101-year-old church member one of a kind
The year 1914 was full of historical firsts: The first World War began. President Woodrow Wilson declared the first Mother’s Day. Greyhound Lines ran its first bus route, in Hibbing, Minn.
The year beheld another first: Kenneth Neitzel, a one-of-a-kind Salvation Army churchgoer, breathed his first breath. He was born 101 years ago on December 21, 1914 in Baraboo, Wis.
After more than a century, Kenneth hasn’t stopped breathing. He’s alive and well, living in Edina, Minn. and attending church at The Salvation Army in Brooklyn Park (pictured).
Kenneth has been attending church at Salvation Army locations across the Midwest since the late 1940s, when he met his late wife, Helen, who died in 2008.
“There are some wonderful, wonderful people in The Salvation Army,” he said.
Kenneth first met Helen in Detroit, Mich., soon after he had finished serving a four-year tour as a First Sergeant in the Army in World War II.
“My wife worked for The Salvation Army,” he said. “She was entertaining the troops. My buddies in the service said, ‘Why don’t you ask that lady for a date?’”
After they married, Helen continued working for The Salvation Army, while Kenneth began what would become a lifelong career in soil conservation.
The couple moved to Minnesota in 1970 and began going to a Salvation Army church in Minneapolis. In 1994 they followed the church when it moved to its present location in Brooklyn Park, where Kenneth has been attending ever since.
“We call Kenneth ‘Old Faithful,’” said a smiling Major Alex Lim, who leads the Brooklyn Park Salvation Army with his wife, Major Chris Lim.
Last week, Kenneth and the Lims were thrilled to reunite for the first time in over two years (pictured). Although the Lims have led the Brooklyn Park Salvation Army since 2002, they were gone the past few years helping to open a different Salvation Army church.
Wisdom
Despite being the oldest of his six siblings – one brother, five sisters – Kenneth has still managed to outlive all but his youngest sister, who is 21 years his junior. She lives in Illinois and recently celebrated her 80th birthday.
What’s his secret to living so long?
“I have to give the Lord the credit – good health, good job, good family,” Kenneth said.
Another secret: Abstaining from herring and sauerkraut soup, his two favorite foods.
“They both have too much salt,” he said.
Although Kenneth’s body is beginning to fail – sight, hearing, short-term memory – his faith in God remains strong as an ox.
“I love the Lord,” he said. “There is so much sin in the world; we must withhold ourselves from the evils of the day. We must rely on Him.”
Kenneth said that several nights ago, he dreamed he would live another 10 years. In recalling the dream, he laughed out loud, suggesting he didn’t care whether it came true.
He didn’t care because: 1. He knows he’s lived a good life. 2. He knows where he’s going after he breathes his last breath.
“I’ve got a lot to be thankful for,” Kenneth said. “I want to praise God throughout eternity for His goodness to me and mankind, in the past, and in the future.”
Please join The Salvation Army by volunteering or making a donation to support your local community.