John D. Curtis

May 5, 1937 ~ October 21, 2024

John Douglas Curtis was called home to Jesus on October 21 st , 2024, while surrounded by family at Mayo Clinic Health System-Eau Claire. John was born at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, Wisconsin to Douglas and Gwendolyn Curtis on May 5th, 1937. He was a 1955 graduate from Eau Claire High School and went on to attend UW-Eau Claire and UW-Madison.  After graduating from UW-Madison with a History degree, he enlisted in the United States Army in 1962.  He was deployed to Harrogate, England early in 1963. He was a part of the US Army Security Agency and worked as an interceptor of Soviet telegraph signals. Much of the information about his unit and their mission during that time is still heavily redacted. While stationed in England he met the love of his life, Diane Atkinson, at a dance and they were married on February 5th, 1964. After his tour of duty, he and his bride returned to the States and had two daughters, Jane and Sarah. Upon his return he worked with his father, Doug, at Curtis Realty. When his father retired, John and Diane rebranded the business into “Apartments By Curtis” (ABC Rentals). They spent the next 50 plus years providing housing to students. In the late 1980’s they became grandparents when Warren and Elizabeth were born.
 
John's mantra was, "I volunteer." Over the years, John was involved with and helped to create many groups, including: the Bassmasters, the Randall Park Neighborhood Committee, he played the role of Santa Claus for over a decade for Downtown Eau Claire Inc., West Grand Avenue Business Association, the Historic Preservation Society, the Landmarks Committee, the Apartment Association, the EC County Republicans, the EC County Board, Christ Church Cathedral (Vestry, choir, and acolyte) the Jaycees, Kiwanis, and sports teams at Eau Claire High School (lettered in football and track & field) and UWEC (cross country). He was involved with different municipal committees which helped save the Livery, helped create a design for Phoenix Park/ Farmer's Market, which included a space for bands to play outdoors, and helped start Eau Claire's first Community Garden and Skatepark. John always wanted to write a book. Though he never did, he did contribute to many publications: books by the Leader Telegram and Landmarks Committee; Images for VolumeONE, Hidden Treasures, and the Leader Telegram, the House Hunt. He also provided props for the CVTG and Dennis Miller for his movie on Uniroyal. He is credited with playing RB Gillette in Miller's "Voices from the Past." John's love for his hometown Eau Claire, was unparalleled. John would often say “Eau Claire, Wisconsin is the best place in the world” and he truly believed it. John wore his passions on his sleeve, and it was hard not to get caught up in them. One of them was entrepreneurship. Both his daughters created businesses in Eau Claire.  Jane opened Wireless Outlet, and his daughter Sarah shared his love for history and opened a store on West Grand Avenue called Eclectica on Grand.  John’s passion for Eau Claire eventually led him to open a specialty store next door, the River Trader. John seemingly took pleasure in sharing his vast knowledge of obscure Eau Claire history with anyone who walked through the door.  Carrying on with the entrepreneurial tradition his grandson Warren also started a storage and U-Haul business in Iron River, Michigan. John and Diane were very proud of their children and grandchildren and supported
them in all their endeavors. 

John was a huge fan of Wisconsin sports teams, but his favorites were Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Brewers, and the Wisconsin Badgers. But John's favorite pastime was going dancing with his wife, Diane, and would see their favorite band, the Thundermen, as often as possible. He was an avid Sportsman and according to him there were three seasons: fishing, hunting, and road construction. John had an affinity towards dogs, but his springer spaniels were his favorite. The ability to hunt and retrieve was a very important quality that he looked for in a dog. He would confidently claim there were no greater dogs than springer spaniels. He also participated in a coffee group multiple times a week. He and his friends would discuss all sorts of topics, but
it was primarily focused on politics and what makes the world go around.   

John was a devoted son, husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. John and Diane were heavily involved in the lives of their grandchildren and in many ways parents to them as well. He told the best stories, most of them contained a little bit of a fisherman's exaggeration, making them hard to beat. The advice he would give was always playful and often contained a grain of mischief. His granddaughter Elizabeth gave John and Diane the blessing of great grandchildren, whom he adored. He thoroughly enjoyed having the sound of children playing, once again in his home. John was a fighter, much of the last decade was spent going in and out of hospitals. Even with the health issues he remained jolly and optimistic throughout everything.  His upbeat, positive, can-do attitude served as an inspiration for what can be overcome.  John will be deeply missed by his family and friends.  John is survived by his two daughters, Jane Elizabeth Stevens (Curtis) and Sarah Ann Curtis (Christopher Fraser); two grandchildren, Warren Stevens (Kerri Weecks) and Elizabeth (Dustin) Ruxton; five great grandchildren, Declan, Joslyn, Lucille, Aidan, Lorence and a cousin, Ted (Kathleen) Balcom. 

