Elmer Paul Wolfenden

Dr. Elmer Paul Wolfenden of Wesley Chapel, NC, died at the age of 93 on Thursday, December 1, 2016. He was preceded in death by his wife, Beverly Hagelie Wolfenden; his brother, H. Thomas Wolfenden; and his parents, Elmer and Anna Wolfenden of Glenolden, PA. Funeral services will be Monday, December 5, 2016 at 4:00 PM in Siler Presbyterian Church. The family will visit with friends and relatives following the service. Dr. Wolfenden is survived by his sons, Steven M. Wolfenden (Tami) of Winston-Salem, NC and W. David Wolfenden (Nancy) of Manila, Philippines; daughters, Carrie W. Powell (Bruce) of Wesley Chapel, NC and Sandra W. Maples (Stephen) of Mission Viejo, CA; eleven grandchildren, Brent, (Cynthia), Justin, David, (Rachael), Evan Zachery, Noah, Calli and Keegan Wolfenden, Chris, (Brooke), Jason (Keri) Powell and Alex Maples; three great-grancdhildren, Knox and Emmett Powell and William Wolfenden; a brother, John D. Wolfenden of Wilmington, DE; sisters, Ruth A. Wolfenden of Lima, PA, Mary Talley Ginsberg (Robert) of King of Prussia, PA, Bette B. McKinlay (Arch) of Oak Harbor, WA and Anne Wolfenden Akers (John) of Montreat, NC; and sixteen nieces and nephews. The family would like to extend special thanks to his caregivers, Keri Powell and Brenda Hinson, and to Hospice of Union County. Elmer Wolfenden was born on August 30, 1923 in Holmes, PA. In 1943, he joined the United States Army and was a radar technician in the Pacific theater through the end of the Second World War. He was a graduate of Ridley Township High School (PA), Philadelphia College of Bible, Wheaton College, Cornell University and the University of Hawaii (Ph.D., Linguistics). In 1952, he joined Wycliffe Bible Translators and he and his wife worked in the Philippines to reduce tribal languages to writing and translated portions of the Bible into Masbatenyo. In addition, he worked as a language consultant with Wycliffe for other Bible translation projects in the Philippines. The Wolfendens also developed various health manuals, dictionaries, a chorus book and other educational materials for the Masbatenyo language in the Philippines. The Wolfendens retired to the Waxhaw, NC area in 1994. Elmer, however, continued working with Bible translation projects until 2001, and the Wolfendens appreciated their ongoing contact with friends at the JAARS Center in Waxhaw. Elmer was an active member of Siler Presbyterian Church in Wesley Chapel. He was chairman of the Global Missions Committee for many years. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Siler Presbyterian Church Global Missions Fund, 6301 Weddington-Monroe Rd., Matthews, NC 28104 or Wycliffe Bible Translators, P. O. Box 628211, Orlando, FL 32862-8211. Online condolences may be made at www.gordonfuneralservice.com Gordon Funeral Service and Crematory is caring for the Wolfenden family.