-
Title
-
Branstner, Guenther C.
-
extracted text
-
DETROIT METHODIST CONFERENCE HISTORICAL SOCIETYDate • _ _.b':.....~,!tt..~.>o::~~!J~oL-.lf.U...-
Name:
Family Background:
l. Father 1 s Narne in Full
Date of Birth
Frtule··ocl< · A«ot.tt t f.?Y~n~t'\1c!Y
M; -~ lf!Jt;;_"Y''.f e ~1&.-.:e . GeY ...arty
---L~~~~~-~~0~~---=~~~~~------
2
Nationa l ity
6'eYW.lA V1 (
Extent of Education
ein~ivf "tU>
Occupati on
}fAt:nrn C!Jytf'(A.cie~
_...:f..~
.!.~gi-...,... .4:.(:.rJ
: ._e~.,.:::~:...__.::;;:a~y~"'r.;__.;S.!.,~of
_~
;:;_u_.i_W
_-ev_s____;:S(~c.-_h_oo.. .l:_ _
Dea th; Date - -- - . . . . - - - - - - - - - - P
_ l_a_c_e - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
•
Mai~n N~e ~u~~9uXw1~n~·~~-~~~~~~eLY~~~~~~~----------Date of Birth
!Ia~ 1 1 /flO/
Place 5a/6,fz,
I
Nationality
1J.4lu.:ca..lr-z.<:d t/. S'. e.t'f,·2e.Y1
2. Moilier 1 s
1
1-
I '
o/-:::17·-:..-
MINIS TERIAL BIOGRAPHICAL BL..I\t-JK
Extent of Education
Death ;
S.
•
Da t e
'ti:A
Q~<e
---~~~
0~~~~~--------------------
--------------------- Place
Brothers a nd 0isters
N-3-rne
Addres s
---------------~-----
Present Occupation
6. Distinguish e d Ser vices f or Wnich Members of Famil y Are Known
- --..:--
...
- ...
Personal History:
l.
Education :
Schools and Degrees
11
F//~f
,.,.a..tk.:/e
Cevdy,/ 1:/to h
I '~I
1
~
~ ~====--~~~~~~~~u~+,--~-----
~.~B~.~Ih
~b~k~Yy~C~o~H~~Pe~~~~q~~~'------------------{f,jJ?, k~n-y iJ.~J&~«Uj
2.
Noteworthy Experiences of Childhood and
3.
Marriage : Date
Jkc, 26•
Youth ~
/(/Jj(
1
.Rev, & x
By Whom
4. Wife 1 s Maiden I~3JT!e ~
Educat±on
t;,y;,,"-t.,'a_
A.B "~
5. Children :
~"JE
H.Y1stity (6as~)
/hb~~. Y\1
Ct>llf!ArL
r
/t/47
"
_(~N_
am
_e:...:.)__~fl
~qytt::.....:....::
-=----------------'(_
Da_t_
e o! Bir_t_h.;_
) _- ____-(_O_c-c_upa tion-)-- ---
;
,
6. Careers, Positions; Offices , etc ; of Children.
7.
Religious Experience and Church Work Before Entering Ministryo
8.
Call t o the Christian Minis try:
9.
Admi tted on Trial and Ordinations :
(When)
Ju...,.
4
I CfJ/4
----6f"t/A~1r"=s.:...f__2=-,r-'---=-/c"'-.f.....
~-=2=-----------------
I
{)-.,rid I~ ~J
·.
--------
I
(Whlre)
[k4CCM
1
C:,wr I
st . J FI,;, t J H·J -
•
"'
•
~Ield
10 .
Offi ces
i n t he Church:
12.
rhili tary Recor d:
-
--------------------~-- --------------·---------------------------
13.
Public Offices :
14.
-
15.
Aut hor of Vfuat Books and. Publications ?:
16.
