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E M E R G E N CY R E S P O N S E
VOLUME 24 | ISSUE
31
AUGUST 8, 2019
A C E L E B R AT I O N O F L I F E
Old Wellesley church razed by fire now deemed suspicious BY VERONICA REINER
A eulogy for a friend Del Gingrich recalls the life of Elmira's Ab Martin, who passed away at 83
vreiner@woolwichobserver.com
An arson investigation is underway after a church fire in Wellesley Township Saturday morning. Waterloo Regional Police and firefighters from the Wellesley Fire Department’s Linwood station were called to Orthodox Mennonite Church on Moser Young Road near Lawson Line at 5:40 a.m. “When they got there ... there were some walls still standing, but it had collapsed into itself already,” said Wellesley fire chief Paul Redman. “Then we passed it off to the [Office of the Fire Marshal], and agreed with the suspicions ... we’ve left it as an arson fire and turned it over to the regional police with their investigation now.” Damage from the fire was estimated at $75,000. Redman said that the wooden structure had been burning at least 15 or 20 minutes before the call came in. The church had been used occasionally for functions such as funerals, but had seen little regular use for the past 30 years. “A building with no hydro or utilities, just to start on fire ... doesn’t really sit,” said Redman. “It’s not a huge loss, but is still a significant building. It is a church, and symbolic of a community. It’s important that we make sure a proper investigation gets done.”
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BY STEVE KANNON skannon@woolwichobserver.com
Officials temporarily closed down Moser Young Road and Lawson Line in Wellesley Township on Saturday as they worked to clear the debris from a church fire. Damage was estimated at $75,000. [VERONICA REINER]
From former banking colleagues to the many teammates and lifelong friends, they filled the pews at the Elmira Mennonite Church August 1 to remember the life of Ab Martin, who passed away July 27 after a brief illness at the age of 83. “Everybody had an Ab story to tell,” said Del Gingrich, the man who delivered the eulogy. He had many to share himself, having known Abner Martin since the age of 5. “He was a lifelong resident of Elmira. Our families lived a block apart and we got to know each other – that was more than 75 years ago, now. We knew each other so well.” A local historian and author, Gingrich is perhaps singularly versed in the accomplishments that made Martin a well-loved part of the community. From his volunteer work and excelling at baseball and hockey to the 43 years he spent at Canada Trust, including 27 years at the manager of
Ab Martin
the Elmira branch, Martin “knew so many people in town.” That was evident in the full house for last week’s service, an indication of how many lives Martin touched over the years, from his early involvement in sports to his years at the bank and his outreach efforts as something of a liaison with the Old Order Mennonite community, said Gingrich, who noted Martin having grown up in a very poor Mennonite family shaped his character and drove his accomplishments. “That driving force within Ab was displayed mainly by his excellence as an REMEMBRANCE | 02
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