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Demant took the idea to a meeting of the Lutheran churches
in Humboldt County, Calif. Everyone thought it was a great
idea, and thought the best plan was to just let George do it.
So Demant went from chair of the Idea Committee, to chair
of the Fundraising Committee, and on to chair of the Building
Committe. Under his direction, St. Luke’s Manor became
a 38-bed convalescant hospital, with Demant as Chairman of
the Board.
But the board couldn’t find an administrator who would
work for the salary they could offer. Demant read a book on
hospital administration, took the state licensing test and
filled the job himself.
It would be a position he would hold for 20 years, through
St. Luke’s growth and its related challenges. Today,
St. Luke’s has 100 beds, 78 rent-subsidized apartments
and 12 luxury apartments for the elderly.
Not bad for a farm
boy from Wisconsin who never thought he would pursue a higher
education. Demant entered Dana in 1946 after feeling God’s call to enter
the ministry. While at Dana, he studied sociology with minors in English and
Christianity, and met his future wife Elna Marie Nielsen ’50. He paid
for his education by working in Dana’s kitchen and in maintenance, but
his main income came from being the campus barber. For 50 cents, he would cut
the hair of any man on campus. He entered Trinity Seminary—at the time
also located in Blair—in 1950 and was ordained in 1953.
Demant said he feels his time at Dana influenced how he would
approach ministry in the future. “I found that, although
I had been born and raised in the ‘Holy Church,’ there
were other ways of life that were acceptable to living in God’s
kingdom,” he said.
Dana College is a private, liberal arts institution that currently
enrolls approximately 600 students. The campus is located on
150 acres overlooking the Missouri River Valley in Blair, Neb.
Dana grants bachelor’s degrees in more than 20 liberal
arts, business, education and pre-professional programs. Dana
is affiliated with the Nebraska Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America, and its athletic teams compete in the Great
Plains Athletic Conference.
More information on Dana College can be found on its web site, www.dana.edu.
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For more information contact:
Sarah Cavanah
Communications Coordinator
Dana College
(402) 426-7216
scavanah@dana.edu |
