Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 09: BIOGRAPHY
Roland F. Pinke, Staff

ROLAND F. PINKE Staff
Mechanics Teacher, 1940-1946

TAGS: Roland F. Pinke, mechanics teacher, automobile mechanics, teaching contract, correspondence, William D. Webb, H.R.S. Benjamin, Arthur W. Dodd, donations, Bible School, missionaries

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Although a file for Roland F. Pinke was located in the Archives of the Pine Mountain Settlement School, its contents do not reveal much about Roland F. Pinke’s background. However, a few facts may be gathered from the letters in the files and from other sources about his life and his connection with Pine Mountain.

ROLAND F. PINKE: At Pine Mountain

He is recorded in the PMSS WORKERS 1913 – 2000s GUIDE as having taught an “auto-mechanics” class at the School from 1940 until 1946. His correspondence covering those years includes one of his contracts with the School, employing him as a mechanics teacher for the school year 1943-1944 for four hours a week at $2.00 an hour.

When away from the School, he kept in touch with letters to the directors at the time, including William D. Webb or H.R.S. Benjamin, as well as to Arthur W. Dodd, the School’s principal. Several of the letters to and from Pinke show that his address was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 1944, he sent a donation in the form of a $5.00 check for “the progress and promotion of the school in helping these mt. children obtain a richer and fuller life in things both educational and spiritual.”

In a letter dated February 22, 1945, H.R.S. Benjamin, the School’s director from 1944 to 1949, chastised Pinke for using the school account at Wombell Automotive Parts Company in Harlan, Kentucky, for his personal needs. In a four-page handwritten response, Mr. Pinke vehemently defended himself, explaining that it was a misunderstanding by the Parts Company. After an investigation, Benjamin agreed and regretted misjudging Pinke, but trusted that Pinke understood the need to ensure that all the School’s purchases were in proper order for the auditor. The two must have remained on good terms after that interaction, as Benjamin invited Pinke to Thanksgiving dinner in subsequent years and in 1945, asked him to assist in the Chapel service by reading from the Scripture.

Roland Pinke sometimes used the title “Rev.” before his name, indicating that he was a member of the clergy. His signature on his letters was always followed by “I Cor.2:2”, referencing a chapter and verse in the Bible and that signaled his deep faith and devotion to service .

The quote from Corinthians suggests Pinke’s deep devotion and his belief in the Apostle Paul’s  gospel view of Christianity. That view declares the centrality of Christ to the Church and the gospel and the placement of the crucifixion at the center of that gospel message. Pinke lived his Christian belief and he declared in his teaching was all that was needed to frame the work of Christianity. In citing 1 Cor. 2:2, Pinke was declaring himself a man of good works, as did the Apostle Paul,  “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” This core message appears to be what framed all of Pinke’s teaching, his work as “a service missionary”, and his life.

During the school year 1946-1947, he and Dr. Oma Creech spoke at Chapel Vespers. The Pine Cone of February 1941 records on page four that “Rev. Pinkey (sic)” conducted Bible School five days each week for the students of Creech School and Sunday school every Sunday.

ROLAND F. PINKE: After Pine Mountain

The only source that could be found concerning his activities after Pine Mountain was an entry in the October 24, 1975, issue of Berwyn Life newspaper in Berwyn, Illinois, stating that “service missionary Roland Pinke will discuss his work in the Kentucky mountain schools.”

ROLAND F. PINKE: Background

Rev. Roland F. Pinke was born on April 20, 1910. His mother was Katherine Gallatin Pinke. He died on December 13, 1982, in Knoxville, Tennessee.

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See Also: ROLAND F. PINKE Correspondence
Return to: BIOGRAPHY – A-Z

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Title	Roland F. Pinke
Alt. Title	Rev. Roland F. Pinke ; Roland Pinke ;
Identifier	ROLAND F. PINKE Staff
Creator	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Alt. Creator	Ann Angel Eberhardt ; Helen Hayes Wykle ;
Subject Keyword	Rev. Roland F. Pinke ; Pine Mountain Settlement School ; Roland F. Pinke ; mechanics teacher ; automobile mechanics ; teaching contract ; correspondence ; William D. Webb ; H.R.S. Benjamin ; Arthur W. Dodd ; donations ; Bible School ; missionaries ; Katherine Gallatin Pinke ;
Subject LCSH	Pinke, Roland F. — 1910 – 1982. Pine Mountain Settlement School (Pine Mountain, Ky.) — History. Harlan County (Ky.) — History. Education — Kentucky — Harlan County. Rural schools — Kentucky — History. Schools — Appalachian Region, Southern.
Date	2020-10-06 hhw
Publisher	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY
Contributor	n/a
Type	Collections ; text ; image ;
Format	Original and copies of documents and correspondence in file folders in filing cabinet.
Source	Series 09: Biography – Staff
Language	English
Relation	Is related to: Pine Mountain Settlement School Collections, Series 09: Biography – Staff.
Coverage Temporal	1910 – 1982
Coverage Spatial	Pine Mountain, KY ; Harlan County, KY ; Harlan, KY ; Milwaukee, WI ; Berwyn, IL ;
Rights	Any display, publication, or public use must credit the Pine Mountain Settlement School. Copyright retained by the creators of certain items in the collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Donor	n/a
Description	Core documents, correspondence, writings, and administrative papers of Roland F. Pinke ; clippings, photographs, books by or about Roland F. Pinke ;
Acquisition	n/d
Citation	“[Identification of Item],” [Collection Name] [Series Number, if applicable]. Pine Mountain Settlement School Institutional Papers. Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Processed By	Helen Hayes Wykle ; Ann Angel Eberhardt ;
Last Updated	December 4, 2024 hhw ;
Bibliography	Sources “Roland F. Pinke.” Series 09: Biography. Pine Mountain Settlement School Institutional Papers. Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY. Internet resource.  “United States, GenealogyBank Historical Newspaper Obituaries, 1815-2011”, database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q5SX-JTSJ : accessed 10-Oct- 2020), Roland F Pinke in entry for Katherine Gallatin Pinske, 1967. Internet resource. “United States Social Security Death Index,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V9ZW-2MQ : accessed 10-Oct-2020), Roland Pinke, Dec 1982; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing). Internet resource.

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