Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
With the coming of July we have many summer activities behind us: VBS in Fillmore county, confirmation camp, and our men’s retreat. But this in no way means that we are done. The Youth Gathering is next. In just a few short weeks several of our High School kids from each church in the parish will travel to Detroit for a week of worship, service, and fun. We ask that you pray for them in their travels (and pray for pastor). Detroit was chosen this year because it is a community in desperate need of God’s love and encouragement. Our bible theme for the event is the Gospel of Mark with a focus on the kids and the residents of Detroit finding a new way to look at how God is interacting with the world. As you read this please know that you too can join in on the mission work through a monetary donation. Here are several opportunities to give. Give online by going to and click on the giving opportunities button. This will make available multiple gift ideas from Urban Gardens to Art Supplies. The idea is to beautify and improve the community. We will also be taking a collection on July 12th at each congregation to buy diapers for families in need in Detroit. Please commit to helping in at least one of these missions!
Right after the Youth Gathering there is Bible School in McCool Junction. Regardless of church home, this is an opportunity for the whole parish. If you would like to attend, please contact Pr. Becky or Pr. James and we will get you further information.
Look for our joint worship lakeside service at Lone Star in August. It is a great way to end the summer and get back into the Fall groove together.
By the time these events are thrown into the mix of everything else, what with the 4th and summer vacations, things can get a little hectic. The church is sensitive to this and so, through July, we will be observing a meeting sabbatical across the parish, so those who give so freely of your time and talents to the church, take a deep breath and remember that in our plans, schedules, and vacations God is with us and at the end, brings us all to his peace. This has been promised and has been shown throughout history so, if summer “stuff” is starting to get you frazzled, take a step back, breathe deeply, and remember that God is ultimately in charge and he knows the plans He has for us, and these are not plans for harm.
Peace be with you in this month of July!
Pr. James
July 2015 – Prince of PeaceSUNDAY / MONDAY / TUESDAY / WEDNESDAY / THURSDAY / FRIDAY / SATURDAY
28 / 29 / 30 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4
7:00pm WELCA mtg. / Happy Fourth
of July!
------Pastors on Vacation ------
5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11
8:30am Worship / 7am Men’s B. Study / 9:30am YGM at / Planning Day / O. Hrs.: 9am-Noon
9:30am Fellowship / 10:30am Text Study / Starbucks in York / for Pastors
O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm / 1-2pm Ministerial
Pastors on Vacation / O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm
12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18
8:30am Worship w/ / Pastors’ Sabbath / 7am Men’s B. Study / 12 Noon Senior Meal / O. Hrs.:
Holy Communion / 10:30am Text Study / at Senior Center / 9:30-Noon
9:30am Fellowship / O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm
------Youth Gathering ------
19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25
10:00am Fillmore / Pastors’ Sabbath / 7am Men’s B. Study / O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm / Planning Day / O. Hrs.: 9am-Noon
County Fair Service / 10:30am Text Study / for Pastors
O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm / Fillmore County
Youth Gathering / ------Vacation Bible School @ McCool ------/ Relay for Life
26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31 / 1
8:30am Worship w/ / Pastors’ Sabbath / 7am Men’s B. Study / O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm / O. Hrs.: 9am-Noon
Holy Communion / 10:30am Text Study / 2:30pm Hymn Sing
9:30am Fellowship / O. Hrs.: 2-5:30pm / at Heritage
Servers for July 2015
Counters for July: Chris Coash & Mark O’Brien
Worship Date / July 5 / July 12 / July 19 / July 26
Greeters / IdonnaKuhns / Koenig Family / Parde Family / Teresa Kapperman
Ushers / O’Brien Family / Parde Family / Pendleton Family / Poppert Family
Reader / Peggy Birky / Chris Coash / Roger Coon / Jim Donovan
Acolytes / Aidan Trowbridge &
Caleb Nebe / Sadie Birky
Faith Lauber / Hunter Nebe
Hannah Norvell / Trenton Srajhans
Riley Moses
Video / Lydia Birky / Parker Trowbridge / Marissa Nun / Aaron Poppert
Communion Prep. / Sylvia Jividen / IdonnaKuhns
Communion Asst. / LaVonParde / Chris Coash
Sound Board / Max Lichti / Jim Donovan / RoxannHafer / Elmer Hessheimer
Fellowship / Pendleton Family / Parde Family / Smith Family / John Steider Family
July 2015 – First Evangelical
SUNDAY / MONDAY / TUESDAY / WEDNESDAY / THURSDAY / FRIDAY / SATURDAY
28 / 29 / 30 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4
Noon-1pm / Happy Fourth
Senior Meal / of July!
