May 2008 Newsletter

GLORIA DEI LUTHERAN CHURCH

1290 Thompson Road

Coos Bay, OR 97420

541-267-2347

http://www.gloriadeifamily.org/

office@GloriaDeiFamily.org

Jon Strasman, Pastor

As people of God gathered at Gloria Dei, we believe it is essential that…

· We build and support the whole Christian church as his examples in our families and community,

MAY 2008 NEWSLETTER

Confirmation will be May 11th on Pentecost Sunday at the 11:00 service. I am really excited about this day because Chelsey Forbes and Tristan Gates (ninth graders) will be affirming their baptism (saying yes to the promises God made to them at the font), but it doesn't stop there. We will also welcoming seven new members into Gloria Dei Lutheran Church:

Mike Boehme via Affirmation of Baptism
Andie Jensen via Lutheran Transfer from Chico California
Diane Rippe via Affirmation of Baptism
Mark and Cheryl Slagle via Holy Baptism
Douglas Wilfert via Affirmation of Baptism
June Williams via Affirmation of Baptism

Come and celebrate this special day!

Our new member's class is going well. We are walking through Luther's Small Catechism and having great discussions. I will be starting up another class in the fall, which I affectionately call "Confirmation for Adults." All are welcome to attend this class as we will cover the Ten Commandments, Apostle's Creed, Lord's Prayer, Baptism, and Communion.

We are in the process of writing a grant for the Prayer Shawl Ministry. The Oregon Synod put out a request for grants from their endowment fund. The grants are for creative ministries in your congregations. The Prayer Shawl Knitters are working with Rachel Koski, a member of Gloria Dei who has some experience writing grants, to put the application together. In addition to answering the questions on the application, we are using testimonies from people who have received a prayer shawl, pictures of days that we have blessed shawls, and sending a shawl to the committee. Going through the process has been exciting and we hope to use the information we have gathered to send to the Lutheran Magazine for a possible article featuring this ministry. Thanks to all who are making this happen.

Youth Group New Orleans Trip
Jesus, Justice, and Jazz is the name of the 2009 Youth Gathering in New Orleans. Here we will experience the awe of gathering with 25,000+ youth in the Superdome combined with service projects in Post Katrina New Orleans. I have had these experiences in my adult Christian life and they have changed my perspective on life and the world for the better. Our Youth Leaders are doing a great job getting us prepared to take this journey. We have had several fundraisers thus far and plan to meet on a monthly basis to do devotions, Bible Study, and planning in the fall. We have approximately 10 students interested in the trip so far with 5 or 6 adults. Youth going into 9th grade up to recent graduates are welcome join us. Watch for the upcoming youth stock sale. Your ROI will be out of this world.

Summer Worship Hours
We will have summer worship hours again this summer. Summer worship starts on Sunday June 8 thru Sunday September 7. Adult Study will begin at 9:00 a.m. and Worship at 10:00 a.m. We will commune the 1st and 3rd Sundays using intinction. During the summer we will also be learning a new liturgy out of the ELW (Evangelical Lutheran Worship) Hymnal. The Hardt singers will share their gifts.

Summer Reflection
The season after Pentecost in the church calendar is the green season. It is the longest season of the year and it represents new growth leading up to harvest. As we journey toward summer and nice weather. May God's Word dwell in you richly and bring about new growth in you. May the pruning that God's word brings to your branches open the door for new growth. May you bloom where you're planted and produce wonderful fruit.

Joan Lewis
Grant Cummings
Lenora Hiller
Jamie McDermott
Laura Franson
Helen Aber
Jean Monsebroten
Alice & Ivan Kenagy
Linda Talboy
Crete Olson
Beth & Ray Nelsen
Curtis Buell
Larry Burrill J
ean Hammer
Carolyn Agee

