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March 1 Today in OPC History

Bill Vermeulen

2023

 

On March 1, 1984, Bill Vermeulen, a ruling elder at Griggs Street (now Harvest) OPC in Grand Rapids, began his tenure as director of evangelism and church development for the Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension. A graduate of Reformed Bible College and former Director of Development at RBC (now Kuyper College), he had previous served for three years as the regional home missionary of the Presbytery of the Midwest.

In his post with CHMCE, Vermeulen provided resources, from designing brochures and newspaper ads to teaching seminars on evangelism, that focused on helping Orthodox Presbyterian congregations develop their outreach ministries. He also assisted in the development of annual regional home missionary conferences and the OPC Readiness for Ministry seminars that are conducted regularly at several seminaries that supply ministerial candidates to the OPC. In the course of his service he became known as “Mr. Evangelism” in the denomination. As Ross Graham wrote in New Horizons, “his unbounded energy, his cheery personality, and his zeal to tell people about his Savior have made William J. Vermeulen a constant challenge to evangelistic complacency in the church for two decades.”

Bill Vermeulen stepped down from full-time service with CHMCE 1998, and enjoys living in retirement with his wife, Gladys, in Ada, Michigan.

Homepage Picture: Bill Vermeulen

Picture: Meeting of Home Missionaries in 1981. Left to right: B, Vermeulen, T. Church, Hake, C. Stonehouse, G. Black, D. Stanton.

 

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