Pastor Thomas Engelke

Pastor Thomas Warren Engelke of Church Hill, Maryland died on June 9, 2007 at Memorial Hospital at Easton. He was 69. Born in Annapolis, MD on February 20, 1938, he was the son of the late, Harry J. and Marian Jewell Engelke. He attended St. Mary’s High School, graduating in the class of 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 U.S. Air Force as Captain. He moved to Annandale, VA in 1972 and owned and operated an employment service. On December 26, 1975 he married Evelyn Beryl Wilson and they resided in Annapolis. He became a local pastor in 1986 and they moved to Church Hill, MD in 1988. He served at the Kennedyville, Still Pond/Betterton, and Lynch Methodist charge from 1992 to 1998, when he was appointed pastor of Lynch Community Church, from which he retired in 2006. He sang with the Southern Gospel Quartet The Waters Chapel Singers. He was an Affiliated Ordained Pastor with American Evangelical Christian Church. Pastor Engelke was a member of Chester Lodge #115 A.F.&A.M. in Chestertown, Maryland, Past Worthy Patron of the Centreville Chapter #69 Order of the Eastern Star, and Past Associate Grand Guardian of Jobs Daughters in Delaware. He loved sailing and enjoyed singing with 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 his three children, Lauren Smith of Church Hill, MD, 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 to be announced. Arrangements by Fellows, Helfenbein and Newnam Funeral Home Chestertown, MD.