Granger Brethren Fundraiser
Donation protected
In honorarium of the life and love of Darwin Derrick Zrubek:
We have received a generous donation for the Granger Brethren Church. You can help us meet the match as it provides support for this beloved church that Darwin and his ancestors so loved. If you would like to make a tax deductible donation, Every donation in honor of the life of Darwin Zrubek and the ancestral family will be matched dollar for dollar and you can also request to be submitted on the record roll of donors that will be archived in the Granger Brethren archives housed at the Univ. of Texas Briscoe Texas Center for American History
We have received a generous donation for the Granger Brethren Church. You can help us meet the match as it provides support for this beloved church that Darwin and his ancestors so loved. If you would like to make a tax deductible donation, Every donation in honor of the life of Darwin Zrubek and the ancestral family will be matched dollar for dollar and you can also request to be submitted on the record roll of donors that will be archived in the Granger Brethren archives housed at the Univ. of Texas Briscoe Texas Center for American History
1924 saw the addition of a new Sunday School addition to the church. A beautiful archway in the rear of the sanctuary was painted in this same timeperiod which was sponsored by confirmation classes with support from the congregation.
Beginning in November 1937, a complete remodel of the original 1903 church was undertaken. Members had decided that they preferred to modify the historic church rather than build a completely new church. The old tower was demolished and the foundations laid for the new. Work continued through the cold and rainy weather with most of the work completed between November 29th and December 5th. It was completed December 7, 1937 before the next meeting at a cost of $1,400.00 which would be equivalent to approximately $30,000 today. Two bells were reinstalled. One rings for church services, the other is rang only for funerals. Another part of the rich church history is a proclamation written in their native Czech language describing details of this very special reconstruction.
An interesting artifact exists from that historic remodel as the building committee along with Rev. Barton, signed a wood plank that was included as a memorial within the church bell tower. The building committee included J.H. Huser, F.E. Martinets, Joe Mikulencak, Frank Labaj, Walter Blaha, John Kotrla, and August Holubec. The carpenter was John Marcon of Taylor, Texas. This signing of a plank is similar to the Navy's unofficial "Plank owner" tradition which commemorates the individuals who were crew members of a ship when that ship was first placed in commission. As part of vessel decommissioning and disposal process, the Navy formerly removed a small portion of the deck as a traditional reminder of the time when "wooden walls and iron men" were a key part of the Navy. It is quite possible that these men wished to commemorate this historic event in similar military fashion as Joe Mikulencak, Frank Labaj, and August Holubec were returning WWI veterans from multiple branches of service.
Additionally, the Granger Brethren church is unique in the choice of a spandrel. The star on the steeple represenents the love for the State of Texas, while the chalice symbolizes the memorialization of Jan Hus and the gift of the chalice to the laity.
On June 11, 1950, the congregation dedicated a fellowship hall which originally was a center-cut of a hospital ward brought from Camp Swift Government Surplus at Bastrop, Texas. [14] In the 1980's an annex was added to connect the fellowship hall with the church building itself, thereby making the whole place more practical and comfortable.
Time again takes its toll on the progress that the visionaries held in the 30's. Our beloved historic church steeple repair was completed in 2016 and the Church bells are ringing again! Our next project is leveling the fellowship hall and architecturally ensuring that the church is stable and on firm support for the next century. We have a matching challenge grant in place to “raise the roof” again in support of this true Texas gem and the community of Granger.
www.grangerbrethren.org
Beginning in November 1937, a complete remodel of the original 1903 church was undertaken. Members had decided that they preferred to modify the historic church rather than build a completely new church. The old tower was demolished and the foundations laid for the new. Work continued through the cold and rainy weather with most of the work completed between November 29th and December 5th. It was completed December 7, 1937 before the next meeting at a cost of $1,400.00 which would be equivalent to approximately $30,000 today. Two bells were reinstalled. One rings for church services, the other is rang only for funerals. Another part of the rich church history is a proclamation written in their native Czech language describing details of this very special reconstruction.
An interesting artifact exists from that historic remodel as the building committee along with Rev. Barton, signed a wood plank that was included as a memorial within the church bell tower. The building committee included J.H. Huser, F.E. Martinets, Joe Mikulencak, Frank Labaj, Walter Blaha, John Kotrla, and August Holubec. The carpenter was John Marcon of Taylor, Texas. This signing of a plank is similar to the Navy's unofficial "Plank owner" tradition which commemorates the individuals who were crew members of a ship when that ship was first placed in commission. As part of vessel decommissioning and disposal process, the Navy formerly removed a small portion of the deck as a traditional reminder of the time when "wooden walls and iron men" were a key part of the Navy. It is quite possible that these men wished to commemorate this historic event in similar military fashion as Joe Mikulencak, Frank Labaj, and August Holubec were returning WWI veterans from multiple branches of service.
Additionally, the Granger Brethren church is unique in the choice of a spandrel. The star on the steeple represenents the love for the State of Texas, while the chalice symbolizes the memorialization of Jan Hus and the gift of the chalice to the laity.
On June 11, 1950, the congregation dedicated a fellowship hall which originally was a center-cut of a hospital ward brought from Camp Swift Government Surplus at Bastrop, Texas. [14] In the 1980's an annex was added to connect the fellowship hall with the church building itself, thereby making the whole place more practical and comfortable.
Time again takes its toll on the progress that the visionaries held in the 30's. Our beloved historic church steeple repair was completed in 2016 and the Church bells are ringing again! Our next project is leveling the fellowship hall and architecturally ensuring that the church is stable and on firm support for the next century. We have a matching challenge grant in place to “raise the roof” again in support of this true Texas gem and the community of Granger.
www.grangerbrethren.org
Organizer
Kelly Zrubek
Organizer
Granger, TX
