Departed Brothers and Sisters Honored at Memorial Ceremony September 14

Bill Selig
September 14, 2008

Washington Family Church members at prayer at Fort Lincoln Cemetery. From left: Rev. Lorman Lykes, Rev. Phillip Schanker, Mi-ae Stein, Joshua Schanker, and Bill Selig.

After we successfully fulfilled our goal in 2002 to establish the National Won Jeon (pronounced WON JOHN) Memorial Park at Fort Lincoln Cemetery in Bladensburg, Maryland, the next goal of the Greater Washington Central Committee was to establish the tradition to honor our ancestors and ascended brothers and sisters and to create a place to respect and remember them with prayer, foods, and candies.

Already such a tradition exists in Korea. “Chuseok,” a major three-day holiday in Korea, is a time to visit ancestral hometowns and share a feast of traditional food.

Traditional offering table prepared by Mrs. Young Jeong Quinn and Mrs. Yunja Kim follows the Korean tradition of "Chuseok." From left: Mrs. Donna Selig and Mr. Bill Selig, Rev. Randall Francis, and Rev. Angelika Selle.

Our Chuseok celebration on September 14, 2008, was organized by our Korean Evangelical Association leader, Rev. Young Chul Jang; District Director Rev. Randy Francis; and Seung Hwa (funeral) Committee members Kyoko Betancourt and Bill Selig. A beautiful offering table was prepared by Mrs. Young Jeong Quinn and Mrs. Yunja Kim (sister of the late Soonja McDevitt). Rev. Angelika Selle of Maryland Family Church led the songs. Ms. Sara Berndt took photographs. Relatives and friends of our beloved ascended brothers and sisters attended along with members of our community. Testimonies and prayers were offered, including those from Mrs. Irma Mas, Mr. Antonio Betancourt, Mrs. Quinn, and Rev. Lorman Lykes. Fellowship followed.

Already 18 Unificationist members are buried in our Won Jeon park, and eight others are buried elsewhere at Fort Lincoln. Our hope is that this tradition will continue regularly to honor our ancestors and beloved ascended brothers and sisters and to serve as a source of inspiration for our greater Unificationist community.

For further information: www.nationalwonjeon.com or nationalwonjeon@aol.com.

"Chuseok," a major holiday in Korea, is a time to visit ancestral hometowns and share a feast of traditional food. Washington Church members above celebrated our region's first Chuseok on September 14.