Concordia College - Corona Borealis Yearbook (Edmonton, Alberta Canada)

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Then came rapid progress. At the convention of the Minnesota District in St. Paul in 1919 the representatives of Western Canada requested (a) Permission to form two separate synodical districts, (b) Approval of a petition to the Synod to organize an educational institution. Both requests were readily granted. Synod at Detroit in 1920 Resolved to Found College in Western Canada Came the eventful session of Synod in 1920 at Detroit. Chief spokesman for the Western Canadians was President Herman Meyer of the Minnesota District. His masterly presentation of Canadian needs carried conviction and resulted in the follow¬ ing action of Synod: (1) To establish a college in Western Canada, which is to organize the freshman high school class (sexta) in September, 1921, and to add classes and buildings as the need arises; (2) To empower the Board of Directors to select the location; (3) To appropriate $50,000 for buildings exclusive of $22,000, which is anticipated from the brethren in Canada. These resolutions mark a distinct epoch in the history of our church in Western Canada, for they gave to our mission work in this large territory the character of per¬ manence and stability—a stability which had already been achieved by the Ohio Synod, the General Council, and the Norwegians, when some years before they had founded institutions of higher learning at Melville, Saskatoon, and Camrose, resp. In conformity with instructions received at Detroit, the Board of Directors oc¬ cupied itself with the problem of finding a permanent home for this new child in the family of synodical schools. As its representatives, President Dr. F. Pfotenhauer and Mr. Henry Horst of Rock Island, Ill., started a long journey on November 7, 1920, and visited Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Calgary, and Regina, with a stop-over in St. Paul, where they conferred with the Mission Board of the Minnesota District. After hearing a detailed report of this committee, ' the Board of Directors, on December 4, 1920, unanimously selected Edmonton as the site for our Canadian college. Edmonton is the capital of the province of Alberta, 800 miles west of Winnipeg and 800 miles east of Vancouver, and some 350 miles north of the Montana boundary. At that time its population numbered 66,000 (today, 1946, 111,000), and it is the centre of a sizeable Lutheran constituency. For many years our members in Saskatchewan and Manitoba had taken a keen interest in the founding of a college. Convinced that a college at Saskatoon would serve the church more adequately, these brethren addressed a petition to Synod at Ft. Wayne in 1923 that the institution be moved, yet at the same time they gave commend¬ able support to Edmonton, for already in the second year they had enrolled no fewer than nineteen boys from their midst. The Synod referred this request to its Board of Directors for further study and action. The final decision of tne Board was made on September 10, 1924, in favor of Edmonton. Appointment of First Board of Control and Election of First Principal, 1921 Under date of January 25, 1921, Dr. Pfotenhauer announced in the “Lutheraner” the appointment of the first Board of Control, viz., the pastors E. Eberhardt and A. M. Rehwinkel, and Messrs. Jacob Ulmer, Henry G. Maschmeyer, and Edward Schmidt. 8

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The Story of Concordia College Edmonton, Alberta By A. H. Schwermann The story of our college reaches back to the early beginnings of the work of our church in the western provinces and is closely interwoven with it. The first pastor of our Missouri Synod to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Western Canada was the Rev. E. Rolf of St. Paul, Minn. He conducted his first service at Poplar Point, Manitoba, about Pentecost, 1879. The Rev. H. Buegel accepted a call to Winnipeg in 1892 and became our first resident missionary in Western Canada. In 1894 candidate E. Eberhardt was the first pastor to take up residence 800 miles further west at Stony Plain in the territory which today is known as the Alberta-British Columbia District. The affectionate care lavished by the Minnesota District, under the leadership of such men as F. Pfotenhauer, H. Meyer, C. F. Walther, and others, upon this vast new mission field was under the guidance of God not in vain. In 1910 the four western provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia numbered 33 pastors and 10,000 souls. This number had grown to 82 pastors and 16,000 souls in 1920. Many pastors were required for this work. Annually ten, fifteen, twenty, and more candidates were assigned to it. This growing number of missionaries was needed not only for newly organized fields, but also to a very considerable degree for the replacement of such as had returned to the United States. Such constant change of pastors in young mission parishes interfered with healthy growth. It became inevitable that leaders among the laiety and clergy gave increasingly serious thought to the ques¬ tion: Is there a remedy for this disconcerting situation? Can anything be done to re¬ tain the services of our missionaries over a longer period of time? The conviction grew that a native ministry would offer a solution. For native sons, however, the nearest college was at St. Paul, Minn., some 700 to 1,400 miles distant. Such conditions gave little promise to the development of a native ministry. The natural consequence was the question: Why not a Canadian college for Canadian boys? Much discussion in smaller and larger groups throughout the Canadian West was devoted to this matter. The Manitoba-Saskatchewan Pastoral Conference in session at Winnipeg, Feb. 12-18, 1913, took definite action by sending a memorial to the Minne¬ sota District with the petition to assist Western Canada in founding a college. Three months later. May 8, 1913, the pastoral conference of southern Alberta appointed the pastors F. W. Janzow, T. O. F. Herzer and A. M. Rehwinkel as a committee to make plans for the opening of a college in Calgary; its temporary home was to be in a large residence which had been offered by a layman. The war years 1914-1918 caused an abatement of the enthusiasm, but immediately thereafter it flamed up anew. At the Minnesota District convention in St. Paul, 1918, the Rev. A. M. Rehwinkel called a meeting of the Canadian representatives for the pur¬ pose of discussing the problem of a college for Western Canada. And during the same summer the pastors and laymen in session at Bruderheim, Alberta, appointed a college committee (Rev. E. Eberhardt, A. M. Rehwinkel, and Mr. H. G. Maschmeyer), which later offered to organize a freshman class in Edmonton that fall provided that at least ten students would enroll and be willing to pay $250 for fees. Severe crop failures at this time gave little encouragement to the plan.

