So German

German Mission Foundation

Returned Missionaries Still Serving
The German Saints

South German Mission History

Mission history shared by Darrell Clegg: I was the first missionary called to the South German Mission before it was actually organized. I received my call to the South Gennan Mission on August I9. I959. I entered the mission home in SLC Sept 14. 1959 and arrived in Frankfurt Sept 22, 1959 for a 30 month mission. The South German Mission had not yet been organized at that time, so I served under President Theodore Burton in the West German Mission and was assigned to München to be a Jr. companion to an Elder who had been out two years. Later in October the South German Mission was organized and the first president was John Buehner. Those missionaries in the West German who were presently serving in Southem Germany under President Burton at the time the boundaries were created for the South German Mission automatically became missionaries in the new mission. Unfortunately. President Buehner served only 6 months and had to retum home due to a severe illness. A temporary mission president. Samuel Bringhurst was called to serve about two months until another president. T. Quentin Cannon was called. President Cannon served until February 1961. He was then called to be the legal authority for church affairs in Germany. His replacement was Blythe Gardner under whom I served until March 4, 1962 when the Bavarian Mission was formed from the South German Mission. Since I was serving in München and just days before my release everyone in München automatically became missionaries in the Bavarian Mission under the direction of President Owen Spencer Jacobs, my 6"‘ mission president. I was now in my third mission. but only 3 weeks until my 30 months were up. I was released from the Bavarian Mission by President Jacobs March 22, 1962. I'm probably one of only a few missionaries who served in 3 missions and had six mission presidents. During my 2 1/2 years I served as Jr. Companion. Sr. Companion. Branch President in Bayreuth. Traveling Elder and Supervising Elder.
Looking fonv ard to being at the reunion.

Mission history shared by Kaydell Bowles, who served in the South German Mission under each of the mission presidents listed above, from January 1960 until his release from the Bavarian Mission in 1962: The South German Mission began in 1960, with headquarters in Stuttgart, Feuerbach. The first Mission President was John Buehner of Salt Lake City. Due to health issues, he was only able to serve a few months. He was replaced by S. Bringhurst, who filled in for three or four months. (President Bringhurst had just been released from serving as the Swiss Temple President.) He was replaced by Q. R. Cannon who served as Mission President from April 1, 1961 until February 1962. He was called back to Salt Lake City, to serve as the Church lawyer. Blythe Gardner replaced him as Mission President. However, not long afterward, the South German Mission was divided, and the Bavarian Mission was created, with President Owen Jacobs. (The history of the Bavarian Mission is under the Bavarian menu item on this website.)

President Gardner was followed by President John Fetzer, during which time the Bavarian Mission was folded back into the South German Mission. President Fetzer was followed by Orville Gunther.

The South German Mission home - a castle. After the merger with the Bavarian Mission in the summer of 1965, President Fetzer wrote "Mission headquarters will move to Munich. Our present palatial home will be sold. The Church is badly in need of funds with which to build new chapels. It is much more important that the saints somewhere have a chapel, than that we have luxurious mission homes." Mission headquarters moved to an office building in Munich.

President Fetzer's hand sketched rendition of the mission home in Feuerbach.

The following photo and caption was provided by Jim Rose, who served in the South German Mission from 1966 - 1968.

Front Row L to R: Blonquist, Rose, Strong, Beck, Van Dorn, Parry, Biesinger
Back Row L to R: Nilsen, Polly, Nagele, Poecker

The following photos and captions were provided by Larry Maloy, who served in the South German Mission from May 1966 to May 1968.

Munich Mission Conference, September 1966. John K. Fetzer, Mission President with apostle Ezra Taft Benson who presided at the conference.

Mission Traveling Bus Display.

Nekar District Missionaries outing at Hohenzollern Castle:
Standing: ?, Chambers, Goodrich, Packer, Barton, Maloy, Everton, ?
Kneeling: Nord, McCall

Street Display in the central park in Esslingen. Elder Larry Maloy.

Konstanz Branch Meeting Hall

The following photos and captions were provided by Craig Brown, who served in the South German Mission from 1968 - 1970.

Coburg, Bavaria, on the back lawn of the Coburg Branch Chapel, May 1970. L to R: Elder Ossmen, Sister Stange (new convert in Schweinfurt), Sister Haeusler (new convert in Nuremberg), Elder Hackney. Photo by Elder Craig Brown.
Note: In the background is a castle on a hill. This is Veste Coburg, or Coburg Fortress, one of Germany's largest castles. From April to October 1530, during the Diet of Augsburg, Martin Luther sought protection at the fortress. While he stayed at the fortress, Luther continued his work writing and translating the Bible into German. Some believe that it was here that Martin Luther wrote down the hymn and melody for “A Mighty Fortress is our God”. The earliest hymnal in existence with it in it is 1531. Of course, it also now appears in our own hymn book, Hymn #68.

Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, December 31, 1969 at the Karlsruhe Ward Building. Ward New Year's Eve party. L to R back row: Sister Butler, Sister Priebe, Elder Conrad, Elder Oyler (District Leader), Elder Risher, Elder Ridd. L to R middle row: Elder Wright, Elder Herber. L to R bottom front: Elder Arnell. Photo by Elder Craig Brown.

Karlsruhe, Baden-Wuerttemberg, July 1969 at the Karlsruhe Ward Building. L to R back row: Elder Patterson, Elder Hill, Elder Buchmiller. L to R middle row: Elder Hesssel, Elder Jackman (District Leader). L to R front row: Elder Averett, Sister Engelhardt, Sister Bloomquist, Elder Parker. Photo by Elder Craig Brown.

Landshut, Bavaria, February 1969. L to R back row: Elder Brown, Heidi Brueckel (new convert), Elder Bacher (Branch President), Elder Terry. L to R front row: Sister Bacher, Sister Gattermann (faithful member). Elder and Sister Bacher were a great senior missionary couple in the mission from Salt Lake City, originally from Switzerland.

50 years later, Goeppingen Branch Thrives!

In the spring of 1968, Hubert and Elfriede Koerner of Goeppingen were taught and baptized by Elder Jim Rose and Elder Roger Corless. Brother and Sister Koener remained active leaders in the branch, Brother Koerner serving as Branch President and Sister Koerner serving in Primary, Young Womens and Relief Society. Sister Koerner has remained an active force in the branch even after her husband died of a heart attack in 1999. Several Koerner grandchildren have served missions. Sister Koerner prepared a Swaebishe meal for Jim and Nancy Rose during their visit and was excited to "see her missionary" again.

Andrea Koerner Erdhuette (daughter), Elfriede Koerner (Mom) , Elder Jim Rose, at the Goeppingen Branch, October 2017

Lydia Niedermeyer, Gisela Schaaf, Jim Rose, Rolf Niedermeyer and his wife. These were all people who attended the Goeppingen Branch in 1967. The Goeppingen Branch used to meet on the second floor of a brewery on Friedrichstrasse. It now meets in on the second floor of an office building on Poststrasse. We attended sacrament meeting: it was exciting to see the number of young families with children attending church. There were about 80 people in attendance.(Photos, captions and descriptions were provided by Jim Rose and his wife Nancy, who visited Jim's old mission field in October 2017)