PAGE 1 April 2015

April 5, Easter Sunday Worship Celebrations

Sacrament of Holy Communion at all services

Sunrise Worship, 7 am @ St. Paul

Easter Worship, 8:45 am @ St. John

Easter Worship, 10:30 am @ St. Paul

**Easter Breakfast at St. Paul, 8-10:15 a.m.

April 2, Maundy Thursday Worship at St. John

7:00 p.m. Foot-Washing Offered, and Sacrament of Holy Communion

At the heart of the Maundy Thursday liturgy is Jesus' commandment to love

one another. As Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, we are called to follow

his example as we humbly care for one another, especially the poor and the

unloved. At the Lord's table we remember Jesus' sacrifice of his life, even as

we are called to offer ourselves in love for the life of the world.

April 3, Good Friday Services

12:00 p.m. Community Good Friday Service at Lakeside United Church of Christ

Sponsored by Danbury Ministerial

7:00 p.m. Tenebrae Service at St. Paul, Service of Shadows

The Tenebrae Service focuses on the events surrounding the last hours in the life of Christ. The Tenebrae service,

"service of shadows," is one of the oldest in the history of the Church. The word tenebrae means "darkness." The

large candle represents Christ, the light of the world. Seven other candles, symbolizing the "Seven Words of the

Cross," are extinguished, one at a time between readings. At the end, the Christ candle will be removed and we will

be in tenebrae (or darkness) as representative of that which fell over the earth when Christ hung on the cross. The

lighted Christ candle will then be returned to symbolize our hope in the Easter resurrection.

sidebysideministry.com & friend us on facebook at John-Paul Lutheran

St. Paul Lutheran and St. John Lutheran, Lakeside-Marblehead, Ohio

Our Vision: “To be a vibrant, Spirit-filled people, participating in God’s work in the world.”

From Pastor Chris… “Come”

PAGE 2 April 2015

Special Events We have lots of Special Events planned for the upcoming months, make sure to mark them in your calendar!

Single Parenting that Works—Pastor Chris and Kim Perkins from Heartbeat have started a

Sunday morning program for single parents! The sessions for April are on the 12th, 19th, and

26th, at 9 am. All are welcome, even if you missed the first ones, and we invite you to spread

the word to family and friends! This workshop is meant for the whole community.

The Daniel Plan—Are you interested in feeling better, having more energy, learning how to

cook a variety of healthy delicious recipes, and regaining control of your body and

health? If so, you will be interested in THE DANIEL PLAN! This class being held by Linda

Merckens and Kim Bossetti will take place on Saturdays from 9-10 AM, April 18 & 25 May 2,

9, 16 & 23, at St. Paul’s fellowship hall. If you are interested please contact Linda Merckens

at 419-707-2212. Class size is limited! We plan to cook and eat! Cost of $20--Register early

to be sure your book is reserved! “For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.” 1 Corinthians 3:17b

All Sons and Daughters’ Banquet—The Banquet will be held on Sunday, May 3rd at 5 pm at

St. Paul. Women from St. John and St. Paul and their guests are welcome. The program will be

“Blast Off! Discovering the God of Creation” presented by the Calvary Hallelujah Puppets. The

dinner will be served by Avery’s in Marblehead. The menu is Roast Turkey, mashed potatoes

and gravy, green beans, garden salad, roll and butter, beverages, cookies and cupcakes. Tickets

are $10.00 and will be available soon.

Pastor Claude’s Bangbe Amba’s Visit—Sunday, May 10th, at both St. John and St. Paul Worship. We welcome him as he shares

about the Ministry in Cameroon, Africa. Pastor Claude will also be at Danbury Middle School on Friday, May 8th

NWO Synod Assembly—May 15-16 in Bowling Green. St. Paul delegates are Jim and Betsy Deer; St. John female

delegate is Linda Otermat. St. John is still in need of a male delegate. Please see Linda if you are interested.

Confirmation—Sunday, May 17th, at 10:30 worship we will celebrate confirmation at St. Paul. Reception to fol-

low.

Sunday School Picnic—Sunday, May 17th, following worship, along with the confirma-

tion celebration.

Danbury Baccalaureate—Wednesday, May 27th, 7:00 pm, at

St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Marblehead.

Graduation Reception—May 31st, at St. John and St. Paul

Sunday worship. Please let the church offices know about any

graduates from the congregations and their families, including

both high school and college.

VBS Dates—Mark your calendars for July 27-31 at St. Paul. We are considering an evening program, instead of morning in hope of

increasing participation from working families. Please share your thoughts with Chrissy French, our VBS director.

