Pastor Thomas Warren Engelke, 69

CHURCH HILL, Md. - Pastor Thomas Warren Engelke of Church Hill died Saturday, June 9, 2007, in Memorial Hospital in Easton. He was 69.

He was born in Annapolis on Feb. 20, 1938, to the late Harry J. and Marian (Jewell) Engelke.

Pastor Engelke attended St. Mary"s High School, graduating in 1956. He continued his education at Baltimore Technical Institute and worked as a disc jockey in Annapolis for the old WYRE-AM radio station in 1957 and 1958.

He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1960 to 1972, serving in Vietnam and then working at the Pentagon. While in the Air Force, Pastor Engelke took classes in Maryland and North Carolina and graduated from the University of Nebraska in Omaha with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He was honorably discharged from the Air Force as a captain.

Pastor Engelke moved to Annandale, Va., in 1972, where he owned and operated an employment service. On Dec. 26, 1975, he married Evelyn Beryl Wilson. They lived together in Annapolis.

He became a local pastor in 1986 and moved to Church Hill in 1988. He served in the Kennedyville, Still Pond/Betterton and Lynch Methodist charge from 1992 to 1998, when he was appointed pastor of Lynch Community Church. He remained pastor there until he retired in 2006. He sang with the Southern Gospel Quartet and the Waters Chapel Singers. He was also an affiliated ordained pastor with the American Evangelical Christian Church.

Pastor Engelke was a member of Chester Lodge 115 A.F. & A.M. in Chestertown, a Past Worthy Patron of the Centreville Chapter 69 Order of the Eastern Star, a member of NUR Shrine, and past Associate Grand Guardian of Job"s Daughters in Delaware. He loved sailing and enjoyed singing with the Church Hill United Methodist Church Choir. He was also a member of the Circus Model Builders.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by three children, Lauren Engelke-Smith of Church Hill, Charlene Schimmel of Harrisburg, Pa., and Anthony P. Engelke of Pennsylvania; and nine grandchildren, Ashley Engelke, Gabrielle Engelke, Johnathan Engelke, Rachel Engelke, Riliegh Engelke, Emma Engelke, Misty Schimmel, Trey Schimmel and Ebelyn Smith.

Memorial services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Job"s Daughters of Delaware Scholarship Fund. They should be mailed to Sharon Smith, 1898 Zebley Road, Wilmington, DE 19810.

Friends may pay their respect to the Engelke family at their residence. Please phone prior to visiting.

Arrangements by Fellows, Helfenbein and Newnam Funeral Home, Chestertown.