Conferences Friday, November 16th Saturday, November 17th Conferences Saturday, November 17th Sunday, November 18th

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1 Important Information about the Middle School (6 th -8 th grade) Gathering Conferences Friday, November 16th Saturday, November 17th Conferences Saturday, November 17th Sunday, November 18th at Luther Crest Bible Camp [8231 County Road 11 NE, Alexandria MN 56308] Enclosed in this mailing is everything you need to get yourself, your Adult Leaders, your Middle School Youth and WHEATYs ready to attend the best weekend of the year! Enclosed you will find: 1. Event poster 2. Medical Release/Parent Permission Form 3. Group Covenant 4. A Conference Map (back of this letter) Things that you will find online: 1. Sample registration form 2. Bulletin Insert 3. And everything in this mailing The LYO Board is very excited to announce the 2018 Middle School Youth Gathering, (We are the) Justice League. Super heroes are popular now, in Jesus we have the greatest super hero of all. But, we too can be super heroes. We can all make a difference and work toward the justice that is expressed in our guiding verse, Amos 5:24 Let justice roll down like waters, and righteous like an ever-flowing stream. Our first keynote speaker is Pastor Sue Koesterman, Executive Director for Churches United for the Homeless in Moorhead. Since childhood, Sue Koesterman had a dream to go into ministry. Although it was postponed, Koesterman realized her desire to enter the ministry would never be satiated until she pursued this dream. Years after getting married, having children, working in manufacturing and helping out with the music ministry at her church, she went back to school and graduated from MSUM with a degree in philosophy in Following her bachelor s degree, she acquired her Master of Divinity from Luther Seminary in St. Paul. When she turned her life upside down to pursue her passion, she uprooted her family to accept a call at Elim Lutheran Church in downtown Fargo. Working downtown made her wonder about the strangers passing by her window. Koesterman frequently visited with people from the neighborhood who were in crisis or experiencing homelessness and knew of several people who died of

2 exposure. This led her to volunteer Elim to be one of the first organizations to provide overflow shelter for the homeless and to become one of three founding coordinators of the F-M Sheltering Churches project. Koesterman soon felt led to become the Executive Director at Churches United for the Homeless. As leader of Fargo-Moorhead s largest homeless shelter, she juggles multiple hats, managing a gifted 27-member team. Under her leadership, they have managed to reduce the average length of stay with effective case management, eliminate the cycle of homelessness by reducing the number of overflow guests, and complete the 43-unit Bright Sky Apartment complex in north Moorhead. Looking back, Koesterman said, I realize God s been lining things up for a long time in ways that brought me to this point. I have no idea what the future holds, but this is where I belong now. Our second keynote speaker is Pastor Jake Anderson is the associate pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Fergus Falls, where he focuses on lay leadership and social justice ministry. He has always had a heart for the underdog and is at his very best when he is standing up for others. He loves getting bogged down in the details and believes that to try and fail is infinitely more fun than not trying at all. Pastor Jake thinks that every person matters and that the gospel saves lives. His #1 Bible verse is; It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2:20). He takes seriously the reality that the life he lives may be the only Bible some person ever reads. Pastor Jake lives in Perham MN with his wife, Pastor Cassie Anderson and has three kids; Jack (9), Layla (7), and Charlie (almost 1!). He jokingly wonders whether God called him to be a pastor because of how much difficulty he has sitting still and quiet in a church pew. Jake is a Packers fan, guitar enthusiast, and mustache evangelist. He was born and raised in the western North Dakota Badlands and will always be a cowboy at heart. Our Chaplain and Theme Weaver is Reverend Elizabeth C McHan. Pastor Elly is the Campus Pastor at Concordia College in Moorhead. Pastor Elly a 2010 graduate of Wartburg Seminary. Pastor Elly has served as the Communications Assistants for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and she did her Pastoral Internship at the American Lutheran Church in Oslo, Norway. Our worship music will be led by members of Red River Worship. The members of Red River Worship are all members of local Church worship bands including Good Shepherd Worship in Moorhead, MN & Fargo, ND and Calvary Church Worship Band in Alexandria, MN. After leading worship together each Sunday morning for a few years, each member felt called to reach outside the church walls to help all experience God.

