Elven Shantz
Inducted In
1975
The Swiss ancestors of Elven Shantz immigrated from Pennsylvania to Waterloo County in 1809. A son of Menno and Susanah Shantz, he was a Saskatchewan homesteader for ten years and later a monument manufacturer in Berlin.
Shantz was Past President of the Ontario Pioneer Community Foundation and a member of Waterloo District Heritage Foundation. The Hall of Fame is greatly indebted to his knowledge and guidance.
He has given outstanding service as Secretary of the Military problems Committee of the Historical Peace Churches; as an ombudsman for Mennonite conscientious objectors and as chairman of the Peace and Social Concern Committee. He represented the Old Order Mennonites and the Old Order Amish Mennonites in their requests for exemption from government programs that are in opposition to their beliefs. He organized the Mennonite Disaster Service of Ontario and initiated the New Hamburg sale that raised huge sums for humanity.
Shantz gave excellent service to Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church for more than fifty years. Through his work he has made a unique and lasting contribution to his fellow men.