The Voice
Our Savior’s
Lutheran Church
Owatonna, Minn.
January 2013
Inside this edition
Pastor John’s reflects on Fulfilling Our Ministries, Page 3
WELCA Activities, Pages 12-13
Upcoming Youth Events, Page 6
Keeping Up with the Church Council,
Pages 14-15
OUR SAVIOR’S LUTHERAN CHURCH
PO BOX 423
OWATONNA MN 55060
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
Non-profit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Permit No. 209
Owatonna, Minn. 55060
1
Lilly Sparrow House
The Lilly Sparrow house is always in need of laundry detergent (cheaper brands are welcome).
They also would like sugar free powdered drink mixes.
1
Hospitality House
Individuals and/or families are needed to prepare and deliver meals to the Hospitali ty House for
men on the fourth Wednesday of each Month. For more information please contact Jennifer Wall.
.
November 15, 2012
Present: Barb Paulson, Liz Peterson, Dan Wagner, Bill Wall, Gary Gilderhus-Treasurer,
John Weisenburger-Senior Pastor, Susan Bantz-Intern Pastor.
Not present: Tracy Ackman-Shaw, Bill Seiler, Phil Kaupa, Paul Krumrie, Jayne Jacobson,
Nancy Deetz-Administrator, Karl Korbel-Pastor.
Gary Gilderhus had handouts of the financials as of Oct. 31, 2012. It was noted that
offerings for October were $4K above budget and year-to-date is $3K ahead of budget. Expenses
were $8K above budget for October and expenses are $12K below budget. Cash flow for 2012 is
at a positive $11K. Scrip profit is around $7,500 for the year.
Old Business-A request to complete the Bell Set using restricted Memorial money of
$4,627.50. This can be done by the Memorial Committee with restricted funds.
The nominating committee needs to be notified of council vacancies to be filled in 2013. We
need to also request the committee to secure two people for the SE MN Synod Assembly. The
committee members are Liz Langer, Brian Anderson, Sherry Kuns, Twylah Ottman and Tracy
Ackman-Shaw. Tracy has been given a list of potential candidates for the positions.
New Business-Carpet down the Education Wing has been installed and looks
Continued on Page 15
Council Minutes
Everyone wins with Scrip Cards
Scrip Gift Cards are available for purchase every Sunday between services, Wednesday evening s at
BLOC and during the week in the church office.
When you purchase a gift card to an area merchant through the Scrip program you get the full
value of the gift card and the merchant donates a percentage to the church.
Gift cards are available for many merchants including Kwik Trip, Fleet Farm, Hy-Vee and
Cashwise. The monies raised are used to support various church projects.
Our Savior’s
Lutheran Church
An Evangelical Lutheran Church in America congregation
1909 St. Paul Road,
Owatonna, Minn. 55060
Partner congregation: Merya Lutheran Church, Central Diocese, Tanzania
Mailing Address: PO Box 423,
Owatonna, Minn. 55060
Phone: 451-4853
E-Mail: RSAVIORS1@msn.com (pastor_john_rsaviors@msn.com)
Website: oursaviorsowatonna.org
Fax: 446-0688
Office Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Pastors: John Weisenburger, Karl Korbel, Intern Pastor Susan Bantz
Secretary: Lori Bakken
Administrator/Parish Nurse: Nancy Deetz, nancydeets@hotmail.com 451-9287
Education Director: Jennifer Sheehan. jasonandjensheehan@gmail.com,
455-4018
Youth Director: Mandy Stockwell
Maintenance: Roger Anderson, Larry Simonson
Newsletter Editor: Karen Jorgensen, 475-4301, kjorgensen13@gmail.com
Worship & Music Director: Betsy Anderson, adgcello@gmail.com
Council members
Liz Petersen,
president,
446-0784
Bill Wall
vice-president
Dan Wagner
secretary
413-0139
Barb Paulson
451-9686
Tracy Ackman-Shaw
446-9899
Bill Seiler
446-0651
Paul Krumrie
528-2880
Phil Kaupa
451-1672
Jayne Jacobson
451-5112
Intern Pastor Susan’s Report
Intern Pastor Susan attended a meeting with the other interns from the area. Five of the six
interns were at the meeting. She said they all get along very well and are even planning a trip
together. She said she has been staying busy with her visitations and teaching adult education. She
has also gotten to know previous intern Gena and appreciates her support.
