Trinity Herald. A PUBLICATION OF TRINITY EV. LUTHERAN CHURCH & SCHOOL 1268 PLEASANT VALLEY ROAD - WEST BEND, WISCONSIN July 2018

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1 Trinity Herald Summer Worship Schedule Sundays 8:00 & 10:00 a.m. Mondays 7:00 p.m. Serving Trinity Pastor Kenneth Mellon Office - # Cell - # pastor@trinityels.org Dennis Leckwee, Principal Office - # Cell - # d.leckwee@trinityels.org Church & School Secretary Kathy Minzlaff Office - # Cell - # secretary@trinityels.org Church Council Chairman: Mark Uhlig Secretary: David Schultz Treasurer: Jason Hadler Financial Secretary: Ron Bentz Board of Education: Seth Krenek, Ben Puestow Board of Elders: Martin Knuth, Jeff Minzlaff & David Miller Board of Stewardship: Seth Kremer, Adam Krenek Board of Trustees: Scott Larson, Robert Miller & Ed Jahn Special Interest Dates July 8 th Church Picnic (time) 30 th VBS 9 11:30 a.m. August 5 th /6 th School Registration 23 rd First day of School September 9 th Sunday school & Bible Class 23 rd Mission Festival A PUBLICATION OF TRINITY EV. LUTHERAN CHURCH & SCHOOL 1268 PLEASANT VALLEY ROAD - WEST BEND, WISCONSIN July 2018 Liberty, Freedom, & Independence People in Brazil celebrate it on September 7th. Canadians celebrate it on July 1st. The French celebrate it on July 14th. Mexicans celebrate it on September 16th. On July 4th we Americans join together in celebrating our Independence Day. Countries all over the world have designated special holidays where their people join together to celebrate their liberty and freedom. This goes to show that liberty, freedom, and independence are principles and virtues that are appreciated and cherished everywhere. Nobody wants to be oppressed or tyrannized. Such things are universally recognized as bad. We want liberty and freedom, from such torment. And so, on Independence Day we celebrate the fact that those who went before us were able to cast off the burdensome chains so that we might have things better! The Bible also speaks about the importance of having liberty and freedom. The Christian understands that he is one who is by nature oppressed, tyrannized, and burdened. It is something that all people can feel because all people understand guilt. We know what we have done to hurt and harm those that we should be loving. The burden of a heavy conscience gets worse when we recognize that our own attempted solutions to correct things end in failure, continued distress, and despair! Where can we turn for liberty, freedom, and independence of our guilt and sin? The Christian finds relief in Him who said: Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28) We find comfort in the One who proclaims: Take heart! Your sins are forgiven. (Matthew 9:2) We find liberty, freedom, and independence of our guilt and sin in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the answer to being spiritually oppressed, tyrannized, and burdened. He who came with the power of God, proving Himself to be the Son of God, points people everywhere to Himself and says: If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed! (John 8:36) Jesus invites you to celebrate your liberty, freedom, and independence over sin and guilt in heaven! This Jesus is providing you with spiritual liberty, freedom, and independence forever! Where we have sinned and feel the burden of guilt and shame, Jesus lived perfectly. There was never any burden upon Him. But He took our burden upon Himself as He went to suffer and die upon the Cross. There, Jesus took the sin and guilt that oppresses and burdens us! By trusting in Jesus life, death, and resurrection, we shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

