Kenneth Morse

(Elgin, Ill.) March 26, 1999 -- Kenneth I. Morse, journalist, poet,
hymnwriter, and for 35 years editor with the Church of the Brethren
General Board, died on March 23. He was 85.

Beginning work with the denomination in 1943 at its publishing
headquarters in Elgin, Ill., Morse served seven years as youth
editor, 21 years as Messenger magazine editor, seven years as
Brethren Press book editor, and eight years as a part-time
volunteer, for a total of 43 years.

Among his cherished hymns are "Move in Our Midst," "For We Are
Strangers No More," "Brothers and Sisters of Mine," and the
translation of "Praise, I Will Praise You, Lord."

Morse holds the distinction of being the only person to have served
on both the 1951 and 1992 hymnal committees.

Wheelchair-bound in his 80s, experiencing Parkinson�s disease,
increasing deafness and barely audible speech, Morse persisted to
craft the art of storytelling. One outcome was the Brethren Press
book, "Preaching in a Tavern and 129 Other Surprising Stories from
Brethren Life," a collection of vignettes published in 1997.

In 1988 he and his wife, Marjorie, moved from Elgin, Ill., to
Timbercrest Home, North Manchester, Ind. A memorial service has
been scheduled for April 9 at Timbercrest.

Obituary in The Ledger, April 2, 1999 and updated June 2, 2009.

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