John is preceded in death by his beloved wife, Diane Curtis, his parents, Douglas and Gwendolyn Curtis and great grandson, Desmond Ruxton. 

Funeral Services will be held at 12:30 AM, Friday, November 15, 2024 at Christ Church Cathedral, 510 S. Farwell Street, Eau Claire, with Father Aaron Zook and Reverend Russell Tate officiating.  Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Inurnment will be in Christ Church Cathedral Columbarium with military honors performed by American Legion Post 53 and VFW Post 7232. Lenmark-Gomsrud-Linn Funeral; Cremation Services, Eau Claire is assisting the family. Online condolences may be shared at www.lenmarkfh.com.

Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe takes office, proclaims ‘one church in Christ’ for a changing world

[Episcopal News Service] The Most Rev. Sean Rowe began his nine-year term as the 28th presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church with an intimate but festive investiture service on Nov. 2 in New York that was livestreamed to close to 20,000 viewers in homes, churches and dioceses in the United States and around the world.

Rowe’s two living predecessors as presiding bishop, the Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, elected in 2006, and the Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, elected in 2015, were among the small group of attendees celebrating the new presiding bishop’s primacy at an in-person Holy Eucharist in the Chapel of Christ the Lord at the church’s Manhattan headquarters. Participants in watch parties across the church joined in the festivities, as Rowe preached a message of Christian unity and purpose.

Video and worship bulletins available in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole and Mandarin.

“We need to become one church, one church in Jesus Christ,” Rowe said in his 10-minute sermon. He emphasized the importance of supporting the church’s ministries at the congregational and diocesan levels – already a central theme of his nascent term, which officially began Nov. 1.

“That’s where ministry happens – where people are gathered today to be a part of this investiture,” Rowe said. “That’s where ministry is taking place. It’s in these places where faithful Episcopalians gather day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, to worship God, to celebrate and mourn their sorrows and to care for God’s people.”

Sermon text: Presiding bishop preaches at investiture on story of Lazarus

Rowe, 49, was elected in June on the first ballot by the House of Bishops and confirmed by the House of Deputies at the 81st General Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. He was partly chosen for his experience overseeing adaptive responses to the challenges of denominational decline, as bishop of Northwestern Pennsylvania and bishop provisional of Western New York. In his investiture sermon, he sought to prepare the church for what is expected to be a time of great change.

Just as Jesus commanded his disciples to unbind and liberate Lazarus, raised from the dead, “this unbinding and liberating of ourselves and our structures and our hurting world will take all the resilience we can muster,” Rowe said. “It will require us to set aside our disbelief and our divisions, our attachments to the things of this world, and maybe our attachment to the way we think things ought to function.

“But if we can be faithful in this work of unbinding, we will find that we can become the stewards that God needs us to be of our congregations and communities across our church.”

The scaled-down investiture was a deliberate contrast to the church’s past tradition of welcoming new presiding bishops with greater fanfare at installations hosted at Washington National Cathedral, the seat of the presiding bishop, in the U.S. capital.

The Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe was consecrated as bishop of the Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania in 2007. Since April 2019, he also served as bishop provisional of the Diocese of Western New York.

Rowe was partly motivated by an interest in reducing the service’s carbon footprint while increasing opportunities for churchwide virtual participation. All the church’s more than 100 dioceses were invited to send video greetings for a “roll call” that preceded the investiture. The videos demonstrated the diversity of both the church’s membership and its local expressions of the faith.

“We are excited to join with you in the mission and ministry of sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Colorado Bishop Kym Lucas said during her diocese’s video for Rowe’s investiture. “We will hold you in our prayers and we are thankful that you have answered this call to serve.” She also attended the investiture in person.

The Diocese of Easton in coastal Maryland incorporated canoe paddles as props into its video clip. It concluded with the message “Let’s get Rowe-ing!” The Diocese of South Dakota offered verbal “blessings” in short clips from each of its congregations. Other dioceses offered prayers for Rowe’s new term, while the Diocese of Northern Michigan serenaded him with a short hymn.

And in the Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast, Bishop Russell Kendrick was joined by a large crowd of Episcopalians who wished Rowe well with their feet planted in Gulf waters – specifically Weeks Bay at the diocese’s Beckwith camp and conference center.

“Come on in, the water’s fine,” they shouted in unison.

Rowe was greeted with plenty of good cheer in person as well. Some 127 people filled the chapel for the investiture, including Rowe’s wife, Carly Rowe, and their 12-year-old daughter, Lauren.

