Hilda Weber Carper, 94, died peacefully at home in Evanston on Dec. 22. She was born March 4, 1927, to Reuben and Eva Carper, third of four children, on a farm in Lancaster County, Penn. She credited her schoolteacher mother and Mennonite Church upbringing as important educational and spiritual influences in her life.
After her family moved to southeast Virginia, she completed high school and attended Eastern Mennonite College for a year. She finished her college degree at Goshen College, Goshen, Ind., in 1950, after taking time off to teach in Virginia and Detroit. She then accepted an assignment writing children’s church curriculum in Basel, Switzerland with the Mennonite Central Committee from 1953 to 1957.
From her contacts among Mennonite expatriates in Europe came an invitation from John Miller to become part of the intentional Christian community forming at Reba Place Fellowship in Evanston. But it turned out her skills were more needed at a sister church in Chicago’s inner city, so she volunteered instead at Church of Hope in Chicago’s West Side Christian Parish as a teacher, choir director and eventual pastoral assistant to Rev. Julius Belser. Urban renewal forced the church to close in 1966 when the Belsers and Hilda moved to Reba Place. There Hilda organized the Reba Day Nursery (now known as the Reba Early Learning Center) in the church house at 727 Reba Place.
In 1976 she assisted the growth of Reba Place Fellowship by taking on pastoral and administrative leadership as an elder and household leader. Worship life was enhanced by her work in compiling a songbook, making worship banners and singing in the music group. She eventually reunited with Julius and Peggy Belser in leading the Clearing Household in the early ’80s.
Contact with homeless people at the Clearing led Hilda to seek a more structured way to support the needs of Evanston’s homeless. In 1984, her volunteer stint making breakfasts for overnight guests at the Lake Street Church led to her becoming the first director of the Connections for the Homeless Shelter until 1992. Residents began to say they lived at Hilda’s Place. When she retired, the name became official. In retirement, Hilda designed paper collage greeting cards for sale at Plain and Simple, supported several justice endeavors and continued offering pastoral care.
She is preceded in death by her parents, brother James Carper and sister Ruth Eitzen, and is survived by sister Jean Miller, Lititz, Penn., and many nieces, nephews and “spiritual children.” Her memorial service will be held 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6, at Reba Place Church, 620 Madison St., Evanston. Check the rebaplacechurch.org website for streaming details.
Congratulations 🎉👏 for all the good bless you from Robert Enge stay blessed Vanessa connection put me on my feet you doing a good job
Reba Early Learning Center’s foundation is grounded in community service. We never met, but as the former director of RELC, I was truly inspired by the philosophy of Hilda Carper. She was always supportive long after RELC became incorporated. Thank you Hilda for leaving RELC with a powerful legacy.