BRANDON – The first minutes of Emanuel Lutheran Church began with this statement: "On the 14th day of May 1874, twenty Evangelical Lutheran Christians, aged 21 or older, living in Brandon and vicinity, gathered in Hillman’s Hall and organized themselves into a Christian congregation, choosing the name 'Emanuel Lutheran Church.'"
Emanuel Lutheran Church, 107 Prairie St. in Brandon, is 150 years old this year, and the church organization celebrated the milestone May 5 when it received commendations for the anniversary from state Rep. Jon Plumer, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and the state of Wisconsin.
Early history includes modest church and opportunities to grow
Prior to the church's formation, early German Lutheran settlers of the Brandon area traveled to Ripon for church services, according to church member Annette Raube. Pastor G. Hoelzel of Ripon then eventually came to Brandon to conduct services above a store building.
While the first meeting was held in 1874, the second meeting for the adoption of a constitution and organization of Sunday School didn't occur until almost a year later in March 1875, under the leadership of Pastor Hoelzel.
Between the first two meetings, a modest church was built in the summer of 1874, according to Raube.
In the church's first 50 years, the community expanded the church, added a tower, constructed a schoolhouse, installed art glass windows and built its first parsonage, which was replaced more than 50 years later with the present-day parsonage in 1928. The church's 25th anniversary gift had been a pipe organ, and the church was remodeled for its 50th.
Emanuel Lutheran Church continued to grow with its community, and in its centennial year in 1974, the membership was 359 baptized and 284 confirmed.
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Emanuel Lutheran gained fame for Lego replica in 2008
The church survived financial hardship in the 1990s, and then in 2008, it earned national fame when then-pastor Stuart Dornfeld created a replica of the church out of Legos.
According to FDL Reporter archives, Dornfeld spent six months crafting the likeness out of more than 12,000 Legos he'd "begged, borrowed and bought on eBay."
He'd gotten inspiration from a "brick artist" at the Children's Museum in Appleton, and his finished model measured more than 2 feet tall and about 4 feet wide, furnished with 30 pews — enough to accommodate 150 Lego people — stained-glass windows, a baptismal font and a detailed altar complete with flames on the tiny candelabra.
The mini preacher was outfitted in robes made out of a white sock, and other figures were engaged in various activities. Some were based on real church members, and some bore resemblance to Batman or Indiana Jones.
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150th anniversary service and celebration featured former pastor's author son
Emanuel Lutheran Church celebrated its 150th with a special worship, commemorative booklet and a reception.
Current pastor Carol Christianson led the worship, and the clergy also included previous pastors Paul Bauman, Jim Rasmus, Kevin Scheuller and Robert Rosenberg.
The reception featured author Harold Kurtz, the son of another former pastor, who spoke about and sold his books about growing up in the village and with the church.
For more about Emanuel Lutheran Church, visit the website elbrandon-church.com.
Daphne Lemke is the Streetwise reporter for the Fond du Lac Reporter. Contact her at dlemke@gannett.com.
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