7pm Men’s B. Study
at Kerry’s
------Pastors on Vacation ------
5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11
10:30-11:30am / 10:30am Text Study / 9:30am YGM at / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
Worship / Starbucks in York
1-2pm Ministerial
7pm Men’s B. Study
Pastors on Vacation / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18
10:30-11:30am / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / Noon-1pm / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
Worship w/ Holy / Senior Meal
Communion / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
7pm Men’s B. Study
at Kerry’s / ------Youth Gathering ------
19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25
10:30-11:30am / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / Noon-1pm / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
Worship w/ Holy / Senior Meal
Communion / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
7pm Men’s B. Study
YouthGathering / ------Vacation Bible School @ McCool ------
26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31 / 1
10:30-11:30am / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / Noon-1pm / O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
Worship / Senior Meal
O Hrs.: 3-5:00pm
7pm Men’s B. Study
at Kerry’s
Servers for July 2015
Worship Date / July 5 / July 12 / July 19 / July 26
Reader / Pattie Bailey / Conner Cogswell / Jim Norquest / Mike Vorderstrasse
Organist / Heather Stahr / Deb Tonniges / Jane Hoeft / Jane Hoeft
Ushers / Jeff Davis &
Terry Chrisman / Jeff Davis &
Terry Chrisman / Tom Cunningham &
Al Mack / Tom Cunningham &
Al Mack
Communion Asst. / Alecia Mertz / Curtis Cogswell
July 2015 – St. John’s
SUNDAY / MONDAY / TUESDAY / WEDNESDAY / THURSDAY / FRIDAY / SATURDAY
28 / 29 / 30 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4
Happy Fourth
of July!
------Pastors on Vacation ------
5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11
9:00am Communion / 10:30am Text Study / 9:30am YGM at / Planning Day / O. Hrs.: 9-11:00am
Service / 1:30pm WELCA mtg. / Starbucks in York / for Pastors
O. Hrs: 3-5:00pm / 1-2pm Ministerial
Pastors on Vacation
12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18
9:00am Worship / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / 9:30am Birthday
Service / O. Hrs: 3-5:00pm / Coffee @ Ohiowa
Cafe
------Youth Gathering ------
19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25
9:00am Communion / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / Planning Day / O. Hrs.: 9-11:00am
Service / O. Hrs: 3-5:00pm / for Pastors
10:00am / - - -Sewing Days - - - / Fillmore County
County Fair Service / ------Vacation Bible School @ McCool ------/ Relay for Life
26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31 / 1
9:00am Worship / Pastors’ Sabbath / 10:30am Text Study / O. Hrs.: 9-11:00am
Service / O. Hrs: 3-5:00pm
Servers for July 2015
Organist: Nancy Cradduck
Ushers for July: Ron & Georgia Schropfer, Vicki Ozenbaugh
Flowers for July: Darlene Most
Communion Assistant for July:Darcy Nun
Worship Date / July 5 / July 12 / July 19 / July 26
Acolyte / Kala Most / Kimberly Schropfer / KayLynnSieber / Conner Nun
Lay Reader / Peggy Roit / Tanner Nun / Kristi Most / Gaylord Cradduck
St. John’s News
St. John’s Council Minutes
St John’s Council met on June 7, 2015. Present were Gaylord, Darcy, Chris, Scott, Luther and Pastor Becky. Barb was absent.
Gaylord called the meeting to order. Minutes were read. Treasurer’s report was given and showed a balance of $49753.26. Pastor Becky gave their monthly report.
Scott moved and Chris seconded to approve the reports. Carried
Old Business.
Storage building materials are all in and now are waiting for a good time with help for construction. It was also mentioned to add rock from the edge of the alley to the building.
No word on entry door from Fairbury Glass.
Parish secretary is going well.
The Food stand for Ohiowa Days is ready.
Hymnal order will be put in shortly as well as an order for the labels for inside the hymnals.
New Business
Memorial boards were discussed.
BRAN (Bike Riders Across Nebraska) bake sale fundraiser for the youth was discussed.
Propane contracts were discussed along with a Paschal candle. It would be an oil candle and looking at purchasing it with memorial funds.
The lake side service will be Aug. 16th.
There will be no July Council meeting.
July Communion Assistant is Darcy
August Communion Assistant is Luther
Next Council meeting will be held August 9th
With no further business, Scott moved and Chris seconded to adjourn. Motion carried.
Acting Secretary Luther Roit
St. John’s News2015 Lutheran World Relief School Kits
It is time again to help our WELCA group in making school kits.
Why do we send school supplies? “To the children who receive school kits, these supplies mean the difference between getting an education or not! In the places where LWR works, even a few required supplies, like pens and paper, may be more than many families can afford. And when parents can afford to send one of their children to school, girls rarely get priority, yet the education level of mothers has the biggest input on development.” (quoted from Lutheran World Relief’s website,
Guidelines:
- Please give new items only.
- Please do not donate items with any religious symbols, messages, or your congregation’s name.
- Please do not donate any items decorated with a U.S. flag, patriotic or military symbols, or references to the armed forces, including camouflage.
The items that we will need for our kits (note changes made from last year) are:
- Four 70-sheet notebooks of wide- or college-ruled lines. 8” x 10½” size. No loose-leaf paper.
- One 30-centimeter ruler, or a ruler with centimeters on one side and inches on the other.
