I connections MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF FAIRLAWN LUTHERAN CHURCH AND SCHOOL JANUARY 2019 New Studies Begin January 6 by Tim Keller, Small Group and Missional Community Ministry It is a new year! Many folks take on the task of creating a new year s resolution only to find that it is not something sustainable as the new year becomes tarnished with age. This is not surprising because we are fallen beings making our resolutions in a fallen world. The Bible offers us good news about this point. We should not be turning to what we can do in the year 2019, but instead looking at what the LORD is doing in this new year. He is perfect and will not fail. Revelation 21:5 tells us: The One sitting on the throne says, Behold, I make all things new. As such, we should not be looking inward for a new resolution, but upward towards the true revelation - that Christ is truly active in our lives and He is working to make us perfect! Join us for new learning opportunities Sundays at 10am, January 6-February 24. Formative Family Teaching (Pastor Adam Thompson: Fellowship Hall) How do parents foster a strong family that encompasses both love and support? The focus of the class will be on what parents are teaching their kids when they don t think they are teaching. It will be case study based on real life scenarios that explore day to day family choices and struggles that inform and shape children in their growth as disciples of Jesus Christ. The WHOLE Bible (Blaise Congeni/Dave Kohlmeier: Chapel) Did you know that the Bible has an overall story arc? The Bible is not about what we must do, but about what He has done for us and why this is important and significant for contemporary human beings today. In a few weeks, we will cover the WHOLE bible from creation through His return. Ecclesiastes: Chasing after Meaning (Susan Stephens: Choir Room) Are you tired of pat answers to hard questions of faith? The writer of Ecclesiastes is not afraid to confront your dilemmas: "Where can I find fulfillment?", "Who is really in control of this world?, "Is there any value in my work, my struggles, my life?" As you explore this fascinating Old Testament book, you will discover how God brings meaning to the world and how following God brings meaning to your life. (Women s Study) Grieving Hand in Hand with Christ (Laura Balliet: Library) Grief can be overwhelming - for those who grieve and those of us who want to support them!! This group will explore the stages of grief from a spiritual and scriptural perspective. We ll look at grief and loss encountered at every stage of life and identify how loss helps us build reliance on Christ and engages faith, hope, grace, and love. This group will be helpful for anyone wanting to understand more about their own process of grieving and/or wanting to communicate compassionately with others who are grieving. God s Mission is that we exist to glorify Him and make disciples. The VISION of FLCS on how we will live God s mission: We will embrace people and walk with them in a RELATIONSHIP with Christ. Our focus is on families with children at home and adults over age 55. Strategies: Identify Connect Bless Invite Embrace Instruct Disciple Values As believers in Christ at FLCS, these are items we value: Caring relationships Family focus Committed leadership Community outreach Christian education Worship and music
O Holy Night A big thank you to everyone assisted with the Christmas Eve services: decorators, musicians, Altar Guild, ushers, pastors, admin staff, leadership teams, audio/visual and many more. It was wonderful to see so many friends and family invited! We had a total of 510 people join us in celebration on Christmas Eve, and another 296 join us for Advent mid-week services (about 100 per week.) WOMEN OF FAITH STARTING NEW STUDY All women welcome to join the Women of Faith Bible Study! A new 6-session study, Rick Warren's What on Earth am I Here For? The group meets on Mondays at 6:00pm in the Fairlawn Lutheran Youth Room beginning January 7. Contact: Lisa Sears at dl_sears@yahoo.com, or (330) 441-8368. FREE BEGINNER GUITAR CLASS Wednesday, January 9, 8:00 pm, Fellowship Hall The guitar class will meet weekly again starting Wednesday, January 9. New and old participants of all ages are welcome! Contact: Bob Rees, magicrees@aol.com. HOST HOMES NEEDED MARCH 3 The Wittenberg University Choir will perform at our Parish Arts Concert on March 3 at 4pm. We need 20 hosts to house two students each overnight on March 3. Hosts would pick up the students after dinner following the concert and return them to church on Monday morning at 8am. For more information, contact: Phyllis Woodward (pjwfree@aol.com, 330-603 -9062) or Grace Goettler (gtgoet@gmail.com, 330-801-7774). 2
Fairlawn Lutheran January 2019 Events Epiphany Party Friday, January 11, 7:00pm, Fairlawn Lutheran Youth Room Spend a fun evening celebrating with your Fairlawn Lutheran gal pals making an ornament, playing a game or two and winding down from the busy holiday season! Bring an inexpensive wrapped white elephant gift and appetizer to share. Dessert and beverages will be provided. Friends welcome! RSVP Kim Hornyak at (330) 836-7286 or kim.hornyak@fairlawnlutheran.org by January 8. Card and Game Party Monday, January 14, 1:00-3:00pm, Fairlawn Lutheran Fellowship Hall Join in the fun of playing card games, dominoes and other board games. Bring a snack to share if you like. Please RSVP Kim Hornyak at kim.hornyak@fairlawnlutheran.org or (330) 836-7286. MahJong Monday, January 14, 1:00-3:00pm, Fairlawn Lutheran Fellowship Hall Learn how to play the ancient game of Mahjong or join in a game if you are experienced! Please RSVP Kim Hornyak at kim.hornyak@fairlawnlutheran.org or (330) 836-7286 and indicate whether you are a beginner or an experienced player. Game Day at St. Edwards Village with the Kindergarten January 28, 1:00-3:00pm, Fairlawn Lutheran Fellowship Hall and St. Edwards Join in the fun of playing games with our kindergarten students and the assisted living residents at St. Edwards. We will meet at church then walk or drive over. Tea Time & Lunch at Miss Molly s Tea Room Tuesday, January 22, 1:00pm, 140 W Washington St., Medina Lunch and tea at this quaint Medina restaurant just off the square. Please RSVP Kim Hornyak at kim.hornyak@fairlawnlutheran.org or (330) 836-7286 by Jan. 14 (participants pay restaurant directly). DECEMBER EVENT Fairlawn Lutheran adults and Fairlawn Lutheran School Kindergarteners paired up for Christmas fun! Attendees ate together, watched a Christmas movie, listened to stories and played games. Thanks to all who participated! 3
2019 Fairlawn Lutheran Directors BOARD OF MINISTRY DIRECTORS Larry Pantages Bill Feth Nancy Markle Paul Mack George Strickler Linda Polcyn Financial Secretary Carvel Pantages Treasurer Each year the Board shall appoint a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Secretary. They will serve as officers of the congregation, in addition to the Treasurer, and may sign legal documents on behalf of the congregation. LEADERSHIP TEAMS Elders/Community Life Team (CLT): Responsibility for Member Care, Word, Worship, and Called Staff Care. Discipleship: Responsibility for daily spiritual growth opportunities. Includes: Sunday School, Youth, Confirmation, Bible Studies, Nursery, Adult Ed, VBS, Small Groups, Family Life, Library, and Mission Trips. Stewardship: Responsibility for educating, encouraging and empowering members to discover and utilize God-given spiritual gifts and material gifts. Evangelism: Responsibility for outreach opportunities. Includes: outreach programs, Human Care, Parish arts, Braille Ministry, July 4 event and Egg Hunt and Easter Celebration. Bob Hessel Mike Robinson 2020 Second Term Dave Brinkman Connie Little Joanne Gillette Trevor Chuna Skip Bray OPEN Tim Keller Cindy Gilreath Chris Congeni 2020 Second Term OPEN Dave Kohlmeier Marilyn Horsey Paul Hinderegger OPEN Joyce Morton Kathryn Kotewa Eric Little OPEN Mary Dee Raabe Kevin Thomas Andy Morton OPEN A HUGE THANK YOU to those who have just finished their service on Leadership Teams: Pat Hastman, Nathan Knowles, Janis Mack, David McMullen, Jill Gibson, Art Weitzel, Ken Peace, Judy Ramsier, Tom Strachan, Earl Evans, Bev Leu. 4
