On June 4, Rick Rimert officially closed the chapter on years of ministry. Rimert served as a pastor for multiple congregations in the Penn Manor area for 35 years and has returned to East Petersburg, where he grew up, to spend his time in retirement.

A celebration to honor Rimert and his wife, Diane, was held on June 4 at Conestoga United Methodist Church (UMC), where he led the congregation for 13 years. Prior to serving the community at Conestoga UMC, Rimert was the pastor at Calvary UMC in Mohnton for five years. Since graduating from Lancaster Theological Seminary in 1990, Rimert has also served the congregations of Colemanville UMC, Safe Harbor UMC and Berwyn UMC.

"It was a privilege and a joy to serve for all of those years," Rimert said. "I met some great people and found great opportunities that I never would have had otherwise."

When he was young, Rimert was a member of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in East Petersburg. He graduated from Hempfield High School in 1971 and attended Elizabethtown College, graduating in 1975. Rimert was working as a manager at McDonald's at the age of 34 when he felt called to become more involved in the ministry. He continued to work as a restaurant manager during his first year of seminary. "I had been feeling a nudge from God to serve in a more complete way," Rimert said. "I had been active in church throughout my life, but I felt called to join the seminary."

After becoming ordained, Rimert was selected by the church to serve in Penn Manor, and he moved out of East Petersburg with Diane and their two young sons. The family rented out their home in East Petersburg and lived in parsonages during Rimert's career as a pastor, and his two sons graduated from Penn Manor High School.

Although Penn Manor was one of the geographically closest communities that Rimert could have been selected for, he hadn't spent much time in the area and was unfamiliar with it. "People were so kind and welcoming. It was a really good experience," Rimert said. "I made so many connections there and continue to keep in touch with people."

Now that he has entered retirement, Rimert looks forward to just being able to be a worshipper instead of leading a congregation. He also looks forward to reconnecting with the community he was raised in. Although East Petersburg may not be the exact same place where he spent his youth, it's still his hometown; as a boy, he delivered newspapers to the home where he will spend his retirement years.