Published: March 23, 2008 10:50 pm            

Man receives baptism in a therapy pool

ASHLAND — George Nemecek just felt the call to be baptized.

The place didn’t matter to him.

So on Easter morning, the South Shore resident was baptized in a most unusual place — a small pool at a physical therapy business.

“I felt the calling in my heart,” Nemecek said. “I needed to be baptized. I needed to show this.”

Marty Gute performed the baptism. He leads a group who call themselves River Cities Fellowship. They meet in a rented building on Holt Street along with having Bible studies at Katie’s Corner Cafe on Wednesday and Saturday nights.

Nemecek, 41, is part of that group of about 40.

“We come from all different backgrounds and denominations,” Gute said. “It’s kind of a hodgepodge of people.”

Gute said Nemecek, who moved to the area about four years ago, “has come a long way spiritually and wanted to be baptized on Easter.”

Nemecek said it didn’t matter to him about it being Easter morning necessarily. He wanted to be baptized.

At first, the group thought about bringing in a trailer with a hot tub when the offer came from Premiere Therapy on 13th Street.

“We needed to try to accommodate him (Nemecek),” Gute said. “We asked (Premiere owner) Dave Apts (about possibly using a therapy pool) and he said it would be fine.”

Gute said the baptism at a physical therapy pool was a first for him.

“I’ve done some river baptisms and some church baptisms,” he said. “I haven’t done any swimming pool (baptisms), although I’ve heard of them being done. But never in a therapy pool.”

Nemecek, who works at the brickyard in South Shore, said he wanted to make his decision to be baptized known.

“I know beyond all doubt I’m a Christian,” said Nemecek, who was born in Czechoslovakia but grew up in Chicago. “I wanted to make it public.”

MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2648.

        

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