Festival of Music in the Historic Nekoma SDA Church

Festival of Music

Sunday, October 20, 2024 - 2:00 pm

Take a trip back in time to the little white church on the hill south of Nekoma.

Nekoma Church

 

Performances by:
Rush County Men's Ensemble - Don Urban, director
Cowboy Poet - Greg Swob
Otter Creek Band - Ronnie Tammen, director

FREE ADMISSION

Be sure to visit the Potato Bar from 11 to 1 at the Walnut Valley Senior Center in Rush Center. After enjoying a good meal and social time, make the 10 minute trek to Nekoma for an afternoon of good music and entertainment.

Location

The Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church

Nekoma Church

The church in 1978

The Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church was founded in 1900 when Seventh-day Adventist families from the Shaffer area moved to the Nekoma area. The first meetings were held in the East Brookdale schoolhouse and later the Mt. Zion school. The first church building was moved from Shaffer, but was quickly outgrown. The present building was dedicated on March 20, 1914. In the early days, members were baptized in the ponds near the church. The church sent many members of its congregation into missionary work and into the ministry. In 1962, members of the church established a church in La Crosse in the former Methodist Church, later purchasing the former Evangelical United Brethren church. The church still had over 40 members in the 1970s until eventually regular Sabbath Services were discontinued and the building used only for funerals or other special occasions. In honor of the church's 100th anniversary, the Seltmann family restored the building and have gracefully maintained the historic building for many years and today the church retains much of its original character.

Nekoma Church Interior

The interior of the Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church in 2024. The church retains much of its original early 20th century character.

A special thank you to the Seltmann Family for preserving this valuable part of our history and for sharing it for this celebration.

Sponsored by: Rush County Sesquicentennial Committee
Rush County Economic Development
Rush County Historical Society