A half century of service to God was celebrated Saturday by Michael Vanmeter.
Members of the Endtime Revival Tabernacle held a special observance following services at the church south of Henryetta.
Vanmeter started his ministry with a revival at the age of 16, a time when most of his classmates at Henryetta high school were looking forward to getting their drivers license and going out on dates.vanmeter
He began at the Evangelistic Center in Henryetta, a church that uncle Kenneth Vanmeter pastored.
Two years later he and Jan Foster were married, starting a team effort that has endured and witnessed a ministry stretching across the United States and around the world.
The father of five followed in the footsteps of his Lord, working as a carpenter while planning and achieving missionary trips to the Caribbean as well as Canada, Mexico, Honduras, Bolivia, Dubai, Sri Lanka, Trinidad, Germany and Africa. One of his proudest trips was to India, a country that he has visited several times.
His association with Endtime Revival Tabernacle started in 1975 when his parents, Carl and Anita Vanmeter felt a call to build A Church south of Henryetta. He served as associate pastor at Endtime along with his missionary and evangelistic work.
In 1983 at age 29 He was asked to go to South Texas to pastor and help build New Testament Holiness Churches in Cuero and in San Antonio. They also started a Christian school while there. They pastored both churches for nine years before coming back to Henryetta in 1992.
The work in South Texas saw Vanmeter organize church camps for children. After he came back to Henryetta, he and his wife started holding yearly camps at Tiger Mountain Campgrounds.
In 2001 he started construction of Front Lines Youth Camp facilitates at Endtime Revival on ground surrounded by oaks along the road to Graham and Dustin.
Now, 20 years later, the camps have been drawing up to 100 children each year learning how to combine childhood fun with the Word of God.
The passage of time has not dampened the desire for the Vanmeters to continue with the church and provide spiritual comfort to all who will listen.