The Funeral Service
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Their Life
John and Sadie were dedicated Christians. They served God and their community with unfailing passion. As Mennonites, they allowed their faith to permeate every area of their lives. Anything less would not have been acceptable to them. John was a man of prayer who had a passion to see God glorified through everything he did. He passed this vision on to his family, and everyone who met them knew of their spiritual commitment.
He and Sadie led their family in working hard to support themselves. For years the family worked together at building storage sheds at home, gaining a reputation for quality work. They were also very actively involved in their community, being one of the first to respond to the needs they observed around them.
Being musically inclined, the Eshes sang together even when their family was still quite small. As their family grew to twelve children, they became a small choir who loved to bless the people in their community with their songs. As this desire grew, they soon produced their own albums and wrote many of their own songs. Through these recordings, they continue to bless people even after their deaths.
Sadie loved singing with her family, but was not enthusiastic about going through the rigorous process of making a music album. Her enthusiasm was tunneled instead towards the distribution of her family's music. For years she faithfully responded to phone calls and mail requests for CDs.
As the children grew into adults, they also launched out into Christian missions. During one such trip in Ukraine, their son and brother Johnny was killed in a snowmobiling accident. This was the Esh's first major confrontation with the sting of death. Through this experience, they learned to see God's love in the midst of grief.
Because of their strong testimony of faith in Jesus Christ, we know that all of the Eshes who died now live in paradise. For the remaining family, even this recent tragedy has made their faith more precious. They testify of more faith and trust in God because of these events. When they consider their family rejoicing in eternal bliss, they are able to accept these deaths, even with gratitude. They are determined not to be sidetracked by the temporal pain, but to look for the beauty that God is revealing through their losses.
Their Death
Early Friday Morning on March 26, 2010, John, Sadie, and four of their children, Leroy, Rose, Anna, and Rachel loaded into their family van to travel from their home in Marrowbone, Kentucky to a friend's wedding in Iowa. Also accompanying were Leroy's wife, Naomi, and three of their children, Rachel's fiance, Joel, and a family friend, Ashley. Just the night before the family had attended their church, Marrowbone Christian Brotherhood, where they told their friends of their trip and asked God to be with them. God was undoubtedly with this family, but his plans were different from what anyone had envisioned.
At 5:30 AM, the family was traveling on Interstate 65 in south central Kentucky when a tractor-trailer truck, loaded with heavy brake drums, veered off the highway, crossed over the medial strip, burst through a row of cable barriers, and struck their van head-on. As traffic screeched to a halt all around them, the truck continued sliding across the road where it collided with a rock wall, and burst into flames.
One of the first to respond to the scene, another truck driver, rushed to the Esh's van where he rescued two survivors, Leroy and Naomi's boys, Johnny and Josiah. The rest had already died. As rescue workers arrived at the scene, they cut off and removed the top of the 15-passenger van, only to confirm what was already known.
Hearing rumors of a fatal accident which involved a van and a Mennonite family, the Esh's pastor, Leroy Kauffman, rushed down Interstate 65 to the scene of the accident. He took two deacons of Marrowbone Christian Brotherhood with him. After making his way down the emergency strip, past miles of backed up traffic and police barricades, he accompanied the wrecked van, still holding its passengers, off the highway and identified each of the bodies.
Later that day, the Governor of Kentucky issued a statement giving his condolences and expressing his concern over the situation. In his own words, "Our entire state grieves with the community and all the families will remain in our thoughts and prayers."
Both the Kentucky House of Representatives and State Senate observed a moment of silence for the deceased. Senate President David Williams knew the family very well, and spoke of them to the Senate chamber, saying, “They were wonderful, wonderful people.”
Four days later, an estimated 3,500 people gathered from all over the country to celebrate the lives of the Eshes at their funeral. During this time, their small town of Marrowbone reached a population increase of over 100 times its normal size.
Their Music
Daddy, Will You Be There for Me?
Every Corner of the World
He Put Me On Dry Land
Home
I'll Bear You Up
Praise the Lord
Redeemer and Friend
Song of the Redeemed
The Christian Warfare
There is Joy
There's Nothing Out there
This is My Song to Thee
Twas Worth It All
Weep No More
Whom Will You Serve?
Wondrous Love