- One pencil sharpener.
- One blunt scissors (safety scissors with embedded steel blades work well).
- Five unsharpened #2 pencils with erasers (no punchy pencils, please).
- Five black or blue ballpoint pens (no gel ink).
- One box of 16 or 24 crayons.
- One 2½“ eraser.
Now is the time to shop for these items. The months of July and August are when department stores have school supplies on sale and it is the time to buy.
Bring your back-pack items to the church any time during August or September. Monetary donations will be accepted anytime and will be used to purchase the required items.
Thank you so much for your help for these young deserving students!
St. John’s Women of the ELCA
July CelebrationsBirthdays / Anniversaries
Parish-wide
July27Pastor Becky Sells
Prince of Peace
July01Angie Howell
04Shaunna O’Brien
05Richard Knoche
06Tara Coon
07Maurine Domeier
Justin White
08Keith Kapperman
Ashton O’Brien
11Nancy Meyer
BrittniSteinle
12Wyatt Hafer
Richard Reinsch
13Jordan Duensing
17Parker Trowbridge / 18Hannah Duensing
19Richard Trapp
20Dirk Coon
Allison Meyer
21Robert Boyes
TamraLuzum
Lance Rippe
23KaDeeNunns
24Patricia Schake
Karen White
26Carl Howell
Heather Schultz
28Erin Wehland
29Max Lichti / July06Samuel & LaDonna Pendleton
18David & Tami Dittmer
Patrick & Rhonda Duensing
25Christine & Russell Coash
Danny & Kristin Nun
29Donald & Sylvia Jividen
First Evangelical
July14Aaron Norquest
15Arianna Chrisman
16Makenna West
17Cindy Matousek
18Lisa Johnson / 20Beau Gerken
25Pam Norquest
30Jim Green
31Taylor Davis / July17Jim & Pam Norquest
18Jim & Dona Kaliff
27Don & BernaceNorquest
St. John’s
July01Larry Mussman
Brian Sieber
02Louis Schropfer
04Gaylene Gaston
06Chase Capek
09Roger Schropfer
15Bill Schropfer
19Georgia Schropfer / 22Louise Wulf
23Michael Cradduck
Jon Halama
29Dan Deke
Grace O’Neil
Cynthia Ozenbaugh
Jessica Roit / July19Duane & Marlene Cecrle
22Scott & Kristi Most
24Roger & Carrie Schropfer
30Lowell & Helen Myers
Brian & Wendy Mussman
Dear readers,
Hello! My name is Joseph Chapman, and I am the new administrative secretary for the Tri Point Lutheran Parish. I was born and raised just outside of Geneva, and after attending college at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln I am happy to be back in such a great small-town community! So far, my time with this parish has been amazing, and I am thrilled to work with Pastors James and Becky as well as the rest of the parish to usher in new ideas, such as this revamped parish-wide newsletter. Outside of work, my hobbies include reading (20 books so far in 2015!), listening to music, and adding to my overwhelming collection of board games. I look forward to working with each and every one of you to make your church experience the best it can be!
Best wishes,
Joseph Chapman
General Parish News2015 Nebraska Synod Assembly Highlights
The Assembly’s Opening Worship featured a message from the Rev. Wilma Rommel, vice president of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Argentina and Uruguay (IELU). Pastor Rommel was present to help commemorate the 25th anniversary of the relationship between the Nebraska Synod and the IELU.
The Nebraska Synod Assembly gave an offering for the Campaign for the ELCA, to be designated for Missionaries and Young Adults in Global Mission. The final amount of the offering will be reported once all of the contributions have been received.
The assembly was treated to Faith Stories from three faces around the Nebraska Synod: Bill Davis, Erin Coleman Branchaud and Orrin Strand.
After considering and rejecting three proposed amendments, the Assembly adopted a preliminary Synod budget for 2016.
The Assembly endorsed a five-year Strategic Mission and Vision Plan. Among other things, the plan outlines opportunities for study, improvements to the call process, emphasis on faith formation, and enhancements to Synod staffing.
The Assembly considered two resolutions:
- Resolution 2015:1, offered by the Parish Ministry Associate Steering Committee, encourages congregations “to foster Christian vocation by encouraging and equipping people” as part of a Life of Faith Initiative. The resolution was adopted.
- Resolution 2015:2, offered by Mark Caspers of Auburn, would have directed pastors not to discourage participation in Freemasonry or other Masonic organizations. The resolution was filed after the 90-day deadline and the Assembly voted against bring the resolution to the floor for consideration.
Other highlights included the Partners in Ministry Banquet, the Synod 5K Run, Youth Convo ’15, youth programming, the Night of the Arts program and service projects at the UNK Lutheran Student Center and Mosaic in Axtell.
The 2016 Nebraska Synod Assembly will be held June 2-4, 2016, at the Younes Conference Center in Kearney.
For more resources from the 2015 Nebraska Synod Assembly, including downloadable resources, go to:
Contributors: Amanda White, Sarah Kocher and Justin Perkins.