IN MEMORIAM: Rev. Isaac (“Ike”) Apol

Rev. Isaac “Ike” Apol, 88, a humble servant of his Sender who was genuine in his relationships and deeply appreciative of the beauty of God’s Word and the natural world, died on April 25 following a brief illness.

Apol was born in Cutlerville, Mich., where he attended Christian schools and Calvin College. He graduated from Calvin Theological Seminary and was declared a candidate for ministry in the Christian Reformed Church in 1951.

Apol served the following congregations: Hamilton (Mich.) CRC; Archer Avenue CRC, Chicago; Anaheim (Calif.) CRC; Parklane CRC, Portland, Ore.; Sherman Street CRC, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Irving Park CRC, Midland Park, N.J.; First CRC, Highland, Ind.; and Richfield CRC, Clifton, N.J. He retired in l987, serving on an interim basis in 10 more congregations across the next quarter century.

Apol had a wonderful and natural way of relating to people, respecting and loving them, and receiving the same in return. He loved the Word and enjoyed his times of study in preparing sermons. Although he would not have claimed to be a scholar, he deeply appreciated reading and studying theology, taking courses at McCormack Seminary in Chicago and becoming one of the first CRC pastors to attend the summer theological institute of Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He was widely read in the works of Abraham Kuyper.

Apol’s interests and hobbies ranged as widely as his native curiosity. He was a fine gardener, an avid bird watcher, and became an expert at upholstering furniture and at rushing and caning chairs.

Apol is survived by his wife, Alice, and their children Kathleen and Mark Lucas, Philip and Shari Apol, Rosemary Apol Hoezee and Scott Hoezee, and by seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.