SEIBEL 90th

The Village Church members and friends met in the social room of the Village Retirement Center in Gresham, Ore., on April 23, 2016, to honor Eva (Nelson) Seibel on her 90th birthday.

Eva is the daughter of the late Henry V. and Helen (Sandberg) Nelson. She attended elementary school and academy in Mountain View, Calif., and graduated in 1944. Eva then attended Pacific Union College (PUC) in Angwin, Calif., where she studied music and pre-nursing.

Eva met Marvin Seibel through a close friend. When Marvin returned from World War II, they resumed their friendship. Marvin became an Adventist, and the couple was married on Sept. 1, 1946, in Mountain View.

Henry Nelson offered his new son-in-law an opportunity to learn the building trade by helping Marvin construct a home for the newlyweds in Los Altos. The following year, Maurice Mathison encouraged Marvin to attend PUC to become a minister. Eva and Marvin prayed for guidance, which seemed to come in the form of a timely for cash sale of the new home making ministerial study possible.

They were further blessed by the arrival of a daughter, Marlene, and a son, Douglas. Marvin completed his ministerial studies and was awarded a degree in theology in 1953. He and Eva worked in northern California, Oregon and Hawaii, including seven years pastoring at the Village, for a total of 45 years.

In the ensuing years, Eva worked in the offices of several doctors and a dentist to ensure an Adventist-based education for all the children, which now included a second daughter, Wendy. All of the children became professional nurses.

In 2000, Marvin contracted Parkinson’s disease. After a long struggle, he passed to his rest and was buried at the Willamette National Cemetery in 2013. He is sorely missed by Eva, their family and friends.

Eva's family includes Doug Seibel and Wendy (Seibel) Williams reside in the Portland, Ore., area, and Marlene (Seibel) Lovenguth resides in Gold Beach, Ore., where she works as a certified registered nurse anesthetist; 6 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

Dave Lovenguth, Marlene’s husband, provided an enjoyable program during Eva's birthday buffet. The catering was managed by Sandi Frazier, also a Village resident.

Eva’s hobby is oil painting, particularly of the mountains in California and Oregon. Eva’s paintings of Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood adorn her living and dining rooms. Eva continues to play her piano and sing, although her cat, Misty, seems unimpressed. Eva says that the Village is a lovely, peaceful place and she enjoys her life here. She is thankful for her family and the hope of Jesus’ soon return.