Dyck, Elfrieda Klassen (1917-2004)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2004 Aug 30 p. 1, 2

Birth date: 1917

text of obituary:

Leader of refugees dies at 87

Elfrieda Dyck MCC worker, modeled service with humanity

By Mark Beach MCC News Service

AKRON, Pa. — In May 1948, when the good ship Charlton Monarch turned out to be not so good, Elfrieda Dyck stepped up to the deck.

She did what everyone including her husband, Peter, expected she would do. She successfully led 860 war-weary European Mennonite refugees to safety and a new life in Paraguay.

The story of the Charlton Monarch, a ship that fell victim to engine and crew problems and became stranded off the coast of Brazil, may have been a defining moment in Dyck's life.

But it is only one moment in a life filled with service to others through Mennonite Central Committee, her church, community and family.

Elfrieda Klassen Dyck, a longtime MCC worker who helped resettle European refugees after World War II and who exemplified the spirit of Christian service throughout her life, died Aug. 20 in Scottdale. She was 87.

"Refugee work is just a part of her life," said son-in-law Jack Scott of Scottdale. "Her life was spent so much caring for others, whether it was on the ships going across the Atlantic or her own family. Very much in her heart was a concern for refugees."

Along with her husband of 60 years, Dyck served with MCC during and after World War II when refugees began flooding out of war-torn Europe. As recently as 10 years ago, at the time of MCC's 75th anniversary, she and Peter set out on a speaking tour across the United States and Canada, recounting their experiences.