Friends and Relatives:
Gayle Hargrove (Jean & Leslyn's sister)
Ronn Gapps (Bob Taylor's friend)
Shannon Baghai (friend of Dorothy Taylor)
Francine Kelsay (friend of Elizabeth Henze)
Amy (granddaughter of Bob & Dorothy Miller)
James Donovan (Eleanor's son)
Ray & Kate Zablocki (friends of Gladys Eason)
Gray Cosgrove (Pam Moore's great grandson)
Celeste (daughter of Janice & David Bowman)
Laura (Noma Hild's niece)
Becca Ruley's friend
Roger Miller (Bob & Dorothy's son)
Sara Miller (Bob & Dorothy's granddaughter)
Maryann Thornes (Susan Jordan's sister)
Connie Greaves (friend of June Taylor)
Bruce Nelson (friend of Connie Reager)
Ron Nordquist (BJ's husband)
Jim Hally (Eleanor Donovan's neighbor)
Trina Lytle (Eleanor Donovan's friend)
Kristen Aust
Anthony Eimer (Lois Service's grandson in law)
Star Graham(mother of Pam Moore's friend)
Gwen Bender (Eleanor Donovan's friend)
Avery Walker (Jenny Forbes' nephew)
Gail Foster (Friend of Erdmans)
Lori Breeden (niece of Sharon Larcom)
Amy Watson (Girlfriend of Kupkas son)
Jeff Koch (Nephew of Kupkas)
Jane Nielson Hazslip
Jack Rasmussen (Marilyn Halvor's brother)
Tim Corrigan (Jennifer Helm's nephew)
Jessa (Eleanor Donovan's granddaughter)
Anna Weidemiller (Friend of Doris Smith)
Martha (Helen Aber's sister)
Cheryll Fields (friend of Bev Peterson)
Todd Strome (Eleanor Donovan's grandson)
Aurora Johnson's mother
Daile Marie (Clarence Taylor's granddaughter)

Serving Our Country:
David Tergeris (Kathie Hodgin's grandson)
Garry Eugene Buell, Jr.
Samuel Adams (Alice Kenagy's grandson)
Alex Wickham(Steve & Judith Wickham's son)
Nathan Wickham (Steve and Judith Wickham's son)
Jennifer Jones (Debbie Wright's niece)
Eric Martz
Jennifer Meynink (John's daughter)
Josh Potter (Son of George and Susan)
Clinton Anderson
Denise Angst (Granddaughter of Aleta Boddy)
Elias Boddy (Grandson of Aleta Boddy)
Ryan Howell (Son of Rick & Elaine Howell)
Vince Jacques (Son of Rick & Elaine Howell)
John Lewis (Grandson of Doris Anderson)
James Lewis (Grandson of Doris Anderson)
All our armed forces in Iraq & Afghanistan

NOTE: If you would like to make a change to the prayer chain list, to either add or remove a name or update the list, please contact Gladys Eason (888-8046) or Pastor Jon. We need your help in keeping the prayer list current.

We have entered our last rotation of the school year. This is a four-week special presentation of Bible Exploration. Tow weeks are devoted to highlights from the Old Testament and two to the New Testament. The students are learning more in depth about significant people and events through puppetry, film and story. This class starts at 9:30 and runs until just before second service and will carry us up to graduation Sunday.

May 18^th will feature two big events, honoring our graduates at the 11:00 service and the third annual Rain Gutter regatta being held between services. The watercraft will be provided free to all who wish to participate. The High School class will assemble and decorate the racers.

Vacation Bible School planning is underway. Our Rain Forest Adventure will be held July 14^th through the 18^th in an evening format as we did last year. We are looking for many helpers to assist in the many aspects of this endeavor. Please see Denny or Marilyn for opportunities to serve. We also would like to ask the congregation for financial help in offsetting the meal cost. You can contribute to this by notating a donation with VBS meals and place in the collection plates during services.

On May 17th & 18th Thrivent is sponsoring the Parade of Ponds to benefit our local Habitat for Humanity. Take a trip around the landscaped ponds in our area and on Saturday afternoon enjoy a BBQ. The cost is $10.00 per adult – anyone under 18 is free. Tickets will be available after worship services on May 4th and 11th. If you would like to donate toward the $800 match, you will have the opportunity to do so at that time. Checks need to be made out to Thrivent with “Parade of Ponds” in the memo area. If you have any questions, contact Debbie Cox at 756-2250.2009

The Annual Talent Show was great this year. The talent was diverse and very entertaining. We all enjoyed Sally Hampton and Nick Grassham's talent - the lasagna dinner. Thank you Sally and Nick. It was delicious and plentiful. Many people picked up "to go" bags to take home for dinner or to take to shut-ins. The show was definitely a group effort. Many thanks to everyone for performing at the show, attending as an audience member and contributing homemade rolls, desserts, and ingredients for the meal. We had a hardworking kitchen crew that set up, served, and kept the food coming to the table. They packed up the food as well as washed dishes and cleaned up. We even had a technical crew so the performers could be heard and the Youth Convention DVD could be shown. All morning long people were dropping by the kitchen and jumping in to help. There are so many people to thank and we wouldn't want to miss a single one of you who made this show a success so we would like to say one big THANK YOU EVERYBODY! P.S. We raised over $700 to put toward our trip!