PROFILE: Rowe’s story is rooted in working-class western Pennsylvania

Lauren read the service’s New Testament lesson, Revelation 21:1-6A. A reading of Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9 was presented in the Eastern Shoshone language by Ronald Braman from the Diocese of Idaho. Two deacons, The Rev. Pedro Rodriguez and the Rev. Lillian Davis Wilson, read the Gospel reading, John 11:32-44, in Spanish and English.

The service incorporated a wide range of cultural traditions and languages, most notably in its intercessions, spoken in Spanish, Mandarin, German, French and other world tongues. The intercessors also included interfaith guests, Mohamed Elsanousi, a Muslim who spoke in Arabic, and Rabbi Esther Lederman, speaking in Hebrew.

Music for the service was coordinated by Dent Davidson and the Rev. Lester Mackenzie.

House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris attended, as did representatives from all nine of the church’s provinces. Several ecumenical guests included Anglican Communion Secretary General Bishop Anthony Poggo, originally of South Sudan. Poggo spoke about halfway through the service, offering a celebratory message on behalf of the communion, of which The Episcopal Church is one of 41 autonomous, interdependent provinces.

“Bishop Sean, you bring a wealth of experience and Christian wisdom to this role at a time when careful discernment and confidence founded in the Gospel is so much needed,” Poggo said.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby sent his regrets that his busy schedule prevented him from attending Rowe’s investiture in person. The Very Rev. Sammy Wainaina, one of Welby’s advisers, read the archbishop’s message on his behalf.

“The church has placed a trust and a responsibility on your shoulders,” Welby said. He alluded to global contexts, from the upcoming presidential election in the United States, to wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, to violent conflict in Africa and forced migration.

The church “is called to respond with hope to the needs of humanity,” Welby said. “I therefore encourage you to rise up to the occasion through the power of the Holy Spirt to lead The Episcopal Church in responding to its ministry context.”

The presiding bishop has a range of responsibilities, as outlined by The Episcopal Church Constitution and Canons. Those include presiding over the House of Bishops, chairing Executive Council, visiting every Episcopal diocese, participating in the ordination and consecration of bishops, receiving and responding to disciplinary complaints against bishops, making appointments to the church’s interim bodies, and “developing policies and strategies for the church and speaking for the church on the policies, strategies and programs of General Convention.”

Presiding Bishop-elect Sean Rowe is flanked by 26th Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and 27th Presiding Bishop Michael Curry in June during the 81st General Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. Photo: Randall A. Gornowich

One of Rowe’s first tasks as presiding bishop is to oversee a “structural realignment” of churchwide operations while developing a plan to save $3.5 million on staff over three years, or about 5% of the church’s total personnel costs. Last month the church, at Rowe’s request, contracted with Compass, a consulting firm with experience in organizational development, to help facilitate engagement with the churchwide staff. Those discussions will continue Nov. 7-9 when Rowe chairs his first Executive Council meeting in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

As Rowe prepares to grapple with weighty organizational matters, his Nov. 2 investiture served as a ceremonial changing of the guard – featuring a literal passing of the staff, as Curry handed his primatial cross over to Rowe during the service. Curry, whose nine-year term concluded Oct. 31, now plans to spend much of his retirement closer to home in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Rowe and his family will maintain their primary residence in Erie, Pennsylvania, though he has already begun traveling around the church and will continue to visit its more than 100 dioceses, as is required of him as presiding bishop under Episcopal Church Canons. His message to those dioceses is that their good work is part of something greater.

“The days are over, if they ever existed, that diocese and congregations and institutions of our church could just go it alone and do it their own way,” Rowe said in his sermon. “For we must acknowledge our mutual interdependence, our need to do ministry together, to share what we have and to sustain one other. Especially now, in this badly hurting world, we need to become one church.”

God has given the church the resources and talents to invest in its ministries, “building communities, advocating for justice and saving lives,” Rowe said. “This work, the work of proclaiming in word and deed Jesus’ resurrection and life, is the work to which God has called The Episcopal Church, now and always, as one church, together.”

Western Oregon Bishop Diana Akiyama was among those attending in person, to represent Province VIII. “My hope and excitement is that we continue to move forward with strength and great faith and as one church, as the presiding bishop said in his sermon, to remember that we are one church that we need to help each other, we need to collaborate,” Akiyama told Episcopal News Service. “We need to try new things as we lean into these next nine years.”

Also in attendance was Nathan Brown, vice president of Province III. Brown, 34, served with Rowe on the General Convention Title IV legislative committees during the 80th and 81st General Conventions, and he also is a member of the Under 40 Caucus.

“He really embodies a lot of the skills that are really needed right now, particularly with administration, and he has such a great vision for the church. He’s led dioceses through very difficult times, and just on a personal level, working with him, he’s an amazing bridge builder,” Brown told ENS. “I’m sure he’s going to bring those gifts to the whole church. I’m really looking forward to that.”

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