Voth, William Cornelius (1888-1962)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1962 May 17 p. 6

Birth date: 1888 Mar 10

text of obituary:

Veteran Missionary Called Away In Death

Rev. William C. Voth, 74, missionary under the General Conference for 40 years, died Sunday evening at Bethel Deaconess Hospital. Rev. Voth had been in ill health for sometime but the immediate cause of death was heart attack.

Since returning from their last term of service in Japan and Formosa in 1958, Rev. and Mrs. Voth have resided at 221 S. Walnut street in Newton. They entered missionary service in China in 1919, continuing their after successive furlough until 1939. Later they served intermittently on fields in South America, the Far East and in the United States.

Rev. Voth was born March 10, 1888 in Lehigh, Kans., the son of Cornelius C. and Sara Voth. June 19, 1918, he was married to Matilda Kliewer at Grace Hill Mennonite Church east of Newton, who now survives together with the following children: Mrs. Wm. (Maurine) Regehr, Oraibi, Ariz.; Mrs. Helmut (Helen) Bertrand, North Newton; Stanley, Henderson, Nebr., and Leland of Ithaca, N. Y. Also surviving are one sister, Mrs. J. J. Janzen of Medford, Okla., and one brother, Edward D. of Newton.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, 10:30 a.m., at the Bethel College Church, of which he was a member. Rev. Russell L. Mast, the pastor, and Rev. P. A. Wedel, pastor of the Bethel Mennonite Church, Inman, will officiate.

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Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1962 Jun 7 p. 8

text of obituary:

WILLIAM C. VOTH

William Cornelius Voth was born March 10, 1888, at Lehigh, Kansas, the son of Cornelius C. and Sarah Duerksen Voth. He passed to the beyond May 13, 1962 at the Bethel Deaconess Hospital after a brief illness, at the age of 74 years, two months and three days.

When he was three years of age the family moved to El Reno, Okla. where they homesteaded on a claim of land. At the age of 15 William and his father made a trip to newly opened territory at Gotebo, Okla. to prepare a place for the family's move the following spring. Here he grew to manhood.

His elementary school years were interrupted but finally at the age of 20 he could take off a full year to complete the upper grades of elementary school, all in one year. The lessons of self-sacrifice, thrift, and devotion to duty thus learned in the school of experience stood him in good stead through later life.

Upon confession of faith in Jesus Christ as his Saviour, awakened early through Christian home training and particularly through a memorable experience at the age of 12, he was baptized on August 21, 1904 at the Friedenstal Mennonite Church at Gotebo. On April 9, 1944 he became a member of the Bethel College Church, North Newton, Kansas.

The call to consecrate his life in service to the Lord was heard early when Rev. Dirks, on furlough from Sumatra, spoke on the mission of Christ according to Luke 12:49-50. This desire became a burning purpose in his heart from which he was not swerved, though it meant a long road ahead. He attended the Mennonite Preparatory Academy in Hillsboro, Kansas and Bethel Academy and College from which he graduated with an A. B. degree in 1918. In between he studied one year at the University of Chicago.

On June 9, 1918, he was married to Matilda Kliewer at the Grace Hill Mennonite Church near Whitewater, Kansas.

To prepare for missionary and building work in China, they spent the summer at Colorado State Teacher's College, Greeley, Colo., and the winter at the University of Oklahoma, William taking architectural and engineering courses, respectively.

He was ordained to missionary service, including eldership, on May 26, 1919, buy the late Rev. G. A. Harder. Together with Sam J. Goerings and H. J. Browns, William and his wife sailed for China on August 6 of that year. During their first furlough he attended Iliff Seminary in Denver, Colo. and Witmarsum Seminary at Bluffton, O.

Returning from China again in 1939, he engaged in extensive deputation travels among churches in the U. S. and Canada. World War II developed preventing their return to China. In 1942-43 he served as minister of the Emmanuel Church, Moundridge, Kansas. Then followed a mission survey trip to South America with Gerald Stucky. In Bogota, Columbia, he suffered from typhus fever. As their report to the Board of Missions showed, the Lord used this incident as a means of indicating the field of His choice for our General Conference mission in that area.

For three years he taught Industrial Arts in th high schools of Montezuma and Lorraine, Kansas, two years concurrently serving the Meadow Mennonite Church at Colby, Kansas. Then came the call to again return to China. Leaving the family in Newton, he proceded to China and was instrumental, with his co-workers, in opening a new mission in West China. One year was also spent in Hong Kong as liaison and relief worker.

In 1950 he was requested by the Board of Missions to make a survey of mission possibilities in Japan. Upon General Conference decision to open work in Japan, he and his wife were asked to help in the beginning of the work there. This call to pioneer still a new field led our husband and father forth to cope with new socio-cultural situations, different climate, and a language barrier. During three and one-half years when five stations were opened, he supervised the building or remodeling of five missionary residences and a church. At Miyazaki the first 17 Christians were baptized and a church was founded.

Three more years were given to this same type of work in Formosa.

Extensive deputation was again undertaken upon his return to the States, including four months helping in the evangelistic work at Oraibi, Ariz.

The last two years of his life, missionary services in the churches were interspersed with work on an addition to the family home in Newton. A wonderful month in Youth Camp and the churches at Chilliwack, B. C. climaxed his life of service.

Besides his wife, he is survived by two sons and two daughters; Stanley of Henderson, Neb., Leland, presently studying at Ithaca, New York, Maurine, Mrs. William Regehr of Oraibi, Ariz., Helen, Mrs. Helmut Bertrand of North Newton; six grandchildren; two daughters-in-law and two sons-in-law; one sister Mrs. Susie Janzen of Medford, Okla., and one brother, Edward D. Voth of Newton. Preceding him in death were an infant son and daughter, two brothers Henry and Ferdinand, and two sisters Helena and Sarah.

Our husband and father was a man of quiet confidence in God, deep loyalties to fellow-men, and loving devotion to the family. He was always conscientious in his service to the Lord. His baptismal verse was I Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life . . .” In the spirit of that verse we can say for him from II Timothy 4:7. “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

Funeral services were held May 17 in the Bethel College Mennonite Church at North Newton, Kansas with Rev. Russell L. Mast and Rev. Philip A. Wedel officiating. As former Mission Board president and schoolmate of the departed, Rev. Wedel used the words in Daniel 12:3 and Matthew 13:43 as the basis of his funeral message.

The Mennonite obituary: 1962 May 22 p. 348