obituaries

When the Rev. Jennings Feroe gave his first sermon in 1940 as the first pastor of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ingleside, Ill., it was the beginning of a ministry that spanned more than 55 years.

He left Trinity in 1943 to accept an appointment as a chaplain in the Navy.

Following his honorable discharge in 1945, Feroe spent 28 years at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Mankato, before he left in 1973 to take a job in the Development Department at his alma mater, St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn.

After six years there, he went back into the ministry where he spent 18 more years taking care of people as visitation pastor at St. John's Lutheran Church in Northfield.

Feroe underwent surgery recently after falling and breaking his femur. He never recovered from surgery and died Nov. 22 at Northfield Hospital. He was 96.

"He was terrific," said the Rev. Joseph Crippen, pastor at St. John's. "He considered his car his office, and he brought St. John's whenever he came to see them [the homebound and the hospitalized]. He was church for them. He had a great sense of humor, was a good listener and told wonderful stories. He was a fine pastor, gifted thinker and compassionate man."

Born in Madison, Minn., Feroe graduated from Madison Normal School and earned a bachelor's degree from St. Olaf. He was ordained in 1940 after graduating from Luther Seminary in St. Paul.

He was a former board president of Lutheran Social Services, chairman of the Board of Missions for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and former vice president of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod.

In his reports to the synod, Feroe often expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to serve the church, said the Rev. Harold Usgaard, bishop of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod, in a letter sent last week.

"He counted it a privilege to serve others," said Feroe's daughter Lois Tinker of Coon Rapids. "He thrived on it. He felt it was a gift from God to be a minister."

Feroe retired from the ministry in 1997 at the age of 84.

Feroe enjoyed conversation and connecting with people, said the Rev. John Quam, who completed his seminary internship under the tutelage of Feroe and now is visitation pastor at St. John's.

"He was a very caring Christian man who lived his faith," Quam said. "The love and grace of God showed in how he cared for people in the parishes he served. At St. John's, we get compliments about his work all the time from the seniors he worked with."

In recent years, he was a beloved storyteller at the Northfield Retirement Community, where he lived with his wife of 64 years, Elaine. Once a month, he was featured in a program in which he regaled residents with droll tales. "They were laughing hilariously," his daughter said.

He was an avid bird-watcher, collected valentines and enjoyed reading. He was proud of his St. Olaf Oles, and went to many athletic contests and followed the school's sports teams on the radio. "He didn't like to be interrupted," Tinker said.

Feroe also was a big Twins and Vikings fan, she said.

In addition to his wife and daughter, Feroe is survived by two sons, Mark and Bruce, both of Duluth; two other daughters, Mary Hovey of Roseville and Ellen Hedrick of Richmond, Va.; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Services have been held.