PAGE 3 April 2015

Bible & Discipleship Studies Sunday Morning, 9 a.m.:

1.) Adult Bible Study: Join us as we pick back up on the book we were studying before Lent. Hope to see you there!

2.) Single Parenting that Works: Meetings will be held on April 12, 19. 26. We are excited to welcome Kim Perkins, Executive Di-

rector of Heartbeat Pregnancy Center (and long-time friend of Pastor Chris), who is facilitating the class, just because she loves kids

and parents and God! This is open to anyone and everyone, so please spread the word. The only cost is your time. (We will have an

optional donation basket set out for Heartbeat Pregnancy Center.) Children 3 years old and up are welcome to be part of the Educa-

tion Hour offered at the same time. This is an outstanding opportunity and is part of our ministry as a teaching congregation! Come!

Women’s Bible Studies (WELCA – All women are invited to participate! )

St. John Women meet on second Wednesday at 2:00 pm

St. Paul Women will meet 3rd Thursdays at 1:00 pm

Weekly Wednesday Bible Study – Meets every Wednesday at 11:00 am at St. Paul. All Ladies are welcome. We are studying the

Women of the Bible. A different woman every week - so you are never behind in the series. Please join us as we dig deeper into the

Lord’s word. Good discussion and laughter. Any questions, please contact Cheryl Laubner.

Quiet Witness Corner Just a Prayer

This Lenten season Pastor Chris has been focusing her lessons on the importance of prayer. We have written our needs on paper and passed them on for others to pray for us as we pray for the needs of others. Prayer. Talking with God. Finding and committing a time to be with Him in prayer. She has been encouraging us to do just this for our Lenten journey.

It was early in 2008, when Pastor Chris had been here for only 2 years. We had a “dream-casting” or worship planning meeting. Our steeple's white, louvered openings were in embarrassingly poor condition with rotted and missing boards and years over due for paint. To make matters worse, we cut down the trees around the church making the need-ed repairs even more pronounced. Church council had had the steeple repair on its radar for quite a while, but funding such an ambitious project was a significant challenge. We just needed a few talented volunteers to step up and tackle this job, but not many people even want to climb up there, much less work up there, or possessed the necessary skills.

So it was at this meeting that I made the commitment to, at least, get some respectable progress accomplished up there. However, I can't drive two nails in a row without bending one of them, nor can I saw a straight line. Neither am I a brick mason or an engineer. So our little committee went into the basement, to the very foundation of the steeple, placed our hands in it and asked for God's guidance and help in this enormous project.

It took us all that summer and $2278.00, but Karl Kuenzer, Clay Stines, and myself did the impossible. We re-placed all four of the steeple's louvered openings with new ones. However, this excerpt isn't about us or the work we did. It is about the power of a prayer. A simple little prayer that got us started and kept us going. God's work our hands. Looking up those louvered openings today, well, that was one heck of a prayer. And now I pray, please Lord, don't ever ask me to do anything like that ever again.....unless I have Your help. Amen

On Easter Sunday a new television series will be premiering

on NBC. It is a twelve week sturdy through the book of Acts

and will cover all of the major stories in the first 10 chap-

ters. We invite you to watch what will be an exciting and edu-

cating show about the journey of the first followers of

Christ!

PAGE 4 April 2015

Side-by-Side Youth Page “In St. Paul Youth Group we will try to help others and ourselves grow in their faith while promoting a

nice environment to share our thoughts and ideas.” -Senior High Youth

7th and 8th graders

Confirmation Class

Classes meet Sundays at 9:00 a.m.,

Wednesdays in April, 6:00 –7:00 pm

Side-by-Side Jr. High Youth

Wednesday, April 8 , 15, 22, 29 - 7:30 pm

*Confirmands—On April 16th those being Confirmed will

meet with the council at 6:15 pm at St. Paul's. This is a

change in the schedule—they were originally supposed to

meet in May. Confirmation is May 17th.

Sunday School for Preschool –8th

Sunday School Teachers Needed!

***We are in great need of a couple

more teachers/helpers to help share

the joy :)

Please contact Chrissy French (419) 341-4653

with any questions and/or to offer your help.

