Anna Marie Boerner Aderman gets Confirmed

The Boerner family in Gaulsheim, Germany were members of the Roman Catholic Church. When Martin Boerner, Sr. immigrated to Wisconsin, he continued in the family faith tradition. He raised his children in St. Anthony Catholic Church in Niagara, WI. The family is not remembered as weekly attenders at mass, but supported the ministry of the Catholic Church.

When Ann married Oscar Dearl Aderman, who was a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, the young couple decided they would both attend the Lutheran congregation and raise their children there. They had married August 9, 1930 and Ann took her classes to be a confirmed member of the Lutheran congregation. Three months later, on November 2, 1930, when she was 20 years old, Rev. Henry Hopp of the Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Daggett, MI confirmed Ann. Later, they transferred their membership closer to their home in Niagara, WI and became strong members of Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Iron Mountain, MI.

Confirmation Certificate for Anna Marie Rose Adermann

My father remembers hearing that Ann’s brothers and sisters chastised her for leaving the Roman Catholic Church and joining the Lutherans. This, of course, was a different era and Catholics and Lutherans were still at odds with each other. It ended when their father, Martin Boerner, Sr., sided with her and reminded the rest of his children–her siblings–that she was quite active in her congregation and surpassed their own involvement. Fortunately, he understood that faithful participation was more valuable than simple membership.