Pastor Ken and Pastor Dennis McMillen
Pastor Ken McMillen, senior pastor of New Beginning Church in Storm Lake, his wife Denise, and their family moved to Early in 2009. He became interim pastor in October 2022 and began preaching in January 2023. I work full time. At VT Industries in Holstein.
Pastor Ken said his church’s mission is to bring the word to every home in this county.
“We believe that Jesus Christ can heal hearts, transform lives, and restore relationships,” Pastor Ken commented. “We believe that God still responds to and cares for the physical needs of people. God wants to show love to all people. We share the light We love what we do and we work hard to support and help each other. Everyone is welcome here.”
He said that although there is one church, there are two expressions. They conduct services in Spanish with Argentine Ruiz, a Spanish pastor who has served the church for 10 years.
“This is two groups coming together to reach the community and the world,” he said.
Dennis keeps busy with homeschooling and also helps with church services.
“We love serving the Lord together,” Pastor Ken said. “Dennis is the organizer.”
The McMillens met at Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny. They married in 1984. She has 11 people in her family. Christine and Matthew Shipman live in Templeton with her seven children. Joe and Elizabeth are in Marshalltown with her seven children. Luke and Bridget have one child, a Holstein. Caleb and Eileen of Kingsley, one child and another on the way. Tim and Barso live in Spencer with her four children. Faith is in Colorado and her sons Matthew, Hannah, and Isais Cabrera are in Ohio. Zach and Sam both live in Storm Lake and work at Fairway. Jed is home-schooled in her final year of high school. They have 21 grandchildren.
“Kids keep you young,” Dennis smiled.
Prior to coming to Storm Lake, Pastor Ken served as a pastor in Wall Lake for 11 years. They lost their home in a fire, but three days later he was called from VT to work there again. They moved to Arley and Ken continues to work at VT.
Dennis grew up in Cherokee. Her parents are the late Ken Jones and Nancy Jones, who currently reside in Paulina. Ken grew up in Slater and her father was a pastor at Ft. His parents are the late Don McMillen and Arlene McMillen, who currently resides in Boone.
The McMillen family enjoys playing skip board and ping pong together.
“She hit me,” Ken smiled.
Here are some of our favorite recipes.
german pancakes
3 1/2 c. flour
2 1/2 c. milk
1/2 cube (1/4 cm or 4 tablespoons) butter
3 eggs
Melt the butter in an 8x8x2 inch casserole dish in a preheated oven to 425 degrees.
Mix all other ingredients together. Brush the sides of the casserole dish with melted butter, pour the batter with the other ingredients and bake in the center of the oven for 20 minutes.
Sprinkle powdered sugar on top or serve with your favorite syrup.
sourdough pancakes
1c. Starter
3c. Flour
2c. Milk
Mix until smooth. Place in the refrigerator overnight. We left in the morning for about 30 minutes.
Add or mix until well combined.
4 tablespoons melted butter
2 tbsp.honey
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Bake like regular pancakes.
