Art Beebe

(From Derfelt Funeral Home)

Bro. Arthur Andrew "Art" Beebe, longtime minister of Ben Israel Ministries/Fellowship in Cass Lake-Laporte, Minnesota, passed away on June 28, 2017 at 11:05 AM at the age of 84.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Mary (Baker-Stranathan), whom he married on December 10, 1954, and who served as his "co-minister", as well as his children Brenda, Brian, Rodney, Brent, and Eric; numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, George Andrew Beebe and Lillian Rebecca (Prince) Beebe.

A native of Coldwater, Kansas, he trained at Christ For The Nations Institute in Dallas and was a well-known and tireless minister of the gospel in the northern Minnesota region, and many other places in the U.S. and Europe.

He was a former trustee and minister among urban Christian outreaches and fellowships in the Kansas City area before relocating to Ben Israel and Dominion Farms, initially in 1975 through the 1980s.

He had retired and moved to Parsons, Kansas, and then to Joplin, Missouri in 2015.

A mentor, teacher, counselor, spiritual leader, and friend for countless people, he was a past member of the Northern Minnesota Elders Conference, Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship International in Kansas City and Bemidji, Minnesota, and for over the years served among Native Americans and congregations throughout the Chippewa Tribe, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

He was a key organizer and teacher of the annual Summer and Labor Day Convocations at Camp Dominion (north Steamboat Lake) through the late'70s-'80s, and was a main presenter at three "war colleges" at the Ben Israel Lodge held in the summer of 2014 and attended by participants from Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, North Dakota and regional Native American reservations.

He traveled broadly throughout Europe including Germany, Austria and the former communist Yugoslavia, and also throughout Israel as part of evangelistic teams.

He returned with his wife from Parsons to Ben Israel Fellowship and was administrator, trustee, and pastor of the Ben Israel Fellowship from 2009 to 2015.

He earlier attended schools and worked on ranches and wheat farms while growing up in Coldwater, before enlisting in the Army. He was honorably discharged from the US Army with the rank of sergeant as a guided missile instructor on Nike missile systems at the Army's Air Defense Training Center at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. After his enlistment, he worked in aircraft manufacturing at the Boeing Company in Kansas. Art later worked for 15 years at Bendricks, now Allied Corporation, and also a period of 10 years as County Appraiser for Cherokee and Labette Counties in Kansas. He was a member of the American Legion and the DAV, and enjoyed playing the game of golf.

He was also at the Mokahum Indian Bible School, and served the fellowship/congregation through 2015. Mokahum, founded in 1948 by the Christian and Missionary Alliance as a residential school providing Bible training to Native Americans, has hosted students from throughout the continental United States and Alaska.

Mr. Beebe was entrusted to Derfelt Funeral Home for cremation. No services are scheduled at this time. Online condolences may be expressed at www.derfeltfuneralhomes.com.