& Leadership Teams At the December Voter s Meeting, bylaw changes and new leadership team members were voted in. We still have some open positions to fill. Please contact the Stewardship Team if you would be willing to volunteer for one of the open spots. Leadership Teams are created to perform the work of the congregation. Those highlighted in yellow are serving for the first time on a Fairlawn Lutheran leadership team. The layout of our leadership structure has changed this year. There is now a Board of Ministry Directors which has as its primary responsibilities: 1) provide accountability and support for the Senior Pastor, 2) influence all operating and financial decisions, 3) focus primarily on strategic planning and long-term ministry goals. The Pastor is now responsible for Leadership Team performance. The principal role of the Ministry Leadership Teams (Leaders) is to carry out the vision of the congregation by managing all of the areas of ministry and engaging Fairlawn Lutheran to do the ministry. There will be a periodic Leaders Meetings open to the congregation. Facilities: Responsibility for maintaining and protecting the physical assets of the congregation. Finance: Responsibility for managing all financial matters of the congregation. Endowment: Responsibility for making decisions on how endowment funds will be spent. School Board: Responsibility for advising School Director and making decisions about the ministry. Don Tonn Barb Beck Alan Tobin Bob Fischer 2021 Second Term Steve Elefter 2020 Second Term Eric Jorgenson Judy Corbett Cathie Lucarelli Interim School Director Becky Leu Roger Luptak Becky Leu Henry Signore Eric Jorgenson 2021 Second Term Joyce Morton Mike Rusyniak Treasurer 2020 Second Term Diane Bray 2021 Second Term John Tancous Alan Tobin Ilona Stroupe 2020 Second Term Devon Brinkman 2020 Second Term Mario Muratori Rick Porter Walt Yoder Pam Chuna Also Included: Treasurer Financial Secretary Also Included: Finance Team Rep Bd. of Ministry Vice Chair Evangelism Team Rep Also Included: Treasurer Laura George 5
YOUTH AND FAMILY CHRISTMAS PARTY It was a time for fun and fellowship as Fairlawn Lutheran youth, friends and families gathered to celebrate Christmas! SUNDAY SCHOOL CHRISTMAS PROGRAM Once again, the Sunday School children told the Christmas story through music and readings in December. Everyone was invited to the Fellowship Hall following for Happy Birthday Jesus cake. Thank you Sunday School Director Millie Thomas, teachers, and parents for your work in putting the program together! Thank you also: to Gary Pinter for music and directing our youngest soloists (Samantha Brinkman, Henry Thomas, Ben Sloan), to the A/V crew, to Discipleship for the reception, and to everyone else who helped. 6
Bless Others We will seek to bless those inside and outside the church with the physical, emotional and spiritual resources God has given Fairlawn Lutheran Church. There are so many ways to serve both at church and in our community, so use your time, treasure and talent to be a blessing to someone else. THANK YOU FROM AKRON PREGNANCY SERVICES Thank you from Akron Pregnancy Services to everyone who bought, wrapped, and put 100 beautiful gifts under our Giving Tree for APS family clients. And thank you to Cathie Lucarelli and our school families and teachers, for the 1,339 diapers, four formula, and 8 packages of wipes. donated through their tree for APS. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) invites everyone to join other Lutherans to STAND UP FOR LIFE at the National March for Life in Washington, D.C. on Friday, Jan. 18, 2019. Celebrate your commitment to upholding the sanctity of life. The Theme is Unique from Day One: Pro-Life is Pro-Science. A pre-walk Divine Service will be held 9am Eastern time at The Westin Arlington Gateway Hotel in Arlington, VA. For more information go to https://marchforlife.org or https://www.lcms.org./life-ministry/march-for-life We are serving our first of five free hot lunches of 2019 at OPEN M on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 10:30am-2pm. Ten to twelve preparers/servers and 20 dozen cookies are needed. Please sign up on the Mission Tower to help. No experience necessary, just a willing heart and hands. Thank you! DONATIONS NEEDED: In January, Haven of Rest is collecting new or clean and gently used coats, hats, gloves, mittens, and scarves for men, women and children. Please place your donations in the Human Care box. Your generosity will help keep warm those left homeless this Winter. We will be collecting non-perishable food for Haven of Rest/Harvest Home this January. All non-perishables are needed and welcome. Chicken noodle and tomato soups always needed. Thank You! COOKIES AND CAROLING Robinson and Gilreath families baked cookies and created cards that were wrapped for homebound members of the congregation. In the afternoon a group of Fairlawn Lutheran carolers spread the Christmas cheer and delivered the treats. Special thanks to Molly Gilreath for her musical accompaniment on the trumpet! 7
ST. LUKE LUTHERAN COMMUNITY PARTY 19 of our Fairlawn Lutheran members had a fun time with the residents of St. Luke-Portage Lakes, at our 14th annual Christmas Party for the residents and caregivers. Nine trees were trimmed, cookies and punch were served, gift bags of candy and cookies, a special Christian ornament, and a jingle bell necklace were given to residents and care givers, and our pianist Lloyd Goettler accompanied all the 20 carols sung by everyone there, ending in O Holy Night. Thanks to everyone for coming and joining in! THANK YOU ADVENT SUPPER/SERVICE VOLUNTEERS A big thank you to the groups who prepared and served our Advent suppers before service this year: Fairlawn Lutheran School, Faith Builders Bible Study and Church Life Team (elders). Following supper, attendees gathered in the Sanctuary for a Christmas hymn sing and service led by Pastor Gau. 8
Birthdays 2 Debra Turner 2 Grace Goettler 3 Bill Roller 3 Carol Hull 3 Joan Scherler 5 Bob Hessel 5 Laura George 6 Chris Evans 7 Carol Weitzel 8 Jeffrey Gillette 8 Jim Koehler 9 Amy Hinderegger 9 Danika Swingley 9 Marie Tuccillo 9 Ron Kyle 10 Edith Liebert 10 Heidi Vehlow 11Sam Tobin 13 Mary Aberth 15 Jennifer Juengel 16 Bob Fischer 22 Kate Meyer 16 Gary Sutherland 23 Gary Pinter 16 Janis Mack 24 Betty Huber 16 LaDonn Eckberg 24 Bob Guilda 16 Rich Scherler 24 Bryce Reynolds 17 Alexa Furukawa 24 Carrie Lewis 17 Richard Kotick 24 Olivia Ludwig 17 Riley Tobin 25 Betsy Tancous 18 Evan Haskell 26 Kim Hornyak 18 Pam Chuna 27 Marcia Mackey 18 Sandy Chism 28 Roseanne Zeigler 18 Sharyn Hood 28 Ruth Wigand 19 Nancy Parks 29 Dean Richards 19 Rondi Seagren 30 Amanda Shannon 19 Sophia Muratori 30 David Mariani 20 Antonio Lozano 30 George Strickler 20 Bob Hessel 30 Gina Hedervary 20 Madeline Congeni 30 Herb Croft 20 Mark Hinderegger 20 Samantha Congeni Special birthday wishes go out to Ruth Wigand on birthday 102 and Edith Liebert who is celebrating 99 years! Anniversaries 3 Lee & Joanne Gillette 5 Alan & Lisa Tobin 23 Marc & Karen Collins 26 Rod & Nancy Parks Congratulations to Rod and Nancy Parks who are celebrating 45 years of marriage! Lutheran Witness Subscription Renewal Due It s time to renew our subscription to The Lutheran Witness. If you are a current subscription holder there s no need to do anything. Your subscription will automatically renew. If you would like to start receiving the magazine, or would like to cancel your subscription, please contact the office ASAP to let us know. The yearly subscription rate is $10.80. Deadline is January 18. New Portals of Prayer Books Available The January March Portals of Prayer devotional booklets are available at the welcome desk at no charge for those who would like them. 9