Clubs and Fraternal Org_?.nizations : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
17. _Any Additional Information of Inter est :
Date of Death
P2.a.ce
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Officj Atir.g Minist ers
------------------------------------------------------------------
- Pl.:.ce of burial
•
--Additional Riographical Exper i ences, Epis odes or Further Comment on Backn
TESTIMONIAl: It has been my fortune to know the Rev. Guenther Branstner for over
twenty years. Most recentl y he has been the pastor at churches in Northville and Bloomfield Hil ls.
Writing this testimonial is a pleasure as Rev. Branstner fits precisely my vision of what
a pastor shou ld be and do. I might add that my assessment of this gifted man is shared
by the thousands who have come in contact with him as part of his forty p lus yea rs
i
in the mini stry.
I have seen Rev. Branstner in every possible pastoral situation such as Sunday services, and special occasions; Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, weddings, funerals, bapti sms, hospital visits... in large groups, small groups; or just one person (me). I have
never heard him say any words or seen him display any actions which were not centered
in Christ.
Rev. Branstner's outstanding strength is his preaching ability. I happened to be a member
of th e Pastor Parish Committee some years ago when the D.S. cal led us to his office.
The purpose of this meeting was to tell us that we were going to have a new minister
and he was sending us the best "preacher" he had. At the time I thought the D.S.
was probably overstating our new pastor's skil ls. But today, twenty years later, I know
he understated this man's ta lents.
His overwhelming talent wi th words and enormous ability to place concepts and ideas
in your mind (af1d heart) make this pastor an outstandi ng clergyman. I'm reminded
as I think about Rev. Branstner of the Biblical references to the shepherd and the sheep. ·
This shepherd is· not inclined to the dramatic or the flashy, or to pomp and circumstance.
Rather he is committed to "care and feeding". He displays a deep sensitivity to th e
needs of others. He is a master in feeding goals and ideals and those other Christian
intangibles that "work away" at some of us and lead or push us to continue growing
in our understand ing of the Lord.
As Rev. Branstner, Ginny and th eir family celebrate this milestone we want them to
know our hearts and prayers are with them. As he enters retirement we will miss those
opportunities w e have had to share in Christ with him.
On behalf of all thl:)se whose lives Rev. Branstner has touched and strengthened in
Christ, we want him to know that he will forever be viewed by us as a pastor's pastor
and a brother in the Lord's work.
Robert M . Guard
Former Ad Board Chair at Northville First UMC
~ ~9. ~~NTHER
C.
BRANSTNER of Boyne Falls,
died on Mar. 3 of cardiac surgery
complications while vacationing
in Ft. Myers, Fla. Born in Selbitz,
Bavaria, Germany in 1923, Guenther em · rated with his parents,
Fred
a nd
Katherine , to
Flint , Mich. , in
1925. Following an early
call to the ministry,
he
received his
B.A.
f rom
Asbury College, Wilmore,
Ky., in 1946 and his Master of
Divinity degree from Asbury Seminary in 1949. He married Virginia
Gascho of Imlay City in 1946.
Guenther joined the Detroit Conference in 1949. Parishes included Akron, Croswell, Gaylord,
Detroit: J efferson Ave., Northville, and Bloomfield Hills: St.
Paul. Although he was active on
numerous conference committees throughout his 40-year
career, his primary interests remained focused at the parish
level. Major personal accomplishments included the construction
of new sanctuaries at Gaylord
and Northville , and his long-term
commitment to youth programs,
in particular, Lake Louise Methodist Camp. After his retirement
in 1989, Guenther and Virginia
moved to their property on Lake
Louise. Despite recurring health
problems, he continued to indulge in his favorite pastimes, primarily travel, reading, and golf. In
addition to his wife, Guenther
leaves three sons, Mark, Bruce
a nd Todd; one daughter, Holly;
and his brother, Harold. Memorial
services were held at the Northville UMC on Mar. 29 at 3 p.m .
I '1&9
Guenther C. Branstner
AUTOBIOGRAPHY: I was born on a Sunday,
May 20, 1923, while my father was out in the
villages of Southern Germany doing Methodist
pulpit supply. For a number of good reasons the
Branstners emigrated to Flint in 192S where my
father worked at Buick ti ll he knew enough of
the language to get back to his real trade, mason
contracting. I grew up in o ld Bethl ehem Church
in the shadow of Northern H igh School. It was
;Jt that ti me a German language church in the
old Centra l German Conference. Because of certai n opportuni ties I attended Flint Central High
School, graduating in 194 1.
