The Swiss Mennonite Cultural and Historical Association (SMCHA) is
a nonprofit organization comprising descendents of immigrant Mennonites
who came to the USA in the 1870s from what is now the Ukraine.
Their ancestors originated in Switzerland passing through many countries
in Europe including France, Germany, Austria and Poland on their way
to the Ukraine.
Major purposes of the SMCHA are to educate descendents of the Swiss
Mennonites on the origin and culture of this group through various cultural
events, research activities, maintenance of historic places, etc. There
are several thousand of such descendents, many of them located in central
Kansas, South Dakota, and other mid-western states.
The Swiss Mennonite home pages are considered to be
a work in progress. Improvements are always possible. New
materials may be added and factual errors will be corrected.
Some materials will be added and some may be removed Suggestions
for changes of this nature are most welcome and should be forwarded
to a web committee.
Current Events and Announcements
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January 2012 Monthly Feature:
Indians and Boa
Constrictors: The Making of a Swiss Volhynian Community in the Dakota
Territory
Benjamin Waltner Goossen is a Kansas native and a student of History and
German at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. During the spring
and summer of 2012, he is studying abroad in Germany, where he is
researching German Mennonite history. His maternal grandfather, James H.
Waltner, was born and raised in Freeman, South Dakota, a Swiss Volhynian
Mennonite settlement founded in 1873.
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Annual Meeting Sunday, March 11, 2012, at 2:30 p.m.
At First Mennonite of Christian in Moundridge
Speaker is David Habegger, Newton KS. Topic will be the history of First
Mennonite Church of Christian. Music by Jerry Voth. Business will include
election of officers and actions related to the Cemetery west of Moundridge
now owned by the Swiss Mennonite Cultural and Historical Association.
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SMCHA is again offering two scholarships in the amount of
$500 each to students who are preparing for the ministry or other full-time
Christian service. Part-time students may be awarded $250 scholarships.
Individuals serving in long-term voluntary service are also eligible.
Scholarships are for the 2012-2013 school year. The application deadline is
July 1, 2012. Applicants must have membership in one of the seven Swiss-Volhynian
churches in Kansas or in one of the two Swiss-Volhynian churches in South
Dakota, or be of Swiss-Volhynian descent.
Applicants may submit a letter of application to Alice Suderman, chair,
Swiss Mennonite Scholarship Committee, P.O. Box 526, North Newton, KS 67117.
A letter of recommendation from his/her pastor or congregation is required,
and the applicant must be accepted or enrolled in an accredited Mennonite
institution of higher education or in a Mennonite-related voluntary service
position. Those attending Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary or AMBS
Great Plains Extension will be given preference.
If you know of persons who may qualify, please encourage them to apply or
send such names to the committee. Members of the Scholarship Committee are
Roger Juhnke, Clark Graber, and Alice Suderman, Chair. For further
information, call (316) 283-3815 or (316) 283-0452.
Recent Past Events and Announcements
- Minutes for Oct 27, 2011 SMCHA
Board meeting
- Minutes for Sep 6, 2011 SMCHA
Board meeting
- October 2011 Monthly Feature -
Schweitzer Land
(McPherson & Harvey County, Kansas)
- Minutes for Jul 14, 2011 SMCHA Board meeting
- Minutes for May 5, 2011 SMCHA Board meeting
- Minutes for Mar 20, 2011 SMCHA Board meeting
- Minutes for Feb 10, 2011
 The
Swiss Mennonite Cultural and Historical Association (SMCHA) scholarship
committee awarded a $250.00 grant to Sarah Pohl, a member of First
Mennonite Church of Christian, Moundridge, KS. Sarah, a sophomore
at Bethel College, North Newton, KS, is participating in a ten-week
Ministry Inquiry program in Reedley, CA. This is a program designed
for exploration of Christian Ministry. Scholarship applications
will again be accepted in July 20, 2011.
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The Swiss Mennonite Cultural and Historical Association - SMCHA