Preparing for The National Youth Gathering Every few years, our youth have the opportunity to attend the National Youth Gathering where more than 25,000 LCMS youth nationwide gather to learn, worship and serve. This year the Gathering is held July 11-15 in Minneapolis, MN. It is an expensive trip, so the youth have been fund raising since the last Gathering through events like the Spaghetti Dinner, the Fairlawn Lutheran Tag Sale, and many others to secure enough funds to attend. Church members are also gracious enough to help sponsor the youth through the envelope fundraiser, and donate in many other ways. So why is the National Youth Gathering such a big deal? Why is this a focus for our congregation? In a country where fewer and fewer people consider themselves religious much less Christian, it can seem like there are few kids that share their beliefs. This gathering shows them in overwhelming fashion that they are not alone in faith that they have peers nationwide learning, worshipping and serving just like they do. The youth also get to dive into dozens of learning opportunities that can answer faith questions and deepen their understanding of how their faith informs their lives. Hearing God s wisdom from new voices and being able to discuss what they have heard with other teens can make a real difference in understanding their Lutheran identity. Thank you for supporting our teens and helping them attend the Gathering! Feel free to contact Pastor Adam with questions about the National Youth Gathering. YOUTH ATTENDEES Alexa Furukawa Damon Furukawa Luke Furukawa Sarah George Emma Gibson Molly Gilreath Nick Guilda Juliette Keller Luke Kohlmeier Mari Lozano Carlton Miller Neil Miller Marcy Nichols Charlie Reinecke Elena Robinson Quinn Robinson Mario Signore CHAPERONES Pastor Adam Kate George Cindy Gilreath Dave Kohlmeier Mike Robinson 10
Contact THANK YOU Thanks so much to the Strachans for donating a Foosball table to the Youth Room it has been well used and much appreciated! Senior Pastor Rev. Jim Gau pastor.jim@fairlawnlutheran.org Associate Pastor & Director of Youth and Family Ministries Rev. Adam Thompson pastor.adam@fairlawnlutheran.org Visitation Pastor Rev. Jack Kozak Director of School Ministries Cathie Lucarelli flschool@fairlawnlutheran.org ENGLISH DISTRICT NEWS After many months of assisting Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in their search for a new pastor, Pastor Gau was on hand to officiate the installation! Mt. Olive is where our former visitation pastor, Ryan Beffrey, served as sole pastor before taking another call. Director of Adult Ministries Kim Hornyak kim.hornyak@fairlawnlutheran.org Organist & Choir Director Gary Pinter Office Administrator Elaine Daubenmire churchoffice@fairlawnlutheran.org Communication Manager Allyson Robinson Worship Team Leader Al Hedervary Pastors Emeritus Rev. Larry Leuthaeuser Rev. Charles Lentner Office Hours 8:30am-3:00pm FUNERAL On December December 11, 2018, after a long illness, Bill Mabee entered glory. Please keep Sylvia, their children, and the rest of the family in your prayers as they grieve at their loss, but also rejoice in the gift of eternal life given to Bill. connections INFO DUE JAN. 18 Information for the February 2019 issue of our church newsletter is due on January 18. Please e-mail: churchoffice@fairlawnlutheran.org. Find hundreds more photos of Fairlawn Lutheran events on our Facebook page Fairlawn Lutheran Church and School. The school has its own Facebook page Fairlawn Lutheran School. 11
3415 West Market Street Fairlawn, Ohio 44333 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED SATURDAY WORSHIP 4:00pm Traditional Worship SUNDAY WORSHIP 8:45am Traditional Worship 10:00am Christian Ed Hour 11:15am Contemporary Worship Communion offered weekly at all services Join Us! New Bible Studies Begin Sunday, January 6, 10:00am MahJong, Card & Game Party Monday, January 14, 1:00-3:00pm Spiritual Growth Speaker Series: Does God Care About My Sexual Identity? With Dr. Donald Lichi Friday, January 18, 6:30-8:00pm CONTACT Office: 9:00am-3:00pm M-F Church: 330-836-7286 School: 330-864-7724 Web: www.fairlawnlutheran.org www.fairlawnlutheranschool.org Email: churchoffice@fairlawnlutheran.org flschool@fairlawnlutheran.org Fairlawn Lutheran will embrace people and walk with them in a RELATIONSHIP with Christ. 15