2 PASTOR S CORNER Psalms 103:1-2 Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits. Have you received invitations lately? They usually invite us to celebrate something: a birthday, wedding or graduation. Through Psalm 103 the Psalmist David invites us celebrate that the Lord is gracious! God s gifts are so bountifully given to us that we can overlook the value of His grace. David reminds us: Forget not all His benefits. (v.2) Forgiveness is first on his list. We don t deserve forgiveness. But God offers it to us freely. David also states: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. (v. 8) God s people, Israel, often sinned against God. One glaring time was when they worshiped the golden calf. God s judgment broke out against them and some people died. The survivors repented and pleaded for God s mercy. This was God s reply: The Lord the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. (Exodus 34:6-7) Many people today live in rebellion against God s will and His Word. Some think that God must not be angry if He isn t quickly punishing them. But Peter wrote, The Lord is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) King David had sinned, and yet when he repented of his sins, the Lord forgave him. He was amazed! So, we should be as amazed when David writes in our verses: He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities (v.9-10). God should judge and condemn us for our sins against Him and against each other. Yet, God did not leave us to die in judgment. He sent His Son to die instead. God caused Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that we might become righteous before God. Now in Christ, God sees believers with no condemnation! We are a new creation. Christ removed our sins from us as far as the east is from the west! His perfection covers our many sins as high as the heavens are above the earth! By God s grace through faith in Jesus, we receive it all! When sports teams win a national championship, their fans go wild. After Jesus rose from death, He appeared to His followers and they rejoiced so much they couldn t stop talking about it. Jesus resurrection showed that His victory was a victory won for us. We who believe in Him as our Savior cannot help but say: Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. At the end of this world Jesus will send out one more invitation: Come, you who are blessed, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from before the world was created. (Matthew 26:41) Because the Lord is gracious, we will be standing in that blessed crowd in amazement. Even now with thanks we say: Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name (v.1). Pastor Mellon FROM THE PRINCIPAL & SCHOOL NEWS Summers are never as slow as we hope, well at least it isn't here at Trinity. We have been so blessed this past year and look forward the many blessings of a new school year. Last year we ended with an enrollment of 81 children, 15 of which were in our Preschool program. What a blessing! Also, we graduated 14 from 8th grade. This year, as of July 1, we are looking at an enrollment of 89, 17of which are in our Preschool program. Praise God for the continued blessings! We also are thankful for the many years of dedicated service of Mrs. Barb. We will sadly miss seeing her face each day with our little ones! Wisconsin State Legislators passed a bill to offer schools in the state grants to improve security. We praise God that our request for a grant of $21,800 was accepted. This will allow us to update and add to our school security system. Again, such a busy summer - but not too busy that we miss the blessings of our Lord! Teacher Installation: The installation of our new teachers will be at the outdoor service on July 8 at 10 a.m. Mrs. Andrea Loduha, a former teacher for grades 3 & 4 has returned. Mrs. Mandy David, our 3k & 4k teacher last year, will be teaching 5k. Mrs. Beth Hagedorn accepted a call to teach the preschool classes. The 3k &4k classes are nearing capacity on certain days. New playground equipment: With our expanding preschool and kindergarten the school decided to purchase new playground equipment geared for smaller children. This will be added to the equipment which we already have on the playground. Much of the funding came through the Trinity fish fry in May and a brat/hamburger fry in June. Other donations were also given individually. Thank you all the people who worked and/or contributed to make this new playground equipment a reality for the children!

3 Spring 2018 Recap Easter for Kids Saturday, March 17, The children who attended got to hear the true meaning of Easter. They also made a religious craft, gathered Easter eggs, and received gift baskets. Confirmation Palm Sunday, March 25, We had a class of 12 students that were confirmed this year. The children s names are: Gretchen Beaty, William Beseke, Cullen Brickner, Emily Buch, Logan Draeger, Roland Gutknecht, Patricia Leckwee, Logan Measner, Samantha Meier, Ryen Pagano, Braeden Reichert, Jacob Turnblom- Engskow (Logan Draeger is not pictured.) Easter Breakfast Sunday, April 1. With Easter service times at 6:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. the Easter breakfast between had a large crowd in the fellowship hall. The donations given will be used to help pay for remodeling the church kitchen. Ladies Guild Guest Speaker Wednesday, April 25, Guests from other congregations joined our members to welcome The Global History Buff, (David Wiedenkeller). He plays the roles of various historical figures. He and his wife spoke as Martin Luther and his wife Katie. Trinity All School Play Fiddler on the Roof Saturday, April 28, After months of preparation the children presented the play Fiddler on the Roof. The gymnasium was nearly full as the crowd heard many memorable songs from the play. Thank you to the students, parents, teachers, especially Mrs. Leckwee for directing, and many other volunteers. Friday Fish Fry for Fun Kids Stuff Friday, May, 11, 2018 Over 800 meals were served at the school s 2 nd annual fish fry dinner. The fundraiser included a silent auction, plant sale, and people could order meals to eat in or by the drive-thru. The fellowship time for church families and guests was awesome. Several families toured our school for the first time. Bethany Lutheran College Choirs and Hand Bell Choir - Tuesday, May 15, The choir from Bethany Lutheran College, Mankato, MN, had an evening concert at Trinity. The church was full of members and Bethany alumni from southeastern Wisconsin. The concert included many classic songs and some Norwegian folk tunes. Bethany Lutheran College is a conservative liberal arts Christian college offering many degrees including business, music, nursing, and engineering. It is owned and operated the Evangelical Lutheran Synod.

