Loetta Lohrke is the strongest connection with our family to St. John's
   Lutheran Church. She is the eldest of four daughters born to Laverne and
   Geneva Westerman, life-long residents of the Nashville area and life-long
   members of St. John's. In June of 1969, Loetta married the Rev. Merlyn
   Lohrke, originally from Watertown, Minnesota, who had been serving St. 
   John's of Nashville and Trinity, Medicine Lodge, Kansas, as their pastor.
     The Rev. Lohrke is a graduate of Concordia Seminary of St. Louis, 
   Missouri, having graduated in 1964 before beginning his first pastorate
   in Nashville.
     The Lohrkes moved from Nashville in April 1971 to Sioux City, Iowa,
   where Merlyn was pastor at Faith Lutheran Church until November 1976.
     The next move was back to Kansas where Merlyn served Christ Lutheran
   Church in Hutchinson, Kansas, until June 1983. He served as LLL and LWML
   Councelor and hospital chaplain while in Hutchinson.
     Presently he is serving Zion Lutheran Church at Crown, Minnesota. Zion
   also has a parochial school as part of its ministry. At Crown he has
   served as a zone advisor to the LLL and also as circuit counselor.
     Loetta has served as church organist, choir director and Sunday School
   music leader in parishes in Sioux City, Hutchinson and Crown. Loetta has
   also served as a chapter-one teacher in the parochial school at Crown and
   in the public school in St. Francis, Minnesota.
     Martin and Marla were born into the family in Sioux City and Michael was
   born in Hutchinson. Martin is currently attending college in Ely, Minnesota.
   Marla is a senior at St. Francis High School and Michael is a fifth grader
   at the parochial school in Crown.
                      
  Source:St. John's Lutheran Church Centennial 1893-1993, Nashville, Kansas, pg. 69 
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