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REV. EMANUEL BREEZE. The work of a clergyman is hard from a material standpoint, but to the conscientious minister all his efforts
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receive ample compensation in the realization of their necessity. Rev. Emanuel Breeze, pastor of the First Presbyterian church of Harrisburg, Illinois, belongs to this class, and has shown himself a very earnest worker, thoroughly devoted to his calling and in full possession of the respect and esteem of not only his parishioners but of the people of other denominations. Rev. Breeze is a native of England, and was born in Staffordshire and educated in London, where he took his theological course. He came to the United States in 1895 and was ordained in Wisconsin, where he located at Platteville, Grant county, and remained there until 1908, at which time he was transferred to his present charge. His brother, Daniel Breeze, who came to this country at about the same time, is also a minister of the Presbyterian faith and at present has charge of the pastorate at Shawneetown, Illinois. Rev. Emanuel Breeze has four brothers in the Christian ministry.
The first Presbyterian church at Harrisburg, as it now stands, was erected at a cost of thirty thousand dollars, the pipe organ being donated by the Ladies Aid Society, and during the three years that Mr. Breeze has been in charge the church has shown a wonderful growth in every way. He is not only a faithful worker as a spiritual guide, but is an excellent business man, managing the affairs of his charge in a manner that assures its future financial stability. There are now about one hundred and sixty-five members in the congregation, while the Sunday-school has a large attendance.
Rev. Breeze was married in Sumner, Illinois, to Florence Marion Peck, a daughter of Rev. Joseph Peck, London, England. Four children have been born to this union, of whom Dorothy and Kenneth, the two eldest, are still alive. Rev. Breeze was made a Mason at Dodgeville, Wisconsin, joined the Chapter at Medford, Wisconsin, became identified with the Oriental Consistory at Chicago, and eventually was made a member of the Medinah Temple, A. A. 0. N. M. S. He is popular in all of these organizations, and is known as one of the most prominent Masons in his part of the state. Dr. Breeze is a faithful and able pastor, and a chaste writer through whose vigorous and thoughtful sentences the truth is beautifully set forth; a genial and companionable friend, having always a felicitous word upon his tongue; and a sympathetic friend of both old and young, of the eminent and of the obscure. He is also known as a valued citizen, manifesting a commendable interest in the affairs of the day.