Rev. Ernest D. Breithaupt

Ernest DeWitt Breithaupt was born to Holy Ghost-filled parents on August 16, 1937, in Grant Parish three miles outside of Georgetown, Louisiana. During the 1940s, Ernest attended church most of the time in either a brush arbor, a tent, or a store front. It was a wonderful heritage of pioneer Pentecostal evangelism.

Ernest received the baptism of the Holy Ghost June 19, 1948, and was baptized in the name of Jesus two days later. He began to feel his call into the ministry when he was sixteen.

In 1957, he went to the Apostolic Bible Institute in St. Paul, Minnesota. At ABI, he met Wally Ann Bierschenk from Louisville, Kentucky. They were married August 23, 1958. In 1959, they moved to Frankfort, Kentucky to build a church there. It was there in 1960 that their daughter Lori was born.

In 1962, he returned to ABI as an instructor and also pastored the daughter church of Midway Tabernacle in St. Paul Park, Minnesota. Teaching Bible college students was very fulfilling and meaningful. From there, the Breithaupts moved to Apopka, Florida, where Brother Breithaupt served as pastor of the United Pentecostal Church. In 1965, their daughter Lisa was born.

In 1968, he was elected to the pastorate of the Apostolic Church in Belleville, Illinois. This was a thriving church with many receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Gateway College of Evangelism began in 1968 and for its first three years he served as an adjunct faculty member.

In 1972, Brother Breithaupt was elected to be full-time secretary of the Illinois District. This opened a door for him to labor in the organizational work of the UPC; something for which he felt a divine calling. He strongly believed that a Spirit-directed, unified church structure would be a vital part of the end time evangelization effort of the people of God.

He was elected to be the superintendent of the Illinois District in 1981. He held this position for twenty years, during which time he initiated the Illinois Ablaze program and led the district in establishing Chicago Metro Evangelism.

In 1989, he was appointed to the Budget Committee of the General Board and continues to serve there for many years. In 1991, he was authorized to start a Home Missions church in Bloomington, Illinois. God blessed this effort, the church grew, and in 1994 they bought seven acres of property to build a new church.

One very enjoyable assignment for him was becoming part of the board of directors of Tupelo Children’s Mansion in 1972.

Brother Breithaupt passed from this life on April 27, 2017.