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President H. Meyer was ex officio member and in his place -a year latet the Rev. A. J. Mueller, president of the newly organized Alberta-British Columbia District. This an¬ nouncement furnished the new school its official name, Concordia College. The election for the principalship of the college was held in Calgary on July 5th, 1921, at the first convention of the new district, and under the chairmanship of Vice-President G. A. Bernthal of California Pastor John E. Herzer of Calgary, who as chairman of the pas¬ toral conference had done much work preparatory to the formation of the district and the founding of the college, was elected. He declined this call. It was then extended to Pastor A. H. Schwermann of Wetaskiwin, who had served Alberta mission parishes since his graduation eight years before. He accepted the call, and moved to Edmonton August 18, 1921. Rented Buildings Provide First Home for College In conformity with the synodical resolution earnest attempts were made to open the new school in September. One of the first matters to demand attention was the renting of a suitable building—for how many students? The answer could at first be based on guess-work only. Pessimists predicted an enrolment of 8-12, realists 13-18, and optimists 19-25 students. The optimists won; and so as lease was taken on the Cale¬ donian Temperance Hotel at 10875 98th Street, but possession could not be obtained until October 16. This boarding-house offered accommodation for a maximum of 25 students on the second and third floor. The first story was to be used as a class room and as residence for the principal’s family, and the basement for the kitchen and dining room. By the early part of October twenty-five announcements had arrived, and more were coming daily. Officials became restless; shall we refuse admission to boys for lack of room? Promptly the Board resolved to rent another building. Days packed with worry sped by until the good Lord finally moved the owners of a Lutheran hospice to place their premises at our disposal. This building at 9529 110th Avenue provided room for the college dining room, kitchen, and infirmary, and for the family of the principal. Barely two weeks remained to convert a badly delapidated boarding house into a habitable college building. The heroic work required to achieve this almost impossible task is known only to those members of our congregations who volunteered to lend a helping hand under the valiant leadership of Pastors Rehwinkel and Eberhardt. The installation of Principal Schwermann was set for Sunday, October 30, 1921. The Rev. Wm. Hagen of Detroit delivered the installation sermon, and as representative of the Board of Directors offered much valuable advice on vexing problems in long meetings with the Board of Control. Pastor Hagen’s attitude was one of sincere kind¬ ness and understanding—a characteristic of all synodical officials with whom we had to deal during the past twenty-five years. President A. J. Mueller conducted the instal¬ lation ceremony, which took place in the National Hall on 109th Avenue. Among the many visitors were the pastors of Alberta and British Columbia, who had been in session as a pastoral conference at Leduc. Pastor Paul Wiegner of Saskatchewan delivered a Reformation sermon in the afternoon. College Opened October 31, 1921 On the following day, Monday, October 31, 1921, the college was officially open¬ ed with a service in St. Peter’s church, the principal basing his address on the motto of the college: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps. Ill, 10). No fewer than thirty-three boys answered the roll call, and two more appeared later. Thirty-five students! What a blessing of the Lord! With much trepidation and a prayerful heart the principal entered the class room on Tuesday, November- 1, at 1:45 p.m. and began the first lecture. 9