct. 21, 1923. During Schmidt’s pastorate, in 1912, the two churches voted to become separate parishes.

On Jan. 13, 1924, the Rev. H. H. Wegner was installed as pastor of Trinity congregation. ln 1926, the members of Trinity voted to build the present house of worship, a 32-foot by 87-foot brick and tile structure. The cornerstone was laid June 20, 1926, with pastors Siebrandt, Todt, W. J. Plischke, Karl E. Schmidt and Wegner officiating. Wegner left Spencer on Oct. 2, 1927.

The seventh pastor of Trinity was the Rev. A. D. Stapel, who served the growing congregation for 21 years until February 1949 when he accepted a call to Naugart. During his pastorate, in 1932, the interior of the church was decorated. In 1942, the Dr. Krueger home was purchased for use as a parsonage. A new Hammond organ was installed in the church in 1946.

On June 19, 1949, Pastor Randolph Mueller was installed as Trinity’s eighth pastor and he served until Aug. 31, 1956, when he accepted a call to Bonduel.

In 1953, a new parsonage was built on the church grounds. The cemetery, owned by members of Trinity and adjoining St. John’s, was improved and perpetual care was provided.

At two different periods during its history, Trinity congregation sponsored a Christian Day School, as a joint project with St. John’s from 1901-1912, and by itself from 1924-1936. The following served as teachers in the school: Mr. Robert Perl, Mr. August Siecke, Mr. Walter Brockopp, Mr. J. E. Schuster, Mr. Albert Barwinick, Mr. George Moll, Mr. Leonard Piotter, Mr. Henry Steinweg and Mr. Adrian Prochnow.

Although a Sunday School was in existence earlier, in 1936 it was reorganized with Mrs. John Karau as superintendent.

On June 2, 1937, Rev. W. R. Krueger was installed as the congregation’s new pastor. In 1961 the congregation dedicated a new addition which consisted of a new narthex and a chapel which could also be used as a Sunday School area. In July 1965, Pastor Krueger accepted a call to Poy Sippi.

The Rev. William Ruhbusch was installed on Feb. 5, 1967. About 325 families, (650 communicants, 970 souls) made up the membership of Trinity Lutheran Church as of the village’s centennial in 1974, with 205 enrolled in the Sunday School.

A number of building improvements have been made over the years. On May 9, 1971, ground was broken for another addition. This 39-foot by 78-foot addition consists of 12 Sunday School rooms, a church office, restrooms and a utility room. Dedication services were conducted on Aug. 22, 1971.

The interior of the church was remodeled in observance of the 95th anniversary in 1977. New carpeting was installed and the pews re-covered in the church in 2006. The church basement was remodeled and new flooring installed in 2007. A new steel roof was installed on the church in 2018. The north and east entrances and hallways were remodeled in 2020-2021.

Recent pastors have included Pastor Karl Rose, 1999 to 2010; Pastor David DePaoli, 2010 to 2018; Pastor Mark Neumann, January to August 2020; and Pastor James Groleau, Sept. 2022 to present.

Trinity Lutheran Church continues to support the Spencer Kids Group, providing them with food each week.

United Methodist Church/Faith Journey Church There is no record of the organizing of the church body, but it must have been done prior to the construction of the

Please see Faith, page 11