In 1
850, missionaries conducted worship services a few times each year for the residents of the Plymouth/Medicine Lake area and in 1863 the German Evangelical Lutheran Church was formed. The land for the Mount Olivet cemetery was given by Christoph and August Sandhoff, and the Cemetery Association was formed in 1878 to maintain the cemetery. In 1880, provisions were made to build a church building - our historic chapel - on this property. The congregation moved across the street to our current location in 1968. With generous grants from the Onan Foundation and hundreds of volunteer hours, the Chapel was restored in 1990, and dedicated in 1991.
Mount Olivet’s Historic Chapel and Cemetery are lovingly care
d for by a team of dedicated volunteers: Jim Devine, Scott Linge, Ron Holden, Ben G. Broman, Mark Schmidt, Barb Heinrich, Jean Oberg, Dorothy Sohn, and Roy Heinrich are all long-time members, and Jane Kloss and Bruce Skrukrud have joined recently. New members are always welcome!
"The most rewarding and satisfying part is when I am privileged to help a MO member place a loved one to rest in our cemetery. The most challenging is the TLC and creative actions required to care for the Chapel—which is only possible with considerable team efforts.”
- Roy Heinrich, recently retired Committee Chair
My wife Jan and I were married in the Chapel in 1997, so it is a special place for me. The building itself is interesting with artwork, quaint designs and such, but the best reason to like it is the history it represents. The Chapel and Cemetery show how one generation builds on the work of the last to make a better place through kindness and love.
-Scott Linge, Committee member
THANK YOU to all these volunteers for their conscientious and careful maintenance of this beautiful and historic property.
[ For more information or to volunteer · Jim Devine · njdevine@comcast.net ]