Mission Statement Hope Lutheran Church seeks to strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ, to proclaim the Gospel to others, and to strive for unity in Christ. July, 2017 Sunday Worship: 9:00 AM With Communion on the first and third Sundays GLOW: God s Love On Wednesdays 5:30 PM Supper 6:00 PM GLOW 6:00 PM Confirmation Classes Coffee & Fellowship: 10:10 AM Television Worship Broadcast: Channel 3 Sunday at 6:30 pm Tuesday at 2:00 pm Thursday at 4:00 pm Inside this issue: My View of the Pews 1 Bible Studies & Duties 2 May Council Minutes 3 Hospice Donation Quilt Auction Bible Study Mission Trip GLOW Parsonage Update Ascension Day WELCA Retreat July Calendar July Workgroup 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 8 9 My View of the Pews I love watching birds and lately have been enjoying the orioles that frequent my feeders. This year however, a robin has been enjoying the grape jelly I put out and more recently, Mom robin has been bringing her babies to the feeder. It s so interesting to watch as Mom sits on one side and baby sits opposite her and she still feeds it even though the food (jelly) is right at the feet of the youngster. It would be so easy for it to bow its head on its own and feed itself, but no; Mom still picks up the food and puts it in the baby s mouth. So I m thinking how wonderful this wonder of nature is and what a great example of how God takes care of use also. Sometimes we have to as the saying goes let go and let God. Letting God handle the stuff in our lives rather than try to solve or handle them ourselves will allow us to grow and become more mature in our faith that all is in God s hands. As in fact the bird can see what it needs and wants, yet allowing Mom to still be in control, allows the bird to become stronger and soon independent enough to be on its own. God does the same for us, giving us all the strength and nourishment we need to go ahead and endure what life challenges might be ahead of us if we just be patient. See you in church! Office: Kitchen: Fax: Pastor s Cell: Pastor s Home: Pastor Bruce Hope Lutheran Church Pastor Bruce Drackley 507-872-6446 507-872-5215 507-872-5215 507-828-5522 507-734-5401 113 South Jefferson Street, PO Box 87 Minneota, MN 56264-0087 Church Secretary s Email: hopelutheran87@gmail.com Secretary s Cell Phone: 507-530-5666 Missionary s Email: elisajo@msn.com Parish Secretary: Financial Secretary: GLOW Directors: Chris Pesch Pete Van Vooren Bree Anderson & Erin Roberts Missionary: Custodians: Organist: Jubilation: Dr. Elisabeth Johnson Lynn & Barb Okrina Valerie Buysse Gayle VanVooren
PAGE 2 Bible Studies for Men and Women Men s Bible Study Saturday, July 8 Women s Bible Study Wednesday, July 12 8:00 am at Rusty s Café in Taunton 10:00 am Fireside Room 2017 Church Attendance June 4 June 11 June 18 June 25 65 85 99 83 Est. Total 332 Average attendance in June, based on 4 services: 83 Workgroup Chairpersons Altar Guild (June 28 July 25) Barb Okrina 872-5131 Linette Nelson 872-6997 Sandy Tolk 872-6730 Date July 2 July 9 July 16 July 23 July 30 Sound Operators Video Operators Acolytes Randy Prellwitz Jack Jerzak Scott Josephson Greg Gottskalkson Todd Sonnenburg Ralph Hagen Ron Thostenson Keven Larson Dave Dovre Matt Myhre Myles Williams & Serena Breyfogle Payton Gamrak & Trey Gronke Olivia Mahan-Deitte & Ellie Pesch Jackson Jeremiason &?? Blake Reiss & Nolan Boerboom July Money Counters Shane Bordewyk & Kathy Opdahl Updating Addresses, Phone Numbers, Email Addresses Everyone please complete the following and return to the church secretary. Some of our phone numbers and email addresses are outdated. Thank you! Name(s): Home Address: Phone Number(s): Email Addresses:
PAGE 3 Church Council Notes - June 5, 2017 Fund Balances: General Fund: $16,502.33 Cornerstone Fund: $14,027.39 Building Fund: $ 5,239.98 Petty Cash Fund: $ 753.46 Building Fund Savings: $ 148.63 GLOW: $ 6,467.28 Special Presentation: Darwin Dyce spoke on Global Relief organization. Special donation offering in July. Board of Trustees Report Bills for the month of June reviewed. Bills totaled $12,670.90. Shingles/Roofing: Issues resolved. Parsonage: The facelift is coming along nicely. Hope to be finished in 2 weeks and have another Open House for members to tour the updates. A letter will be composed to ask for donations to finish the remaining projects - carpet, sidewalk, driveway, gutters, landscaping. Scholarships: Award letters were sent out June 2, 2017. Sexual Harassment Policy & Procedure: Training done. Background checks need to be done. Flooring Fund: Still discussing what to do about tiles with asbestos. Phones/Internet: Switching to Starpoint. Jeff VanKeulen is helping to run cable. Flooring Scrubber: Speaking with a couple of flooring cleaner companies in Marshall. Cemetery Board: Endowment Committee giving $2,000 for tree removal project. Remaining $4,000 needed will come from General Fund. Board of Deacons Report Members In/Out: No new info, New members were welcomed May 21, 2017 Walk Around Offering: June - 2017 Mission Trip / July - Esther s Kitchen Summer Planning: Summer Music Schedule is set. Outdoor service possible. Boxelder Bug Days Float: Pastor Bruce will organize a float. Ascension Brunch went very well. Board of Education Report GLOW: Need GLOW Supper Coordinator, classes will resume Wednesday after Boxelder Bug Days next fall. Confirmation: Will be in the fall, Barb Knutson will be the Confirmation Guide Asst. Youth of Hope: Hoping to raise the rest of funds. Trip is July 16-21, 2017 Teen Power: No new information VBS: Will have 2 Family Fun Nights this summer instead of VBS. June 21 and July 26. Other Business St. Paul s Church: Continuing organization of sharing a Pastor between Hope Lutheran and St. Paul s. Meeting with Synod end of June. Summer Council Meetings: Moved to Mondays for June, July and August. September will be Tuesday after Labor Day. Meeting times: Trustees 6:30-7:30pm; Deacons/Education 7-7:30pm; Whole Council: 7:30-8:30pm Executive Meeting: The next executive meeting will be Sunday, June 25, 2017 after church to discuss agenda for July 3, 2017 meeting. Respectfully Submitted, Chris Hansen, Secretary
PAGE 4 Appreciation Noted Our HLCW received the following thank you note: Thank you so much for another donation of care products for the Hospice House. It s fun to look through your package at all the different travel size items, disinfecting wipes, all things we can use. The Staff at Prairie Home Hospice And now, another box of items has been collected to send to the Hospice Housel. You have donated: 59 soap bars, 3 large and 22 small lotion bottles, 49 small shampoo containers, 41 small conditioners, 11 toothbrushes, 5 boxes of toothpaste, a bottle of mouthwash, 2 boxes of Polident with 120 capsules in each, 2 lens cleaners, 2 hand sanitizers, a comb, a can of hair spray and 3 containers of wrinkle cream. Your generosity is amazing! Keep bringing your care and cleaning products for the Hospice House. They are helping so many people in our area and it does feel good to help others! Gayle VanVooren HLCW President Quilt Auction Set Green Lake Lutheran Ministries will hold their 33 rd Annual Quilt Auction on July 22 nd. Proceeds are used to keep the Bible Camp and retreat funded for all those who want to use it. Quilts are asked to be delivered by July 14 th so they can be available for online viewing. There is also a Silent Auction of donated items with theme baskets and home crafted items selling very well. These items are asked to be delivered by July 20 th. Cash donations are also welcome and may be sent to: GLLM, 9916 Lake Avenue South, Spicer, MN, 56288. Please include a note that the gift is for the quilt auction. If you are interested in donating to this activity, Gayle VanVooren has sign-up sheets for you. Simply contact her for information. Bible Study Rescheduled Interim Pastor Bruce Drackley led the ladies summer Bible studies on June 21 st with about a dozen Hope members present. The lesson centered on the difference of being kind or being good and what that means for Christians. The Bible focus was on the story of David and Goliath. The next study will be on July 12 th at 10:00 AM, a change in the original date, as Pastor will be attending the Youth Mission Trip. All are welcome to attend the July 12 th session. Coffee will be served.