Senior High Side-by-Side Youth

Let’s Stay Connected: If you are interested in what’s going on in the youth group and would like up-dates, join us on twitter! Follow us @StPaulDanbury to keep up! Calling ALL High School Youth of St Paul and St John: We are going to meet at Coffee Express in Port Clinton, 128 W. Second St (across from the Post Office), for talk & treats on Sunday, April 12th, around 12 or 12:15. See Helmi Freeh for Coffee Express' loyalty customer punch card or pick one up when you meet us there. Rise Up ELCA Youth Gathering: Preparations continue for the RISE UP ELCA Youth Gathering and hotel assignments have been given. Our group still needs to

raise $1500, so stay tuned for a sweatshirt/t-shirt sale and a car wash in warmer weather! Easter: We will help with the Easter Sunrise service and the Easter Breakfast. GodSpell: Come enjoy the music and message of GodSpell by the Edison High School Show Choir (of which Heather Lambert is a member), on Sun-day, April 19th.

Senior High

Side-by-Side Youth

Youth Sunday

1st Sun. of each Month

Sign up on the easel on the ramp at church to help

with greeting, ushering, lecturing (reading). Watch

for texts and calls from Chris and Helmi. See Pastor

Chris if you can help with Special Music.

PAGE 5 April 2015

Building Friendships “Not Older, Just Better” - Not Older, Just Better is meeting at Bruno’s on Monday, April 13th at 11:30 a.m. Call Marge at

419-798-8816 if you have questions or need a ride.

Dartball— Tournament is April 6th at Faith Memorial in Sandusky. Banquet is April 20th at Sandusky High School.

You’re Not Alone – Our “You’re Not Alone” group meeting has been changed from April 7th to April 14th. We will meet at

6:30 at Pastor Chis’ house.

Easter Breakfast—Easter Breakfast will be held on April 5th, from 8-10:15 am. If you would like to help by bringing food

there is a sign up sheet on the events board. Help with Any questions, contact Helmi Freeh.

Noisy Offering— The Noisy Offering Collection this April will be for St. John at the Bay.

Blessing Cup Team—”Traveling Easter Party” visits will begin the week after Easter. See Marge Bridgett if you would like

to participate. Myra is out of town with her mom, anyone interested in helping with St. John visits, please see Pastor Chris

Celebration Chorus—Each Wednesday at St. Paul, 7:30 p.m. All are welcome!

Community Garden— There is still time to become a garden member. It's free to join! We will be planting many crops to

share. And there is still space to plant crops for your family. A grant has been submitted for an above ground irrigation

system, so you might not even have to water your crops. If interested contact Emily Glynn @ 314-517-2402

(Glynn.emil@gmail.com) or Betsy Deer at 419-310-4406.

Council Nights—Council Meetings will be held on the third Thursday, April 16th. Parish Board meets at 5:30 pm, St.

Paul Council meets at 6:15 pm, and St. John Council meets at 7:00 pm.

Danbury Food Pantry—If you would like to volunteer at the Pantry com to St. Paul at 8 AM on a distribution Saturday. If

you have any questions call Jan Hirt 419-732-2703 or Rev. Janine Dress 419-265-7298. The food pantry will be held on

April 18th. This month St. Paul is to donate cereal, and St. John is to donate canned vegetables.

Prayer Chain—St. Paul contact Joan Harris at 419.734.3971 or 419.341.6373 or harris2110@roadrunner.com.

St. John contact Myra Prokop at 419.798.5101 or taylors@cros.net. God promises that our prayers are heard!

Lawnmowers—Won’t it be great to see the green grass, soon?! See Steve Young if you can be on the lawn mowing team at St. Paul, or call the church office. Please see the sign-up sheet at St. John if you can help with lawn mowing there. Sunday School Meeting— Sunday, April 26th following worship at St. Paul; Parents and congregation members are invit-ed to participate in our planning a “reformation” of our Sunday School for the fall – some exciting things are being consid-ered.

Serving in Christ’s Name

We were contacted by Trinity Seminary with the news that interns have received their placement, and we are not among

the sites chosen at this point (there were 23 sites and 11 interns). Our application has been shared with two other Semi-

naries and we will find out more information after Easter.

Internship Update

PAGE 6 April 2015

St. john beacon light

For April, 2015

St. John Council Highlights

Council Highlights: The March 19, 2015 meeting was held at St. Paul in order to combine location and date of

St. John and St. Paul’s council meetings. This saves Pastor Chris meeting time along with travel time.

There were 5 council members present.

All officers reports were presented and accepted. Pastor presented her March report of activities highlighting

upcoming ones.

Under old business Curt presented an estimate for a new roof on the parish hall. The council voted to accept

Scott Harris’ estimate of $6328.65. This estimate will be presented to the congregation at a special meeting to

be held April 12th.