3 Red River Worship leads at Churches, schools, colleges, youth events, private events, fundraisers, and more. They have also played at Christian Music Festivals including HopeFest in 2017 and ThriveFest in Leading a variety of worship music, from original music written and produced by Red River Worship to top Christian hits to modernly arranged hymns. Red River Worship is a 6 piece band with a full audio, video and lighting system run by the Red River Worship Production Team. They are well experienced in worship leadership, worship and music production and other ministry technologies. Cost: The non-refundable registration is $120 a person (youth, WHEATY, and adult). What is included in that? You will receive/experience: an awesome t-shirt, powerful messages, great music, terrific nightlife, moving educational experiences, fun games, housing, and all meals (dinner on Day one, breakfast and lunch on Day two), and all the stuff that youth boast about at school the Monday after the gathering. All of that while learning how to be a member of the real Justice League. You can make same gender substitutions up until 13 th but shirts are not guaranteed after November 9 th. Non-refundable Registration October 1st October 29th - $120 Late Registration October 30th November 9th - $140 Both credit card and check payments are accepted, however a fee will be added to all transactions using a credit card to offset cost of processing credit card payments. Accommodations: Since we will be at a camp, we will be staying in the new and newly remodeled winterized cabins. Each cabin has 6 bunk beds (give or take) and a bathroom (private showers). Linens are not provided. You may be sharing a cabin with other churches. Adult Leaders: Since we are in cabin-style housing we will need at least one same gender leader for every 7 of your youth. If you have any males you need at least one male leader, same for female. Adult leaders need to be at least 21 years of age. WHEATYs: Again this year there will be an opportunity to bring WHEATYS, or High School teens, who will have a short training session in peer ministry and leadership skills. WHEATYS are important role models and peer mentors. There is more information on what a WHEATY is and a job description on the synod s LYO website. As for the number of WHEATYs you can bring; every church can have at least 2. Then, you can have extra WHEATYs at this ratio 5 participants to 1 WHEATY, so at 15 Middle Schoolers there can be 3 and so on. However, the number of WHEATYs cannot outnumber the number of adults. The LYO Board recommends at least a 1:7 adult to youth ratio. Offering: This year s offering will be split between three agencies; Churches United for the Homeless, the Deacons Fund, and Lutheran Disaster Response. As part of the Gathering we will be making Blessing Bags, there is a list of items to bring below in this letter. Churches United Churches United for the Homeless Organizational Overview: Churches United for the Homeless (CUFH) was incorporated in October of 1987 by local churches. Participation in faith-based activities is completely optional for residents. Over 60 member congregations support us.

4 CUFH relies on its faith community partners for prayer, donations, and volunteers to meet its mission of providing shelter and support in a spiritual setting. Services: CUFH provides shelter, support, and case management services for men, women, and families. Embracing Housing First principles, we strive to move residents from the shelter to stable housing as quickly as possible. CUFH works to address the root cause of homelessness by increasing incomes and connecting residents to community services with a goal of increasing housing stability and preventing a return to shelter. Open to the public daily, 8:00 am 7:00 pm, the Community Center offers free hot meals daily, a free Community Bread Shelf; and, access to a Shelter Nurse for information and referrals. Statistics Recent Highlights Sheltered and Housed 602 people sheltered (2017) 74 households found affordable, stable housing (2017) Average stay decreased from 90 days to just 32 (2017) Brand new Bright Sky Apartments open as a permanent supportive housing site Support 84,000+ meals served Free Community Bread Shelf AA groups weekly Monthly resident birthday parties Spiritual Setting Bible Study groups Lenten & Advent services Brand new worship center now open with a weekly devotional service Pastor Jake is passionate about the ministry of doing what s right. He manages his congregation s Deacons Fund ; an emergency assistance ministry supported solely by the dollars his people contribute to the fund above and beyond their normal offerings. It is the only acute assistance fund available in his community on a consistent basis. Anyone at all can request assistance from the Deacons Fund, typically for food or gas vouchers but also for utilities to keep their electricity, heat, or water on, or for a hotel room to give people a night or two off the streets. Pastor Jake or his boss, Senior Pastor Tom, sit and visit with every single person who makes a request. Pastor Jake believes that just as God gave himself as a blessing for us, we are called to offer our lives as God s blessings to each other. The Deacons Fund makes it possible to connect with so many people at times in their life that can seem hopeless and helpless. Last year the Deacons Fund distributed $19,000 and helped over 500 people, and it s still growing. Just as important as the money distributed is the time spent with each person who requests help. It s true that sometimes folks truly only need a few bucks, but it s staggering how often people come looking for Christ. Grace is what they come for, and by God, grace is what they get. The LYO Board has voted to also have 1/3 our monetary offering go to Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR). Lutheran Disaster Response brings God s hope, healing and renewal to people whose lives have been disrupted by disasters in the United States and around the world. When the dust settles and the headlines change, we stay to provide ongoing assistance to those in need. We will send it to LDR so they can use it for their deepest need. Please talk to your young people before the gathering on the work that Lutheran Disaster Response does, for more information visit them online.