Functionally blind in o ne eye, Genera l Motors
refused to hire me despite my unusual high
school preparation. I went into my father's
business. In the well-known summer of '42, I felt ca lled to preach. In September I
entered Asbury College. I graduated from Asbury Seminary i n 1949.
In 1946 I married V irginia Gascho w hom, I had met in Detro it and later in co llege.
She has had a thirty-year career in elementary education . There are four child ren: Mark,
Bruce, Holly, and Todd.
I began preaching as a senior in college and have been under appointment by a bishop
to a local charge since 1945.
Coming to Mich igan in 1949, I served five yea rs at Akron, over two yea rs at Croswell,
over six years at Gaylord, over five years at jefferson Avenue, Detroit, fifteen years
at Northville, and six years at St. Pau l, Bloomfield Hills.
"0 Lord, I ca ll to mi nd thy deeds; I recall thy wonderful acts in ti mes gone by." (Ps.
77. 11 )
How beautifully the o ld Romans expressed it. " lllegetimi non carborundum."
DRA:-<STNER, G. C.-(T., Oct ., 19<1/; F .,
1950) : 19·16 Cross Plains , (l nd.) 1949 A kron ,
1954 Cros we ll; 195G (Oct.) G~ylord ; ISSJ
(}an.) Dct. Jefferson i\•·c. ; 1968 :-lorthville
139 \\". Dunlap. Ph. FI 9- 1143. Church : lf'J
W. Dunl ~p 48167 Ph. 9· 1144.
FRED A. BRANSTNER, 87, died May
7 after a brief illness. Branstner immigrated to this country in 1925, coming to
Flint at the invitation of a friend. He spent
the rest of his life in the area. He joined
the Flint Bethlehem UMC which was until
1933 a part of the German Central Conference. He was a trustee of the church
for most of those years. After the change
to English in the worship services, he
taught a German Sunday school class for
the older members who were more comfortable speaking of their fa ith in that
language. He worked at Buick Motor until he gained some grasp of the language,
then went back to his original trade ,
mason contracting. He was preceded in
death by his wife Katherine, and is survived by his sons, Harold, lay leader of the
Flint District, and Guenth~ pastor of the
St. Paul UMC, Bloomfield Hills. Funeral
services were conducted by his pastor,
Rev. Emil Haering, and Rev . Guenther
Branstner.
1~ t:f
MQ.A - 1/ I b!U
KATHARINE BRANSTNER, 80, died
after a lengthy illness. Funeral services were
held in Flint o n J une 13. Services were led by
her pastor, Rev. J im McLaurin , and the
fu neral meditation was by her son, ~
Ql!enther Branstne£,_ pastor at Northville.
Mrs. Branstner came to Flint in 1925 with her husband and small child as a n immigrant
from southern Germany. In two or three
years her home became a boarding house and
first stop for many young Germans, among
them her brother, and the two brothers and
two sisters of her husband Fred . The
Branstners were members of Bethlehem
Un ited Met hodist Church in Flint, which was
a part of the Central German Conference
until 1933. Her husband and other close
relatives had been lay preachers in the
Methodist Church in Germany. All foreign
language conferences, due to the depression,
were merged with their American counterparts in the early 1930s. Mrs. Branstner was a
fait hful and hard-working C hristian, the
reality of her fa ith ingrained in all she did.
Her faith was as steadfast in her long illness
as in the rest of her life. She is survived by
her husband Fred and two sons, Harold and
Guenther. There are seven grandchildren.
REV. GUENTHER BRANSTNER of
Gaylord says one "Guenther" in the
family is enough and that the new son
born to the Branstners is Todd Miguel
and not Todd Guenther as previously
announced in thi s column. Mr. Branstner is pastq.1 of }he Gaylord Methodist
Church. Ji'd.-.3/~.Z
Branstner, Guenther C.