Mennonite Weekly Review

Peter Dyck prayed God would let him die before old age robbed him of his ability to be kind, trusting, loving and generous.

Peter Dyck, who died Jan. 4 at the age of 95, prayed “Lord, let me get home before dark.”

“Grouchy old men and women make life difficult for others and themselves,” he wrote in his book of mediations about aging gracefully, Getting Home Before Dark.

“Once they were young and strong, kind and loving, but something happened. Their generous spirits shriveled, their minds became suspicious, and they became something we thought existed only in horror stories, not in reality … O Lord, please, don’t let that happen to me. Let me get home before a darkness like that overtakes me.”

Dyck, who died Jan. 4 at the age of 95, had his prayer answered.

“Peter continued to be a supportive presence at church,” said Donna Mast, co-pastor of Scottdale Mennonite Church, where he attended. “Even though he was living with pain, he continued to be positive and encouraging, and his mind was clear.

“He got home before dark.”

Dyck’s son-in-law, Jack Scott, echoed that sentiment.

“There were some difficult days, but he didn’t succumb to darkness,” Scott said. “He sometimes struggled with memory, but he was able to recognize family and friends. He was gracious right to the end. He had a peaceful passing.”

In addition to Getting Home Before Dark, Dyck also wrote children’s books for Herald Press. But he is best known for Up From The Rubble, which he co-authored with his wife, Elfrieda, who died in 2004. That book, which sold more than 18,000 copies, details their experiences of helping Mennonite refugees to escape from war-torn Europe to find new homes in South America and Canada.

“He was an outstanding and influential Christian Mennonite,” said Levi Miller, former Herald Press editorial director. “He had a deeply committed and authentic Christian faith. The staff at Mennonite Publishing Network loved him for his stories.”

In Getting Home Before Dark, Dyck wrote: “I’m not afraid of death. I have peace with God. I can say with Paul, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith’ (2 Tim. 4:7).”