calendar
Worship Helpers
December
Ushers
Those serving as ushers in December include:
First Service
Mark McClure
Dave Phillips
Mark Maslinski
Second Service
Larry Simonson
John Compton
Renee Compton
Scott Lundberg
Altar Guild
Communion
Workers
for January
First Service
Joanne Gulickson
Second Service
Becky Simonson
Bread Baker
Joanne Gulickson
Nursery Volunteers Needed
The Nursery is in need of more volunteers to help us care for children ages 0 -5 on Sunday
mornings during second service. Generally there are two volunteers scheduled for each Sunday.
This is a fun and easy opportunity for anyone who needs service hours to get an hour in. Both
teens and adults are encouraged to consider this opportunity to help serve the youngest members
of our church family. You can be on the schedule once a month or just once in awhile. If interested
contact Karla Zufall at 390-8447 or bkzufall@charter.net.
.
.
These things are all ways we serve God and each other.
God’s Work, Our Hands
WELCA’s Online Resource ‘Café’
By Cherry Schwartz
CAFÉ — What exactly is Café? Café is a magazine for young adult women who want to
build their faith. It is an on-line magazine for young adult women. It incorporates a Lutheran
perspective for women of Christian faith or simply for any woman who is interested in how
faith relates to the issues that women face today.
To access Café, go to www.womenof the elca.org (the website for the women of the ELCA)
and click on CAFÉ. Café is free, monthly and on-line. Readers and writers of Café include
pastors, seminary and college students, and other young adult women who use Café as a Bible
study resource individually or with a group.
Although many women in their 20s and 30s contribute in every issue, Café can be used and
shared by women of all ages.
Café includes such categories as Faith Reflections, Life, Café Groups, Podcast, Creation,
Advocacy, HIV?AIDS,
Continued on Page 13
Women of Our Savior’s Church
The New Year brings new opportunities as we move in to 2013.
Pastor John reflects on the vibrant Our Savior’s congregation as we move forward into
“Fulfilling Our Ministries.” Check out his column on Page 3.
Wonder what resources Women of the ELCA offers to younger women? Then you will
want to read WELCA Chair Cherry Schwartz’ column on Page 12 as she talks about the online
magazine Café.
Our Savior’s has a partner congregation, Merya Lutheran, in the Central Diocese of
Tanzania. Marcy Irby of Faribault, who has visited Tanzania will be at Our Savior’s on January
20. Get the details on Page 4.
You may not be aware of it, but the ELCA is 25 years old. Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson
reflects on 25 years on Page 6.
A New Year Brings New Opportunities to OSLC
Thank You for making the Christmas Shower a Success
A very big
Thank You” to all who donated items for the shower for the Lily Sparrow House and the
Hospitality House. There were three large tables filled with gifts. About 15 people attended the
shower and learned about the mission of the two houses. Thank you for your gene rosity.
Leadership Team
A big “Thank You” to Sandy Gilderhus who has agreed to join the WELCA Leadership Team as the
WELCA recorder.
Pastor John’s Report
Pastor John reported he had confirmation during October and commented that it was the smallest
class in a long time at seven students. However, he said that they were an extremely involved
class. Worship and Music did the all Saints Sunday and it went very well. He said he wanted to
celebrate of the committees as he feels our committees at Our Savior’s are performing strongly.
Wednesday Night Activities at Our Savior’s
Wednesday nights are busy with Building Lives On Christ activities. Dinner for all is served 5-6
p.m. in the Fellowship Hall.