PAGE 5 Mission Trip 2017 As I write this, we are just over 3 weeks away from our trip and I can t believe we are so close! It has been an incredible experience to work hand in hand with these 43 students and 9 chaperones, and this mission trip is going to be amazing! Minneota can be proud of the kids that are representing our community! They have worked long and hard to make this trip a reality and I know they will make a positive impact on the San Diego community! I wanted to share some amazing numbers with you. Starting in September, it was our goal that we would raise almost all of the money needed for the trip about $30,000! As I write this just 10 months later, we have raised almost $27,000 through our fundraising efforts! A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has supported us! We are so grateful to have a congregation and a community that is willing to support their youth! We have also been blessed with generous contributions from Alan Geiwitz, Avera Health, Swede Home Congregation, Hope Lutheran Church Women, and the Hope Lutheran Endowment Committee, along with some private donations. These donations have closed the gap and made it possible for us to purchase air mattresses, pillows, and other supplies. We will be using them during the week and then we will donate these items to our host church. THANK YOU to these individuals/groups for their generosity! Finally, THANK YOU to Thrivent Financial for the amazing support we have received through the Actions Teams program! Our theme this year is The Good Life, taken from John 10:10. I have come that they may have life and have it to the full. We will be learning and experiencing the idea that, even though life can be challenging and difficult at times, God want us to live good lives. This is centered on the idea of strong and stable relationships with God and with one another. We will be working together, serving others in the hopes that we are able to make life a little better for some else. Our final fundraiser will be held on Sunday, July 9 th at Hope Lutheran. We will be hosting a Pancake and Sausage breakfast, serving from 8:30-10:30 AM. Adults, $5.00, Children 12 and under, $3.00. The group departs on their trip on July 16 th and returns July 22 nd. We want to thank everyone for the wonderful support we have received and ask that you keep us in your prayers during our trip. Terri Myhre, Youth of Hope GLOW Summer Movie Night1 The Family Movie Night on June 21 st was a fun, low key evening in the air conditioning! Thank you to Shelby Corbin for helping! Our next Family Fun Night will be Sunday, July 23 rd at 6:00 PM at the Minneota pool. Mark your calendars and join us! We are planning for a great 2017-2018 GLOW year. We are excited that we have gotten some new bibles and supplies to go with the new curriculum we will be ordering for GLOW this fall! Erin and Bree The Pledge of Allegiance I pledge allegiance to the Flag, Of the United States of America And to the Republic for which it stands, One Nation, under God Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for All.
PAGE 6 NEWSLETTER TITLE VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 Parsonage Update Work continues on the parsonage facelift. The kitchen cabinets and countertops are installed. Flooring is getting finished. Painting is being completed. Things that still need to be done include: Landscaping. Removal and replacement of the driveway. Carpet for the basement, which is being delayed because the basement continues to get wet, hoping landscaping will solve this problem. Wood burning fireplace replaced with an electric one. Replacing of eaves and down spouts. We appreciate all of the volunteers who have given of their time in anyway to help with the updates. All prayers and financial support is very much appreciated. Financial support should be earmarked to the parsonage through the Hope Lutheran Church Building Fund. Thank you! Parsonage Update Committee Ascension Day Successful Your HLCW hosted another successful Ascension Day recognition in May with over a hundred ladies from the Prairie Conference attending. The event took a turn when the President became ill during the prior evening and could not attend. There was not a hitch in the schedule, as Sandy Josephson stepped in to lead the function and all our members worked hard together to make our guests feel welcome and enjoy the brunch. Pastor Bruce Drackley led the devotion and closing prayer and Pastor Jennifer Thul from Danebod Lutheran in Tyler shared the message for the day. The interesting part of this is that Pastor Thul, in all her years in the ministry, had never prepared a talk for Ascension Day. There is so much planning and preparation for this day, but we have come to realize how important it is to so many. And they loved this year s favor of angels made out of wine corks. The laugh was the ladies wondering if our group had consumed the 125 bottles of wine needed to make the favors! We did not! As the morning came to a close, our ladies finished up the day by washing all the dishes, cleaning the tables, and taking the linen tablecloths home to launder. We now think about next year and the possible changes we can make. Or, if we even want to hold it again as this is a group decision. As your President, I sincerely thank Sandy Josephson for her leadership on very short notice, Pastors Drackley and Thul for leading all of the ladies in the message of the day, Lynn Whipple of Ivanhoe for accompanying the hymns sung, and all our wonderful ladies of Hope for your hard work and caring attitudes. Ascension Day recognition, our 27 th, is now history. Gayle VanVooren HLCW President
Hope Lutheran Church 113 S. Jefferson Steet PO Box 87 Minneota, MN 56264-0087 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED PRSRT STD NONPROFIT ORG. US POSTAGE PD. MINNEOTA, MN PERMIT NO. 22