Game Day is back by popular demand. Mark your calendar for Sunday, May 4, from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Bring a favorite game to play or take part in the Wii Tournament. Fun lovers of all ages are invited.

Are you aware that we have a Prayer Chain consisting of 25 members of our congregation who pray on a daily basis for each concern submitted by our members on the Prayer List?

Here’s how it works. When any member of our congregation learns of a serious general concern, illness, accident, or calamity affecting the member or a family member, friend or friend’s family member and wishes the person be placed on the Prayer List, call Gladys Eason (888-8046) or Pastor Jon or Elizabeth at the church office (267-2347) and state the request – name of person and reason for prayer. You may write the request on a slip of paper and hand it to Gladys on Sunday at church, if you like. We also welcome prayers of thanksgiving for the “good things” that happen, so we may all rejoice.

In order to keep the Prayer List up-to-date, please let us know of any change in your initial request as it happens, and also let us know when the condition changes enough to warrant the name being removed from the list.

If you would like to serve on the Prayer Chain and pray daily for those on the Prayer List, please let me know.

WELCA continues to enjoy the potlucks and bible study. The weather has been very unusual. Right now those who like to sew are working on school kit bags. If anyone has material at home that is a little heavier than just cotton and is at least 3/4 yard we could use it. The main ingathering for the supplies won't begin until July 1. We'd love to have you come if you aren't attending. The next meeting is May 8th since the first Thursday hits right on the 1st of May! We will meet in June and then dismiss for July and August.

Our Abolitionist pod has a poster on the divider in the fellowship hall. When coffee beans are ordered for the congregation’s use, individuals may also purchase at wholesale cost plus 10% for shipping. People wanting to order: fill out a tear off order blank and place it in the container attached to the display. We will order approximately once a month. The more orders, the less the shipping cost.

On April 13^th the congregation gathered to approve the amendments, which now has our constitution’s wording similar to that of ELCA congregations across the US. We learned a great deal in this process, like it’s good to get together and discuss and update our constitution, and I think we are a better congregation for it.

We will now send our approved constitution to the Oregon Synod for final review, and should have that returned to us in no more than 120 days or it is considered approved.

I want to thank all those who worked on this process, and a special thanks again goes to Paul Halvor, Lou Kolkhorst, and John Foss who gave their time and thought in creating what we all approved.

Every Friday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. the Health Awareness Ministry will be measuring blood pressure in the Library Corner of the Social Hall. Come get your pressure checked for free!

Did you know that Bay Area Hospital now offers free diabetic testing on the 4th Thursday of each month from 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.? A 12-hour fasting is required including no coffee or tea. This is held in the Spruce Room where they also offer the Blood Pressure Clinic every Thursday from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m.

On selected Saturday mornings during the summer, Gloria Dei grade and middle school students will work on various projects to be gifted to older members or friends of the church.

If you have ideas of projects that could be undertaken, please talk with Marilyn Schmidt, 269-9141 or leave a message in the Christian Education box in the office.

Jean and Randy Hammer would like to thank our church family for all of the love, prayers, and support, and kindnesses that have brought light into our dark times. What a wonderful ministry this church has provided. We hope to soon be a more active part of ministry.

Hi, my name is CPT Valerie Rarick and I wanted to than you for your wonderful organization. I am the executive officer for the medial clinic on Camp Arifjan Kuwait , and I think my mother mentioned this when she signed me up on your site. I received 4 boxes with about 100 books in them for myself and the Soldiers that come thru the medial clinic here. It is great to know that there are groups in the US that support us and we appreciate everything that you do. I would like to thank Eleanor Donovan for the books that she sent as well as Max Rabinowitz in Kissimmee , FL. You guys are great and we love you! I pray that you keep up the good work, and I wish there were more people in the world like you.