Synod History- Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church, Omaha

 

Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church, the oldest, continuous Lutheran church west of the Missouri River, is the birthplace of Lutheranism in Nebraska and the Nebraska Synod (1871), and has been worshiping, growing, and serving in downtown Omaha for over 160 years. Kountze Memorial (originally known as Emanuel’s Evangelical Lutheran Church) was founded in 1858, by Rev. Henry W. Kuhns, as a mission church of the Allegheny Synod of Pennsylvania. At the time, there were no other Lutheran congregations in the area. In 1862, after renting meeting facilities for a time, the congregation built a modest church at 13th and Douglas, the current site of the Holland Performing Arts Center. The church bell, cast in 1867, is the oldest church bell in Nebraska and was recently refurbished and remains in use in the current church building at 26th and Farnam. 

A second church building was built in 1885 at 16th and Harney at a cost of $50,000 with a gift from charter member Augustus Kountze. This location was the site of the 1887 General Synod Convention, the first convention west of the Missouri River. In 1906, as the congregation continued to grow, Kountze Memorial built a large structure on 26th and Farnam at a cost of $125,000. This structure remains today and is constructed of white limestone in German Gothic style and boasts curved pews, a magnificent skylight, inspirational stained glass, and a tower housing the bell from the 1862 church.

Before and after WWI, the congregation founded 7 mission churches around the city of Omaha and led the way in providing a significant portion of the funds to move Midland College from Atchison, Kansas to Fremont, Nebraska, raising $500,000 (in today’s dollars) in just 6 weeks. In the 1940’s, to meet the needs of the growing congregation, Kountze Memorial embarked on an ambitious building plan, which expanded the church building by adding the Fellowship Hall, Sunday School, and church offices. In 1941, the United Lutheran Church in American convention met at Kountze Memorial. In the 1960’s and 70’s, additional space was added for the Sunday School and other church groups. A $2.5 million entire building renovation was completed in 2006.

In 1962, Kountze Memorial began live televised broadcasts of their Sunday worship services, reaching thousands throughout the Omaha area, a ministry that continues today. In 1982, the congregation built deFreese Manor, an independent senior living facility for low income people, located near the church. In 2014, Kountze Memorial completed a $1.1 million renovation of their historic Aeolian-Skinner organ, which is dedicated to all those who served in WWII and subsequent wars. Kountze Memorial was known to have had more members serving in the World War I and II than any other Lutheran congregation in the country. 

More recently, Kountze Memorial has developed a weekly food pantry and free medical clinic, which serve hundreds each week. After purchasing the KETV news station property through a gift of the Kountze Memorial Endowment Fund, the congregation embarked on capital campaign in 2015, raising over $2 million towards the redevelopment of the KETV property, which included a new building. The aptly named Kountze Commons has space for a health clinic, food pantry, expanded parking, accessible entrances, outdoor green space, meeting rooms, and commons area. Methodist Health Systems and Lutheran Family Services became partners in the Kountze Commons project and shares space in the building, making it truly a one-of-a-kind ministry in the Lutheran church. 

From humble beginnings, Kountze Memorial grew to become the largest Lutheran church in the United States during the mid-twentieth century. Today, Kountze Memorial, a congregation of nearly 2,000 members, remains a vibrant faith community, truly a, “Citywide church with a world-wide ministry.”

*written by Ian Hartfield, Youth Ministry Coordinator at Sheridan Lutheran Church & Synod Archivist