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Ella May Stumpe, possibly the oldest lay member of the

A member of Calvary UMC in Frederick, Stumpe passed away in her sleep Aug.16 at the Record Street Home, a women?s assisted living facility in downtown Frederick.

She was born Ella May Leonard on July 12, 1895, in Dunseith, North Dakota. The daughter of a pioneering family, Stumpe saw the dramatic changes in America as the country evolved from an agrarian society to an industrial and then technological superpower. She was born the year that the first U.S. patent for the automobile was created and lived long enough to see the Internet.

It was a desire to adapt to a constantly changing world that prompted this former teacher, who spent her early years in a sod house in the Great Plains, to enroll in a computer course at Frederick Community College when she was in her 90s.

Although she was ready for the digital age, modern technology wasn?t quite ready for her.

According to her obituary in The Washington Post, the college had trouble registering her because its computers couldn?t process the year she was born. Even when she went to the pharmacy to fill a prescription on the rare occasion, the computers would not accept her birth date.

Stumpe embraced the modern conveniences as they came along, but focused more on spiritual matters throughout her life.

'She felt fortunate to have been raised by devout Christians and grew up with the need to honor God,' said Sue Ann Wilms, her longtime friend who is a retired nurse and a fellow member of Calvary UMC.

Stumpe?s mother was a Presbyterian who made sure her family all got to church on Sunday. Her father, a Quaker, believed in the importance of rest on the Sabbath and always wore a white shirt to church.

Together they attended the Presbyterian services that were held in the granary on her family?s wheat farm. Many times, the circuit minister who traveled to their homestead would stay at their house for dinner.

It made an impression on her.

When she was about six years old, the Methodists bought out the Presbyterian Church that was later built in the town. It was at that point that she became a Methodist.

Her marriage to first husband, Bill Grobman, who was a member of the Disciples of Christ Church, prompted Stumpe to change denominations, and she remained a member of his church for much of her life, even after he passed away.

It would be decades later at the age of 101 that she would return to her Methodist roots.

But whatever church she attended, Stumpe remained a firm believer of Christian morals. She strongly opposed smoking and drinking and didn?t like the frantic pace of modern life, said her obituary in the Washington Post.

'From the Pinnacle of my advanced years, I see no end in sight for recovery from this mad race to improve ?What was already pronounced good,?' she wrote in an autobiography, paraphrasing from the Bible.

'I think she really trusted the Lord in all her trials and tribulations,' Wilms said. 'She had a strong faith and she prayed about everything including joys and sorrows. She didn?t pray just when she needed it. She enjoyed praying for others both in times of joy and times of need.'

She had many members of her family to remember in her prayers. Married three times, her legacy included five children, two of whom survive, 14 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren, and two great-great grandchildren.

Stumpe moved to Maryland in the late 1960s after her third husband, Walter Stumpe, passed away. That?s when she met Wilms who was her nurse at Leisure World, a senior community in Silver Spring. It was a friendship that spanned a 45-year-old age difference.

'We formed a friendship at the bridge table and remained friends for more than 30 years,' said Wilms.

Eventually, Stumpe moved to Frederick to live with Wilms and her husband. Together they searched for a new church home.

'Ella May looked long and hard for a church,' said Wilms. 'The main reason she was attracted to Calvary UMC was the strong theological message of Rev. Manthey. She believed in the importance of a strong spiritual message on Sunday.'

Stumpe remained active in the women?s group at Calvary and even attended this year?s Easter pancake breakfast.

Wilms was with her friend when she died, and said that she was ready to go.

'Her goal wasn?t to live to 110,' said Wilms. 'Her main goal was to live as long as she could serve the Lord.'