Kenneth Edward Nolin, 88, died Tuesday, September 15, 2015, in his home at Strabane Trails Village, Washington.
He was born August 26, 1927, in Seattle, Wash., a son of the late William Wallace Nolin and Ruth Hemenway Nolin.
Mr. Nolin’s parents served as missionaries to Egypt with the Presbyterian Church, and his early years were lived in a boarding school for missionary children from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. One of his significant memories involved a ship trip with his mother and three siblings by way of Cape Town, South Africa, to New York, traveling in total darkness to avoid German submarines and evacuate from Egypt before General Rommell and his troops invaded duringWorld War II. The Nolin family then lived for a time on Vashon Island near Seattle.
He completed three years of high school under the shadow of Mt. Rainier. The family then moved to New Concord, Ohio, where he studied at Muskingum College. After graduating, he pursued theology studies at Pittsburgh-Xenia Seminary for an additional three years, and upon graduating, moved to Portland, Ore., where he was ordained and served a church for two years. Moving back to Pennsylvania, he married Rosella Mae Hutchison in 1954. The couple moved to Hartford, Conn., where he pursued Arabic and Islamic studies, earning a masters in arts and later a doctor of philosophy at Hartford Seminary Foundation.
Mr. Nolin served for 15 years in Egypt under the United Presbyterian Church. He traveled widely in the Middle East, encouraging dialogue and understanding between Christians and Muslims. Returning to the United States in 1969, he served small churches in Bethlehem Parish, including Clarksville, Millsboro, Vestaburg and Beallsville, until retirement at 1991.
After retirement, he and his wife moved to the family farm in East Finley Township, where they lived, worked and enjoyed family visits until his wife passed away in 2014, and he moved to Strabane Trails Village. During retirement, he remained active, serving five years as an interim pastor at Upper Ten Mile Presbyterian Church in Prosperity.
He was an amateur beekeeper, master builder of tree houses for children and grandchildren, avid reader and a faithful choir member of Claysville Presbyterian Church until his death.
Deceased are his wife, Rosella; a brother, Wallace; and a sister, Ruth.
Surviving are a sister, Nancy; three daughters, Susan (Mark Shopland), Sharon Nolin (Larrabee Strow) and Rachel; a son, Douglas (Marlene) Nolin; eight grandchildren, Bethany Shopland Hurley, Benjamin Shopland, Scott, Erin and Ryan Gillespie, Daniel Bald, and Eric and Kelsey Nolin; two great-grandchildren, Nolin and Anna Hurley; and three beloved young people who affectionately called him “Grandpa,” Hanum Wensel Strow, Anthony Kehathilwe and Felix Noy.
Friends and family will be received from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday in Young Funeral Home & Cremation Services Inc., 219 Main Street, Claysville, PA 15323, 724-663-7373, www.youngfhinc.com. Additional visitation will be held from 2 to 3 p.m., the time a celebration of the resurrection, Saturday, September 19, in United Presbyterian Church, Claysville, with the Rev. Jerome Creach officiating.
He was born August 26, 1927, in Seattle, Wash., a son of the late William Wallace Nolin and Ruth Hemenway Nolin.
Mr. Nolin’s parents served as missionaries to Egypt with the Presbyterian Church, and his early years were lived in a boarding school for missionary children from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. One of his significant memories involved a ship trip with his mother and three siblings by way of Cape Town, South Africa, to New York, traveling in total darkness to avoid German submarines and evacuate from Egypt before General Rommell and his troops invaded duringWorld War II. The Nolin family then lived for a time on Vashon Island near Seattle.
He completed three years of high school under the shadow of Mt. Rainier. The family then moved to New Concord, Ohio, where he studied at Muskingum College. After graduating, he pursued theology studies at Pittsburgh-Xenia Seminary for an additional three years, and upon graduating, moved to Portland, Ore., where he was ordained and served a church for two years. Moving back to Pennsylvania, he married Rosella Mae Hutchison in 1954. The couple moved to Hartford, Conn., where he pursued Arabic and Islamic studies, earning a masters in arts and later a doctor of philosophy at Hartford Seminary Foundation.
Mr. Nolin served for 15 years in Egypt under the United Presbyterian Church. He traveled widely in the Middle East, encouraging dialogue and understanding between Christians and Muslims. Returning to the United States in 1969, he served small churches in Bethlehem Parish, including Clarksville, Millsboro, Vestaburg and Beallsville, until retirement at 1991.
After retirement, he and his wife moved to the family farm in East Finley Township, where they lived, worked and enjoyed family visits until his wife passed away in 2014, and he moved to Strabane Trails Village. During retirement, he remained active, serving five years as an interim pastor at Upper Ten Mile Presbyterian Church in Prosperity.
He was an amateur beekeeper, master builder of tree houses for children and grandchildren, avid reader and a faithful choir member of Claysville Presbyterian Church until his death.
Deceased are his wife, Rosella; a brother, Wallace; and a sister, Ruth.
Surviving are a sister, Nancy; three daughters, Susan (Mark Shopland), Sharon Nolin (Larrabee Strow) and Rachel; a son, Douglas (Marlene) Nolin; eight grandchildren, Bethany Shopland Hurley, Benjamin Shopland, Scott, Erin and Ryan Gillespie, Daniel Bald, and Eric and Kelsey Nolin; two great-grandchildren, Nolin and Anna Hurley; and three beloved young people who affectionately called him “Grandpa,” Hanum Wensel Strow, Anthony Kehathilwe and Felix Noy.
Friends and family will be received from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday in Young Funeral Home & Cremation Services Inc., 219 Main Street, Claysville, PA 15323, 724-663-7373, www.youngfhinc.com. Additional visitation will be held from 2 to 3 p.m., the time a celebration of the resurrection, Saturday, September 19, in United Presbyterian Church, Claysville, with the Rev. Jerome Creach officiating.