I have been adding information to our Historical Timeline page and have been scanning in photos and newspaper clippings. This is one I found on the cross we have dedicated to Gerald Fredrickson. The article was written in 1968.
“A Granite Cross, pictured to the side, stands today in the courtyard of Ortonville’s First English Lutheran Church, in memory of Airman Gerald Fredrickson, who was killed last year when fire broke out on the Carrier U. S. S. Forrestal in the China Sea off Vietnam.
The Cross was given by Mrs. Fredrickson to the Glory of Christ in memory of her husband, who was born Dec. 2, 1945, and died on July 19, 1967.
This particular cross is sometimes known as the Crusaders Cross, used by the Crusaders in the year 1000. It has been used much by the church for decorative purposes, but still retains its basic function to remind us of the hope in the Cross and that it is to be a pattern for our conduct in life.
According to John 15:13, ‘Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.’
The Cross and its standard was made by Rausch Bros. Granite Company, Ortonville, and was dedicated at a recent Sunday morning Worship Service.”
