Uriah M. Shetler

Uriah M. Shetler, age 82 years, of Farmville, Virginia, died May 19, 2012, at 11:27 pm, at his residence after a lengthy illness of Parkinson’s and a five-year battle with cancer. Uriah was born June 27, 1929, in Apple Creek, Ohio, to the late Mose L. and Mary (Miller) Shetler. When Uriah was ten, his mother died and his father remarried to his Aunt Barbara Miller. On November 22, 1951, Uriah married Rachel Stoltzfus in Oakland, Maryland. They moved to Catlett, Virginia, and in 1956, he was ordained a minister in the Beachy Amish Fellowship Church. In 1958, they moved to Holmes County, Ohio, and Uriah was the founder of the Beachy Amish Fellowship Church there. Uriah was a widely known traveling evangelist in the late 1950s and 1960s. With fire and zeal, he preached the Gospel and held meetings in many churches. Under his preaching, hundreds of people became believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and Uriah spent many hours and traveled great distances to speak of the changing grace of Christ. His prayers to God were powerful, his care for individual needs were deep, and his words were used by the Holy Spirit to penetrate many souls. He was ordained Bishop in 1963 in Holmes County, Ohio, and was very instrumental in assisting and establishing churches in Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Paraguay, South America. In 1971, the Shetler family moved to Paraguay, and there Uriah served as Bishop in the Light and Hope Church. Uriah became fluent in Spanish and had a heart for the natives there. In 1981, the family returned to the United States and settled in Farmville, Virginia, where he served as Bishop at the Farmville Christian Fellowship Church until he retired due to his illness in 1991. Surviving are his wife, Rachel; 13 children: James (Geneva) Fowler of New Carlisle, Ohio, Martha (Lloyd) Slabaugh of Nappanee, Indiana, John Shetler of Hartville, Ohio, Anna (Albert) Miller of Farmville,Virginia, Priscilla (Mark) Eichorn of Paraguay, South America, Stephen (LaVerda) Shetler of Perkins, Oklahoma, Daniel (Phyllis) Shetler of McAlisterville, Pennsylvania , Mary (Alexi) Espinoza of Honduras, Central America, Miriam (John) Miller of Pamplin, Virginia, Dorcas Shetler of Farmville, Virginia, Eunice Joy (Ken) Mast of Dundee, Ohio, Bernice Shetler of Farmville, Virginia, and Julia (Jeff) Hertzler of Axton,Virginia; 50 grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; five brothers: Joni, Lewis, Levi, Eli, and Norman; and five sisters: Elizabeth, Martha, Ada, Mary, and Ella. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a son, James; and three grandchildren: Adrian, Rosella, and Darla Jewel; and one great-grandchild, Fabian. Calling hours were held Sunday, 6:00-8:00 pm and Monday, 2:00-4:00 pm and 6:00-8:00 pm at Farmville Christian Fellowship Church. Services will be on Tuesday, May 22, 2012 10:00 am at Concord Baptist Gymnasium. Interment will follow in the Farmville Christian Fellowship Church cemetery.