Joyful Bells rehearse in the Music Room 5-5:45 p.m. and the Sr. Choir in the Sanctuary from 5-6
p.m. Jubilate Ringers are in the Music Room from 5:45-6:30 p.m.
BLOC for children pre-K through 6 is in the Family Life Center from 6-7 p.m., Adult Education in
the Fireside Room from 6:30-7:30 p.m. and Junior High BLOC in the Family Life Center from
7:00-8:00 p.m. Sr. High BLOC from 8 to 9 p.m.
Save the Date for Annual Meeting
The annual meeting of the Our Savior’s Congregation will be Sunday, February 3. There will be a
potluck at noon followed by the meeting at 12:30 p.m.
Fair Trade Coffees available
Fair Trade Coffee continues to be available for purchase on the first Sunday of the month as well
as during the week at the church office. The newest blends available are Cozy Cup Decaf and
Organic Ethiopian. There are several other blends available as well. Coffees are $8 a bag.
Worship &
Ministry
Volunteers
Volunteers are needed for lectors, greeters and communion assistants for both the 8:15 a.m. and
10:45 a.m. services
The sign-up sheet is located on the kiosk.
Men’s
Breakfast
Gather for breakfast, Bible reading & discussion every Wednesday at 6:30 a.m. at the Kitchen.
By Pastor John Weisenburger
God is able to make all grace abound in you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you
need, you will abound in every good work.—2 Corinthians 9:8.
I want to echo Paul as he was speaking to the Corinthians when he said those words, “you
will abound in every good work.”
Our Savior’s is a community that moves forward and asks in simple and humble ways,
‘what good can we do here?’ In so many ways, the members of Our Savior’s ‘abound in grace’
and carry out God’s mission to the world.
Just this past month, I have witnessed Our Savior’s peoples support of Owatonna’s two
homeless ministries, the Clothesline, fair trade, help for Hurricane Sandy survivors, world
hunger outreach, plus many others.
This is in addition to the regular nurture and care for our children and young people in
their education and spiritual growth; the care for your homebound and elderly and the normal
‘ministries’ of our vibrant congregation.
As your pastor I want to say thank you for being a part of the life of this wonderful
congregation. Thank you for continuing to move our congregation forward in ministry.
At the beginning of this year we bring to a close our capital campaign call-ed ‘Building Our
Ministries’. This has put
Continued on Page 5
The new year gets under way with a variety of events for youth.
There has been a schedule change for BIG BLOC events in January.
During January, Junior High students will meet from 7 to 8 p.m. and Senior High School
students will meet from 8 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday nights. Any questions or concerns please
contact Mandy.
There will be a mentor event on Wednesday, January 16, from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. in the
Fellowship Hall. Students are reminded to contact their mentor about this event.
There will be no Break of Day on January 21 as there is no school on this day.
Break of Day is the weekly talk/prayer time for High School students. For the month of
January the group will be meeting at the Weisenburger home.
The group meets at 7 a.m. on regular start school days and 9 a.m. on two-hour late start
days.
This year’s Skiing and Snowboarding Day is scheduled for Friday, January 18. The event
will be at Mount Kato in Mankato.
The bus will leave from the church at 8:45 a.m. and return at 6 p.m. Lift tickets are $17 and
ski/board rental packages $16.
All students in 6th grade and below need a parent or guardian attending. Please sign-up on
the youth board.
The Social Ministry Committee thanks everyone at Our Savior’s for making their fall
projects successful.
Bev Draeger was a table captain for the Transitional Housing Breakfast in late November as
was Pastor Gena Koeberl, Our Savior’s former intern now serving as interim pastor at
Pontoppidan Lutheran in rural Steele County. A total of 21 individuals from Our Savior’s and
Pontoppidan attended the event.
Our Savior’s contributed $500 to Transitional Housing along with contributions from those
attending.
The Fair Trade Fair was a success with many of you buying the items that help artisans in
developing countries.
100 items and $893 were received from the October winter outerwear effort for the Steele
County Clothesline. Thrivent will supplement the OSLC donation.
