Evening star., 1944-03-19
10 Open
9Th Service Center
AT Rites Next Sunday

At Rites Next Sunday
A new center for service people
and women civilian warworkers will
be opened at 1876 Jackson place at
$3.50 pm. next Sunday by the Lu-
theran Church in America, and
many high-ranking diplomats and
Government officials are to join in
the dedication of what will be the
67th fulltime institution of its kind
operated in this country by the Lu-
theranS.
While Lutherans from 30 Wash
ington churches gather in Lafayette
Park for the opening ceremonies,
the Rev. DR.. Ralph H. Long of New
York City, executive director of the
National Lutheran Council, will de-
liver the principal address. Greet
ings from President Roosevelt will
be read.
The new service club will be To-
Gated in five-story building re-
Gently purchased from the Woman's
City Club and which, during the
administration of President Theo-
dore Roosevelt, served briefly as the
temporary White House.
The main floor of the structure
will contain a spacious lounge and
writing rooms. The second flood
will be occupied by staff Offices, a
private chapel and lounges for
women civilian warworkers. Bed
rooms on the third and fourth floors
will provide sleeping quarters for
40 servicemen nightly. Game rooms
and canteen are to be set up in the
basement.
Two Pastors to Serve.
Two fulltime pastors will be in
attendance at the center, according
to an announcement by the Rev.
j. A. Pfeiffer, publicity director for
the Washington Lutheran Service
Center. They will be the Rev. N.
Everett Hedden, who served in the
first Lutheran center opened three
years ago in Alexandria, La, and
who represents the National Lu-
theran Council and the Rev. DR..
j. Frederick Wenchel, retired pastor
OF the Christ Lutheran Church,
Sixteenth and Gallatin streets NV,
representative of the Army and Navy
Commission of the Missouri Lu-
theran Synod.
The Lutheran Church's social
service system for soldiers, sailors
and servicewomen now includes ST
fulltime and 30 part-time centers,
visited by 100000 military and
naval people, according to Mr.. Pfeif-
fer. They are maintained through
the cooperation OF all branches of
the Lutheran Church, which en-
braces 5,500,000 adherents.
The new center here, in addition
to offering shelter and entertain
ment to service personel, also will
house staff of women workers
headed by Miss Ruth M. Mayer, who
will seek to make contacts among
Lutheran Government employees and
the churches. Miss Mayer will be
assisted by Misses Norma Anderson,
Olinda Roettger and Jean Chrtsten-
sen.
Prominent Persons to Attend.
The center's opening will be at
tended by Crown Princess Martha
OF Norway, Wilhelm Morgenstierne,
Ambassador from Norway, and Nine.
Morgenstierne; Vladimir Hurban,
Ambassador from Czechoslovakia,
and Nine. Hurban; Wollmar Bos-
from, Minister from Sweden, and
Nine. Bostrom; Henrik de Kauff-
mann, Minister from Denmark, and
Nine. de Kaufman; Thor Thors,
Minister from Iceland, and Nine.
Thors; Alfred Bilrnanis, Minister
from Latvia, and Nine. Bilmanis,
and Johannes Kaiv, Acting Consul
General in Charge of the Esthonian
Legation, and Nine Kaiv. They
all represent nations whose popu-
lations are almost exclusively Lu-
theran.
The former Army Chief of Chap
lains, Alva j. Brasted, also will at
tend. All Lutheran members Of
Congress and persons of high rank
in the Government have been in
vited. A lay representative from
each Lutheran congregation in the
Washington area will be prominent
ly seated
Aside from DR.. Long, participants
in the ceremony will be: Capt. STAN
ton w. Salisbury, Chaplain Corps,
Navy, acting director of the Chap
lains Division; the deputy chief OF
Army chaplains, Col. George F..
Rixey; DR.. P. o. Bersell, Mime
apolis, chairman of the Service Com
mission and president of the Ma
tional Lutheran Council; the Rev.
o. A. Sauer, Richmond, Va, repre-
senting the Army and Navy Com
mission of the Missouri Lutheran
Synod, of which he is the secretary,
and DR.. Gerhard E. Lenski, pastor
Of Grace Lutheran Church, Six
teenth and Varnum streets NV,
president Of the Washington Lu-
theran Ministerial Association.
The Washington Lutheran Lay
mans Association, directed by War