September 2022
Council Corner
At our most recent council meeting, members reviewed the progress of the Call Committee. Unfortunately, no one has expressed interest in the position as of yet. We discussed how long to wait before taking further action as a group. Various protocols in the Lutheran church somewhat hamstring our two-point parish in this process as the Call Committee is not allowed to recruit potential candidates actively. Pastor Birk volunteered a few ideas to help us accelerate this process. After a thorough discussion, we decided to give the process two more months before taking more proactive steps.
Next, the topic of the crafting of a strategic plan for Hope Lutheran was debated at length. The council discussed the poor attendance from Hope Lutheran at the two public sessions offered this past July by Tana Johnson. At these meetings, she described the process that would take place if we decided to move ahead with a strategic plan. Looking at the pros and cons, we decided to table the decision for two months. We need more participation from congregation members to make this work. The council decided to use the two-month period to rouse interest in taking part in this journey. If active participation cannot be increased, we will scrap the idea of a strategic plan. This would be unfortunate as a strategic plan could be used to draw a permanent pastor to our church.
Pastor Birk will be retiring as of August 21, 2022. Babbitt Evangelical Lutheran Church (BELC) and Hope Lutheran will utilize pulpit supply to cover August 28 and September 4. Pastor Ellen Taube will cover August 28 while Pastor Kristin Foster will cover September 4. Moving forward, Billie Rouse will take over for the foreseeable future until we can find a permanent pastor. Thank you, Billie, for offering your pastoral services in this time of need.
In last month’s newsletter, I thanked Rocky Roggenbuck for mowing the church lawn on a volunteer basis throughout the summer. However, in addition to him, we owe a debt of gratitude to one more person for the high quality of our lawn care. I would like to thank Bill Krueth for trimming the grass in the ditch next to the highway all summer long. This typically took him about two hours and was very hard on his legs, hips, and back. His efforts made our church look nice. Thank you once again, Bill.
May God grant you peace until we meet again next month…….
In God’s Name,
Lance Kupka
Council President
Hope Lutheran Church of Embarrass