In Memory Of
Lyle Eckley
Lyle Eckley
The Rev. Lyle E. Eckley, a highly regarded minister whose work spanned 75 years of service as pastor and District Superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene, died on Tuesday at the Olathe Medical Center from complications due to a stroke. He was 96.
A resident of Olathe, Eckley most recently served as a chaplain at the Good Samaritan Nursing Home from 1990 to 1999.
His early efforts as a minister began with a student pastorate in Sidell, Ill. in l932. This was followed by pastorates in Freeport, Ill. and Milwaukee, Wis.
In l942, Eckley was appointed the District Superintendent of the New York District of the Church of the Nazarene. He was 32, the youngest superintendent in the church at that time. He served the New York metro region for six years before being appointed to the newly formed Northwestern Illinois District. He moved his family to Peoria, Ill. in l948 where he served for 20 years. This was followed by an appointment to the West Texas District with headquarters in Lubbock in l968 where he finished out his career serving nine years and retiring in l977.
This would complete 11 years of ministry as a pastor and 35 years as a District Superintendent in the Nazarene Church. Upon official retirement he continued to serve the church as an evangelist and later as a nursing home chaplain.
His distinguished leadership was marked by a clear initiative to plant new churches most often through tent revivals and storefront churches that he himself worked to establish. His constant connection to the "man on the street" led to the organization of new Nazarene churches that are still functioning today. In addition he sought to revitalize established churches and develop his pastors personally and professionally.
The Rev. Dwight Southworth in a tribute to his work in West Texas upon Eckley's retirement described him as "a great doer as well as a great believer, a man without sham or veneer" and "a preacher with an irresistible passion." He said, "The pulpit on the district wherever he preached has always been a throne, and he occupied it like a King."
A man of many interests, Eckley typically read at least one book a week and when taken to the hospital was on the last chapter of a novel that he brought with him to finish. Each vacation would find him pulling his bright blue bass boat to Brainerd, Minn. to fish. In addition to these hobbies he loved to till the soil; he maintained a productive garden most of his life. His main interest, however, was in his ministry to people. He poured his time and efforts into them wherever he found them.
A native of Michigan, Eckley was born in Flint, Mich. May 30 l910 to Ward and Cora Fay Eckley.
He attended Asbury College in Wilmore, Ky. after one year at Flint Junior College, and later transferred to Olivet Nazarene University in Olivet, Ill. graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in l933. Olivet University was moved to Kankakee later and in l958, Eckley was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Divinity degree for his outstanding leadership both to the church and to the university. His interest in Nazarene higher education was evident by his election as Chairman of the Board of Trustees both at Olivet and at Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Okla. as he served in those regions.
He was married in l933 to Margaret Bradford, now deceased. In l991 he married Fayra Quinn, his wife of 15 years, who resides in Olathe.
Eckley is survived by his wife, Fayra Quinn Eckley and his three daughters: Carolyn Lunn and Jeanne Millhuff of Olathe and Kathleen MacLaren of Marblehead, Mass; and his stepchildren: Julie Gilmore of Olathe and Chuck Quinn of Lenexa. He had 17 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
Services are scheduled for ll a.m. Saturday at College Church of the Nazarene, 2020 Sheridan St. with visitation from 9:30-10:45 a.m. at the church. Burial will be at the Oak Lawn Cemetery in Olathe. Penwell-Gabel Funeral is handling the arrangements.
Memorials may be sent to The Lyle E. Eckley Ministerial Scholarship Fund at MidAmerica Nazarene University, 2030 College Way, Olathe, Kan.
A resident of Olathe, Eckley most recently served as a chaplain at the Good Samaritan Nursing Home from 1990 to 1999.
His early efforts as a minister began with a student pastorate in Sidell, Ill. in l932. This was followed by pastorates in Freeport, Ill. and Milwaukee, Wis.
In l942, Eckley was appointed the District Superintendent of the New York District of the Church of the Nazarene. He was 32, the youngest superintendent in the church at that time. He served the New York metro region for six years before being appointed to the newly formed Northwestern Illinois District. He moved his family to Peoria, Ill. in l948 where he served for 20 years. This was followed by an appointment to the West Texas District with headquarters in Lubbock in l968 where he finished out his career serving nine years and retiring in l977.
This would complete 11 years of ministry as a pastor and 35 years as a District Superintendent in the Nazarene Church. Upon official retirement he continued to serve the church as an evangelist and later as a nursing home chaplain.
His distinguished leadership was marked by a clear initiative to plant new churches most often through tent revivals and storefront churches that he himself worked to establish. His constant connection to the "man on the street" led to the organization of new Nazarene churches that are still functioning today. In addition he sought to revitalize established churches and develop his pastors personally and professionally.
The Rev. Dwight Southworth in a tribute to his work in West Texas upon Eckley's retirement described him as "a great doer as well as a great believer, a man without sham or veneer" and "a preacher with an irresistible passion." He said, "The pulpit on the district wherever he preached has always been a throne, and he occupied it like a King."
A man of many interests, Eckley typically read at least one book a week and when taken to the hospital was on the last chapter of a novel that he brought with him to finish. Each vacation would find him pulling his bright blue bass boat to Brainerd, Minn. to fish. In addition to these hobbies he loved to till the soil; he maintained a productive garden most of his life. His main interest, however, was in his ministry to people. He poured his time and efforts into them wherever he found them.
A native of Michigan, Eckley was born in Flint, Mich. May 30 l910 to Ward and Cora Fay Eckley.
He attended Asbury College in Wilmore, Ky. after one year at Flint Junior College, and later transferred to Olivet Nazarene University in Olivet, Ill. graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in l933. Olivet University was moved to Kankakee later and in l958, Eckley was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Divinity degree for his outstanding leadership both to the church and to the university. His interest in Nazarene higher education was evident by his election as Chairman of the Board of Trustees both at Olivet and at Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Okla. as he served in those regions.
He was married in l933 to Margaret Bradford, now deceased. In l991 he married Fayra Quinn, his wife of 15 years, who resides in Olathe.
Eckley is survived by his wife, Fayra Quinn Eckley and his three daughters: Carolyn Lunn and Jeanne Millhuff of Olathe and Kathleen MacLaren of Marblehead, Mass; and his stepchildren: Julie Gilmore of Olathe and Chuck Quinn of Lenexa. He had 17 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
Services are scheduled for ll a.m. Saturday at College Church of the Nazarene, 2020 Sheridan St. with visitation from 9:30-10:45 a.m. at the church. Burial will be at the Oak Lawn Cemetery in Olathe. Penwell-Gabel Funeral is handling the arrangements.
Memorials may be sent to The Lyle E. Eckley Ministerial Scholarship Fund at MidAmerica Nazarene University, 2030 College Way, Olathe, Kan.
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