By LINDA KELLETT

C-S-E News Staff

FREYSBUSH — Words of praise, hope, celebration and encouragement rang out during a special service at St. John’s Lutheran Church honoring the Rev. Kenneth Dingman and his family on Sunday.

After 40 years of service to the congregations of St. John’s, St. Paul’s of Fort Plain and, more recently, St. James of Starkville, the familiar figure is leaving the pulpit, embarking on a new chapter as he retires.

Bishop Marie Jerge, on behalf of the 180 congregations of the Upstate New York Synod, commented on the transition, noting that the milestone was a celebration of Dingman’s ministry and retirement as well as a time of anxiety and uncertainty for him, his wife, Carol, and his longtime congregants.

She said, “For Ken and Carol, the anxiety has to be, what could life possibly be like without this family of faith in the same way as pastor and people? Has the planning and hoping and dreaming that you’ve done, will that all work out?”

“We’re on the edge of something new,” she said, noting there’s anxiety on the part of his congregations about “what’s next.”

For members of St. James, Dingman’s last Sunday in the pulpit (June 10) will be a particularly poignant occasion. During the reception that followed the service, Helen Calbet, a lifelong member of St. Paul’s in Fort Plain, noted that St. James, which has an aging and dwindling membership, is closing.?Jerge offered encouragement to those gathered in the Freysbush sanctuary, noting Dingman’s retirement is “an opportunity to regroup and to think about what you’re looking for in your next pastoral leader. You haven’t had to think about that for quite some time.

“Ken has been here almost forever,” Jerge joked, as the pastor shook his head in vigorous agreement. “Who will you be as the people of God in this place without him as your shepherd?”

Citing a passage in the book of Isaiah, she said, “In both cases, Isaiah gives us the perspective we need ... the word of God.”

Fortunately, the longtime church leader — who’s also served his community as a volunteer firefighter, Fort Plain Senior Center board member, president of the Palatine Church, Little League coach, and supporter of the Boy Scout program — won’t be far away: He’s retiring to the community that he’s called home these many years.

Carol Dingman said her husband’s ministry has been “to teach about the love of Christ through action and word.”

That’s where his community ministry came in too, she said.

Calbet, the vice-president of St. Paul’s Church Council, recalled Dingman’s arrival at the church back in 1972. She said, “He was friendly, did a lot of things with the kids. My children were young, and I brought my kids. It was the place to be — a loving Christian family.”

She said Dingman also brought something special to his services: “He had a way of presenting the sermon by ‘not really reading it.’ When he does his sermon, he ‘tells’ it and keeps your interest.”

When asked what they’ll miss the most about Dingman’s departure from the pulpit, Calbet and Tammy Bergen, president of the church council at St. Paul’s, agreed that it was his support and comfort during times of loss and bereavement.

“For me, it’ll be hard because I know I can call him any time,” Calbet said.

Bergen said one of her fondest memories stemmed from her youngest son’s first visit to church. She said, “My son went up and climbed up on the altar and around Pastor, and Pastor never missed a beat. He never said, ‘Come get him.’ He just looked at me like, ‘Nope, he’s OK’ and just kept on going.”

Both women said Dingman’s ministry contributed to the sense of community present in the church. “He was a big part of making that happen,” said Bergen.

A dedicated helpmate, Carol has supported her husband through 45 years of marriage: Through Ken’s studies at the Gettysburg seminary where the Van Hornesville native earned his Master of Divinity degree through his internship at a church in Penn Yan to the present, Carol said, “I chose to be beside Ken. That was my job, to assist him in any way that I could.”

She said the couple is “excited about [his retirement]. It’s another journey in our lives.”

Their plans for the future include “a little travel, ‘rest’ — and you can write that with big letters,” she joked. There are still nine weddings between now and the end of the year.

“The ministry is going to continue, only in a different way,” Carol added, noting that they bought a home in Fort Plain where they will reside. Additionally, his involvement with the Fort Plain Fire Department, the senior center and the Palatine Church will continue.

The couple have one daughter, Rebecca, who lives in Fort Plain with her husband, Chad Root, and their sons, Quincy and Zane.

Rebecca said she’s excited for her parents and looking forward to “finding out the next step for him.”

She said it wasn’t always easy to be the daughter of a longtime pastor as everyone in the community “knows who you are and who you belong to”; however she said, “I’m grateful for the ministry he’s had. I’m thankful that my children have been able to watch him preach and understand that his ministry is not within those walls.”

She acknowledged that it’s unusual for a retiring pastor to stay in the community in which he engaged in ministry. “I’m thankful they put their roots here and are going to stay here,” she said, adding, “They’ve kind of gone against the rules all the way.”