Gifts were given to 31 clients at Cedar Valley Services. And the men at Hospitality House
now have new socks and boxers.
A gift of $150 was also given to the Salvation Army for their work.
Our Savior’s will continue to provide meals for Hospitality House on the fourth
Wednesday of each month.
The members of Our Savior’s were also generous in donating for ELCA Hunger efforts and
in responding to the ELCA’s efforts to aid the victims of Hurricane Sandy.
Date
8-12
Offering
Attendance
$5731
154
8-5
$8516
170
7-29
$4609
197
Dte
Offering
Attendance
8-1
$6,393
229
8-21
$7,387
132
8-28
$
Adult Education
THE Lutheran VIEW
January Youth Events
Women of the ELCA
What is Café?
Continued from Page 12
Thanksgiving and Consumerism. Under the “Life” section , there are subdivisions for
relationships, faith, music, parenthood, women, grief, gratitude and the holidays. In the Café
groups, it is possible to join a group to discuss articles in person, or on line.
Each of the articles allows the reader to post comments or thoughts or reactions.
I read many valuable articles on Advent, parenting, creation and consumerism. Access the
site for an inspiring experience!
Customized Bible Study
Interested in becoming involved in a Bible study? Then consider getting three to six people together, maybe several
couples, and let the staff know what from the Bible you would like to work on; they will set up a plan. Dates and
time are pretty much at the convenience of the group. Questions or more information contact Pastor Karl
From the Social Ministry Committee
Continuing OSLC Ministries
Attendance, Offering Updates
Tanzania at January Forum
Members of Our Savior’s will have the opportunity to learn more about the Lutheran
Church in Tanzania and our partnership with Merya Lutheran in the Central Diocese of
Tanzania at the Education Hour on Sunday, January 20.
Social Ministry will be sponsoring Marcy Irby from Faribault on that day. Irby traveled to
the Central Diocese in Tanzania in 2011, along with a large group of individuals from the
Southeast Minnesota Synod, to help the Tanzanian church their celebrate their 100th
anniversary.
The Southeast Minnesota Synod is a companion synod to the Central Diocese of Tanzania.
Our Savior’s is a partner congregation to the Merya congregation.
During that visit the group presented English-Swahili Bibles to the congregations including
one to Merya.
Over the past several years of our relationship with Merya, Our Savior’s has also shared
pictures and information about Our Saviors with Merya and sent greetings to the Merya
congregation on the occasion of their 50th anniversary.
Amanda Stockwelll is looking for devoted adults to lead Wednesday night small groups
and hang-out with some awesome youth. Please contact Mandy if you are interested in
becoming more involved with the youth of Our Savior’s.
Worship &
Ministry
Volunteers
Volunteers are needed for lectors, greeters and communion assistants at both the 8:15 and 10:45
a.m. services. Please sign up on the kiosk. Thank you.
Women’s Gathering Groups
There are three gathering groups currently meeting, each with from 6 to 14 members. New
attendees are always welcome.
*Growth and Awareness – fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. in members’ homes. Contact
– Cherry Schwartz – 451-6676
*Lamb of God – third Tuesday of the month at 9:15 a.m. in members homes – Cornelia Brosen,
451-4912
*Lord of Love – second Wednesday of the month at 1:30 p.m. at churchBeryl Stockwell – 451-7586
By Pastor Karl Korbel
The New Year gets off to a busy start with a number of adult study opportunities.
Wednesday evenings will see a new (renewed) study for adults. The new series begins on
Wednesday, January 9, and will continue for five weeks. Let’s start at 6:15 p.m. We will work on
LOVE. What does LOVE mean as the word is used in the Bible?
On Sunday morning, January 6, starting at about 9:40 a.m. will be The Lutheran View.
Spiritual Growth will be the topic on January 13. How can we help one another grow.
On January 20, Marcy Irby will be speaking on her trip to Tanzania.
On January 27 there will be another of our “not real serious” Bible studies.