4 Mrs. Barb Speerschneider s Retirement Sunday, May 20, The gymnasium was full of members, friends, and former students, as they wished Mrs. Barb a blessed retirement. She had taught kindergarten and/or preschool at Trinity for 28 years. Barb plans to continue to help her husband, Jim, with art classes with the 5 th and 6 th graders. Graduations Kindergarten & Preschool End of the Year Program - Tuesday, May 22, The year ended with a beautiful program for the children in the sanctuary. Many parents, grandparents, and friends were able to attend. 8 th Grade Graduation Thursday, May 24, The sanctuary was filled with family and friends as Trinity had its first 8 th grade graduation service. In the past, it had been included with a Sunday service or Ascension service. There were 14 graduates. A celebration continued after the service in the fellowship hall. Capital Campaign At the annual voters meeting in February the voters decided to begin a capital campaign. A committee was formed with a mixture of long-time and newer members. Representatives from the Board of Trustees and the Stewardship Board also attend the meetings. The committee tasked with considering ways over the next few years to eliminate our long-standing church debt, which is about $245,000. They were also to receive ideas from the school and other boards to consider future short-term and long-term needs and goals for the congregation. Parking Lot Paving The voters had also determined in February to put a second coat of pavement on the parking lot. That job was completed on June 21. The parking lot looks beautiful! Thank you board of trustees! The capital campaign committee designed envelopes and has encouraged members to give offerings for the paving project. The cost was $35, Also, the longer-term goal of eliminating the debt The Longer-term Goal of eliminating the long-standing debt will be approached in several ways. One will be to seek special donations over and above the general giving. Other ways may include fundraising dinners, auctions, golf-outings, and other fun events. The board is willing to receive other suggestions. Please talk with Kyle Luebke. Abby and James Hemmelman have served Trinity church and school during this past school year, with James preaching and assisting Pastor Mellon and Abby teaching grades 3-4, coaching, and working with music for several classes. James will be vicaring at a Wisconsin Synod church in Denver Colorado. Abby will teach at a WELS elementary grade school in Denver. We wish them God s blessing on their move and future service! Pickle Ball is a fun game for people of all ages. The adults have been playing once a week in the gym. Check the bulletin for more information. The WELS Men s Softball League plays every Wednesday at Jackson Park against other WELS church teams. IF you can t play, come and cheer on the team! Check the calendar for time of games.

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7 Trinity Church Picnic Sunday, July 8, :00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. 8:00 a.m. Worship Service in Church 10:00 a.m. Worship Service in the Park 11:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. ~ Food, Music, Auction, Games How Can You HELP??? We are looking for: Volunteers for Song Groups/Entertainment Pies for the Auction (sign up forms for pies are in the narthex, under the guest register.) Auction Donations Rummage Sale items (Rummage sale items and Auction Donations can be dropped off in the library at school at any time!!) ALL Help is Welcome to Set Up for the picnic!! Saturday, July 7th beginning at 8:00 a.m. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church and School 1268 Pleasant Valley Rd. West Bend, WI Vacation Bible School 4K 5th Grade Monday, July 30th - Thursday, August 2nd 9:00 11:30 a.m. Come join us for fun and learning. There will be Bible lessons, crafts, exercise, play and some treats during our 4-Day VBS.

8 Trinity PreK K - Brat Jackson Piggly Wiggly Saturday, August 4 th School Registration Sunday, August 5 th 9:00 a.m. Noon o Monday, August 6 th 5-7 p.m. KMLHS First day of School Thurs., August 16 th Trinity First day of school Thurs., August 23 rd - Opening Service - 8:15 a.m. Sunday School and Bible Class - begin on September 9 Service Times Change - on September 9 to 8:00 a.m. & 10:30 a.m. Mission Festival Sunday, September 23. Guest Speaker Karim Yaghleji, an ELS seminary student, who was originally from the persecuted Christian church in Syria. He will preach and have a presentation between services. A potluck meal will be served after second service.