5 One of our breakouts will be making Blessing Bags, which each church will be able to bring bags back to their community at the end of the gathering. Please include your entire congregation/church groups to help gather items to bring. Items to consider bringing: New warm socks New/gently used warm gloves New/gently used warm hats Travel deodorant Travel toothbrush Travel toothpaste Individually wrapped bars of soap (travel or regular sized) Chapstick Airborne, EmergenC, or other chewable multivitamins Travel sized ibuprofen, Tylenol, or anti-acid Unscented hand lotion Travel wet wipes/hand wipes Travel Kleenex packages Travel package of Band-Aids New nail files/clippers Hand warmers/feet warmers Small bags of beef jerky or beef sticks Granola, protein or cereal bars Packages of crackers with cheese or peanut butter Small tuna/chicken salad cracker kits Individually packaged instant coffee Mints /gum/hard candy Night Life: This year for Night Life, we will have Open Gym, a movie, a dance and other fun stuff as well! Schedule of events: Registration is 4:00-6:00 in the Program Center (gym) entrance. Dinner will be served 5:30-6:30. The WHEATYs training will be 5:30-6:30. The Adult Leader meeting will be at 6:45, with the youth being in mixers led by the LYO Board. The gathering will conclude at about 3:00 pm, after the closing worship service. Sample of what the youth need to bring: Clothes for 1 day Offering money Blessing Bag items Linens (bedding/sleeping bag, pillow, towel/wash cloth) Pajamas Toiletries Come with your youth, and together discover how we can work for God s justice in our communities and world. Blessings on the rest of your day! Kristina Johnson Dernier, LYO Advisor and Gathering Coordinator Keep updated on Synod LYO information: NWMN SYNOD LYO web site Kristina lyo@cord.edu OR contact John Bell at (218) OR jbellsynod@cord.edu

6 Lancaster Hallock Lake Bronson Kennedy Halma ROSEAU 1 Greenbush Badger Roseau Warroad Salol Roosevelt Williams Baudette Karlstad Strathcona Stephen 2 THIEF RIVER FALLS Strandquist Middle River Newfolden Holt Gatzke Grygla Oslo Alvarado Buxton, ND Cummings, ND Warren East Grand Forks Gardner Northwestern Minnesota Synod Conferences 1 Roseau 2 Thief River Falls 3 Crookston 4 Bemidji 5 Moorhead 6 Detroit Lakes 7 Fergus Falls 8 Alexandria Revised: 3/15/16 Fisher Climax Nielsville Shelly Halstad 5 Viking Crookston CROOKSTON Hendrum Perley Borup Felton MOORHEAD Beltrami Ada 7 3 FERGUS FALLS ALEXANDRIA 8 Thief River Falls St. Hilaire Red Lake Falls Fertile Gary Twin Valley Ulen Hitterdal Averill Moorhead Hawley Glyndon Dilworth Rollag Rustad Barnesville Comstock Wolverton Breckenridge Rothsay Wheaton Flom Plummer Goodridge Oklee Trail Gully McIntosh Fosston Winger Lengby Bejou Mahnomen Waubun 6 DETROIT LAKES Lake Park Audubon Detroit Lakes Pelican Rapids Erhard Elizabeth Fergus Falls Foxhome Wendell Elbow Lake Herman Battle Lake Underwood Dalton Frazee Bagley Perham BEMIDJI 4 Shevlin Debs Clearbrook Leonard Osage New York Mills Henning Vining Parkers Prairie Ashby Miltona Evansville Brandon Barrett Garfield Alexandria Hoffman Holmes City Kensington Farwell Osakis Solway Puposky Bemidji Laporte Akeley Nevis Park Rapids Sebeka Wadena Aldrich Kelliher Blackduck Turtle River Staples Eagle Bend Clarissa Browerville Long Prairie Waskish Cass Lake