Sunday evenings will include a Bible Study and Spiritual Growth Time. The time will be at
6 p.m. in the Fireside Room. Start date will be announced.
Adult Education for January
D
at
e
Offering
Attendance
5/
6
$8584
225
42
9
$3900
364
42
2
$10,418
216
48
$3751
199
Attendance, Offering Updates
Fulfilling Our Ministries
Date
Offering
Attendance
9-9
$9520
255
9-2
$4245
138
8-26
$5467
160
Council Minutes
Continued from Page 14
great.
The Fellowship Hall carpet will be cleaned on November 19.
Gary has asked the council for budget priorities for 2013. Should he plan for increasing the
mortgage payment from the general fund back to where it was in 2011, staff pay increases, staff
hour increases, will there be an internship in 2013? Council asked Gary to put together a budget
for the December meeting that includes everything but have it itemized in a way each of the
additions could be removed easily.
The Stewardship Committee asked for council’s help in calling members that haven’t
turned in their hope for gift letter yet.
The council discussed what the goal should be for the second capital campaign. It was
greed upon that we should state $450K as our goal at the celebration on November 17 as this
amount would get us back to approximately the monthly payment we had prior to building.
Dan Wagner brought up that there is a large amount of cash sitting in the capital campaign
fund and that a principal payment should be made. Council discussed asking the Finance
Committee to review the numbers and try to keep on hand a six month cushion. Gary was
going to send a recommendation to the Finance Committee.
Date
Offering
Attendance
12-9
$8576
243
11-25
$2482
212
11-19
$10112
314
Happy Anniversary ELCA
Fulfilling Our Ministries
Memorials
January WELCA Bible Study
WELCA’s 2012-2013 Bible Study “Gathered By God” continues in January.
Theme for the January study is “Getting Away.”
The apostles have been gone for a while, but now they’re back, gathering around Jesus to
tell him all about their experiences.
Jesus then invites his friends to get away from it all, to pause from their work and to spend
some time apart from those who seek their attention. He tells them, and us, that it is time to
take a break. To come away with Jesus and rest.
The study is available in Gather Magazine and online.
Continued From Page 3
us in in a great position in terms of our physical building and the foundation it gives us for
programs and ministry.
I can barely believe three years have gone by since we launched our courageous venture.
Once more thank you is appropriate for all who supported Our Savior’s and made this possible!
On our celebration called ‘Evening of Thanks’, we took time to look back and take in a
moment of appreciation from where we came. Then, the next moment was a look forward to the
challenge ahead.
We were reminded that this second capital campaign was a part of the original plan.
This year we are starting our second capital campaign. It will be called appropriately,
“Fulfilling Our Ministries”. We launch this next campaign as a means to pay down the
mortgage we still maintain.
We know the security of our future ministries, programs and the effectiveness of Our
Savior’s to be a “Caring Community in Christ” depends on having a healthy financial picture.
I know that the people of Our Savior’s will continue to support and live out this vision
for our future. We will ‘abound in every good work’ to which Christ is calling us! May God’s
grace ‘abound in you’ this year!
“So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything
has become new!”
2 Corinthians 5:17
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has begun the celebration of its 25th
anniversary this month.
“The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is the church that shares a living,
daring confidence in god’s grace,” said Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson. “We are a church
rooted in Scripture, tradition, the Lutheran Confessions and the rich histories of our
congregations. It is through God’s grace that we are made new day by day to proclaim Jesus
Christ and boldly participate in God’s work. As Luther said, this faith is a living, busy, active,
mighty thing.”
Bishop Hanson points to a church of nearly 10,000 congregations, 65 synods and numerous
church-wide ministries.
In the past 25 years, Bishop Hanson said, the ELCA has started 435 new congregations,
ordained nearly 8,000 pastors, sent more than 2,000 missionaries to serve around the world and
contributed more than $350 million toward the alleviation of hunger and poverty.
Happy Anniversary ELCA.
Looking for Adult Leadership