ELCA NEWS SERVICE
January 28, 2009
Punxsutawney Lutherans Welcome Groundhog Day Visitors
09-026-SH
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- For years on Feb. 2, Bud Dunkel put on
a tuxedo and top hat, headed to the outskirts of his Pennsylvania
hamlet, then hoisted its most famous resident into the air for
spectators waiting to hear a weather prediction.
Dunkel lives in Punxsutawney, home of Phil, the woodchuck
weatherman immortalized in the 1993 movie "Groundhog Day."
According to town legend, if Phil sees his shadow Feb. 2, expect
six more weeks of winter; if not, plan on an early spring.
"Phil is fun, but our faith is in Christ," said Dunkel, 78,
a retired roofer and past president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog
Club. He's also a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA).
Two area ELCA congregations -- First English and Mount
Zion -- join to serve soup, sandwiches and sweets as the crowd
returns from Gobbler's Knob, the hill where Phil usually emerges
about 7:30 a.m. Gates open at 3 a.m.
Up to 30,000 people descend on the town of 6,300 residents.
"They're usually cold, tired and hungry by the time Phil
finally comes out," said Pauline Means, 79, a member of First
English Lutheran Church. "We're glad to feed them something
warm."
Meal organizer Shirley Reitz said the celebration is an
opportunity for Lutherans to demonstrate Christ-like hospitality.
"We make a point to welcome everyone," she said.
The two congregations together draw fewer than a hundred
worshippers on Sundays. Although small and struggling, they give
charities the money made from food sales on Groundhog Day.
"Everybody works together to help the town," said Nancy
Pifer, 70, a member of Mount Zion Lutheran Church.
Five years ago a fire destroyed the First English church
building. The blaze started in the steeple as members ate
pancakes in the basement. Everyone escaped, thanks to a passerby.
They eventually erected a new church building.
Reitz, 78, and Means, 79, both lifelong residents, only
once trekked to Gobbler's Knob on Feb. 2. "It's too cold!" Means
said. "Sometimes it can be 3 or 4 degrees below zero."
Dunkel said the annual gathering grew bigger and rowdier
after the movie hit the big screen. "We'd get pelted with beer
bottles," he said. "They'd close in on us and try to grab our
top hats. It was frightening. We couldn't stand it."
The event now strives to be alcohol-free and family
friendly. Organizers expect a smaller crowd this year because
Groundhog Day falls on a Monday, and just hours after the
Pittsburgh Steelers play in Super Bowl XLIII.
Dunkel said that handling Phil is harder than it looks.
"He ripped and roughed up many of my tuxes," Dunkel said and
laughed. "But I only went to the hospital a couple of times for
bites and shots."
For a time, Dunkel raised groundhogs in his home. "Only
three at a time," he said. Phil now stays in an enclosed area
at the town's library.
Phil has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and at the
White House over the years. The Groundhog Club insists that
he's nonpartisan.
"Phil is not Catholic, Presbyterian or Lutheran," said
club officer Michael Johnston. "He's not Republican or Democrat
.. He is an entity, not a personality. Phil doesn't speak or
give opinions."
Groundhogs usually only live a few years. The club says
that Phil's been predicting winter's end with 100 percent
accuracy for more than 120 years.
"Those prognosticators who question the science of all
this are missing the point," Johnston said. "Phil's here to
make people smile and provide a little escapism during the
bleak midwinter."
Dunkel agrees.
"Lutherans join in the fun of Phil, but we don't worship
a groundhog," he said. "That would be counter to the deeply
held beliefs about God central to the church."
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For information on the Punxsutawney celebration, go
to http://www.groundhog.org/ on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
