Program discusses local Swedenborg followers

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At 2 p.m. Sunday, May 19 the Champaign County Historical Museum will host a program about the followers of Emanuel Swedenborg in Champaign County.

Robbin Ferriman and Barbara Clark will present the program, which is free to the public and will take place at the museum located at 809 E. Lawn Ave., Urbana.

Preceding the program, Judge Evan P. Middleton Awards will be presented to 23 National History Day candidates who qualified at the state level. Of those, 4 have qualified for national competition and will receive the Henry Howe Excellence in History Award. This year’s award winners are Urbana Jr. High and Urbana High School students. All county schools have been invited to participate in the National History Day program.

Barbara Clark is an Urbana native and a recently-retired human resource professional with a bachelor’s degree in organizational behavior; she has been a member of Urbana Swedenborgian Church for 6 years. Barbara notes that “While some local church histories have been memorialized, we found that the history of the Urbana Swedenborgian Church was scattered in pieces..”

Robbin Ferriman, who holds a BFA from Ohio University, has lived in Urbana since 2005 and has been a member of the Swedenborgian Church for about 11 years. Robbin points out that “The early church and university played a significant role in the community as the town grew and people were bringing their different faiths and religious ideology with them.” Both are researching the history of the Church and its connection with Urbana University.

National History Day Awards to be presented

Submitted story

Submitted by the Champaign County Historical Society.

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