Rebecca Pincas and her family hosted a gathering at the Edwardsville Library to share the labors of several yeras of hard and dedicated work. The subject: "The early history of Melville andi ts people." Several of the old families were represented in the audience, who later became participants in the discussion of the history that we had all been a part of starting with our heritage of our roots in the Melville community.

The presentation of the material was superb. Soft music was present at just the right time to bridge what might have been an awkward pause. Becky and her sister shared the narrative of the slides. This was done from different locations, with beautiful timing as to when the changes were accomplished.

Both of the narrators have good voices, but more importantly and unusual in today's world where most people seem to believe that the faster they talk the more important the audience will consider their message, their enunciation was clear and their diction completely understandable to me.

It was a great program. I have a little more insight into the work involved, as I have been working on preserving family and community history for over forty years, and Becky has consulted with me as she worked on the material and has used some of the pictures from the Riehl / Thompson collection.

I believe that the appreciation of the program could be directly measured by the dedication of the listener to the subject at hand.

"History belongs to everyone!" (Nolan)

I do not have an accounting of the building of the church, but this story has been apart of the Riehl heritage all of my lifetime.

My maternal Grandfather E. A. Riehl was not a church going man. Do not confuse this as saying that he was not a religious man.

1) He believed in a Divine Presence, and communed with his God through the love and prorogation of God's plants and fruits.

2) He also ministers to human problems.

--- He "figured out" the ingredients of a salve that he gave freely to the neighbors who had need of ointment and they had no money for doctor's ministration.

---He made coffins in his shop for those who could not afford the "store-bought" ones.

The only reference I found in his day books was that he had gone to a church meeting and had not been inspired by the sermon. This, the background. His opinions and thoughts on this subject were well known.

Yet, he was actively helping to build the Melville Congregational Church.

One day, and one of the other neighbor volunteers asked him:"Mister Riehl, why are you helping build this church? It is well known that you are not a church going man."

His reply went something like this: "I commune with my God through my work with God's creations like the plants and flowers. But a community needs a church for the people who need the formality of worshiping together, and the other things like funerals and weddings. I believe that a community needs a church. I am helping to build it."

Remember that in that day there were no funeral parlors to take care of funeral services. Weddings were performed in a church, or in the parsonage.