Maryanne presented the final draft of Archive Policies for use of St. John’ records for research. It was moved

and seconded to accept the policy; motion passed.

Under new business Curt reported that St. John’s road sign along Main Street fell to the ground and will be

replaced.

St. John also welcomes Jane and John Dominy, Glen and Janice Beachy, and Patty Isaman as new members.

Birthdays

Karen Ruth 14

Ron De Walt 23

Linda Smith 25

Baptisms:

Margaret Stellhorn 1

Paul Lee 18

Anniversaries:

Jim and Linda

Otermat 16

St. John History Happenings

St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church Choir, Marblehead, Ohio

Organized October 1954 under the direction of:

Mrs. H. Lindeman

Mrs. Edward Dress, Organist

Officers:

Pres: Mrs. Robert Anderson

Secretary: Mrs. Norman Waldecker

Treas: Mrs. Wm. E. Storrs

Taken from the 1954-55 choir ledger book.

General Operating Fund- February

Receipts $ 3,516.50

Expenses $ 4,536.09

$ 1,019.59

St. John’s is still in need of coun-

ters for Sunday offerings.

PAGE 7 April 2015

St. Paul Lutheran Church Messenger April 2015

St. Paul Lutheran Church “Messenger”

February 2015 budget highlights:

General Fund

General Fund income- $8,803.62

General Fund expense-$12,161.98

Restricted Funds

Restricted Funds income- $3,224.00

Restricted Funds expense- $490.00

Highlights of March 19 Council meeting:

-General Fund $30,310.42.

-Council looking into Electronic Donations either through your own bank or thru the Vanco Payment

Solutions Company, more information will be requested if there is a fee for using the payment company.

-Community garden has 30 volunteers, volunteers are currently mapping out the garden.

-Beth Lambert looked into getting our giving envelopes from Concordia Publishing,. They are more expensive than McDaniels

which we currently use. The charge for 2015 was $384.33.

-Tom Kihlken offered to purchase 6 new trees for the cemetery from the Ottawa County Water and Soil Department.

Restricted Funds

-There will be a sign up sheet for use of the Shelter House with a $50.00 fee for the usage.

-Hospitality for March 29th will be coffee and baked goods.

-Last day to order Flowers for Easter Sunday is March 29th, please see an Altar Guild member.

-Mother/Daughter/Son Banquet will be held May 3rd, looking for volunteers to help serve.

-2 new water heaters were purchased for the Ladies restroom

Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church

(WELCA)

-The regular meeting and Bible Study will be April 16th at 1:00 pm. The

Bible study “Making Conversion Last” will be from the March “Gather”

magazine. Laurel Berhent will be hostess. All women are invited.

-WELCA will be hosting a Bingo party at Edgewood Nursing Home on

Monday, April 20th at 2:00 pm. Anyone is welcome to come along to assist

the residents and have a good time.

-The Monthly Project Contributions Cereal for the Food Pantry, 8x10 – 70

sheet ruled school tablets for the school kits, and sturdy combs for the per-

sonal care kits.

-The Easter visits will be April 7-9. If you want to join us please see Marge

Bridgett.

Please remember in your prayers:

Vince and Nancy Adams, Barb Agne, Barb

Batcha, Mary Butchko, Ben Chapman, Gary

Cover, Rebecca Dress, Jack Easton, David

Heinzl, Bill Hirt, Steve Hosko, Ruth Keller,

Delores Mahler, Kathy Stine, Sarah Tanner,

Janet Vodicka, Gordon Wahlers, Jerry

Weichman, Steve Young. We pray for family

and friends in the armed forces

The new Portals of Prayer, beginning

with April are in the rack beside the

bulletin board.

In February we welcomed into membership:

Tom and Carol Kubit, and Kay Verhoff.

Please welcome them when you see them.

PAGE 8 April 2015

Birthdays

1 Alijah Christiansen

2 Darlene Mahler, Scot Kerik, Nathan Ahrens

3 Barbara Rayle

4 Alan Glasmyer

5 Tim Goff, Tiffany Seamon

7 Tom Manuella, Addison Harris

8 Brenda Pepa

10 Dennis Berhent, Sandra Reep

11 Ryan French

12 Matthew Seamon

13 Alexis Dayton

14 Stacey Johannsen

15 Beth Lambert

16 Ryan Chapman, Edward

Chapman

17 Laurel Berhent, Scott Glovinsky

18 Shirley LaCumsky, Sarah Bossetti

19 Bob Kihlken

20 Benjamin Biers

21 Anna Bradway

22 Carole Covey, Christopher E. Mahler, Diana Dyke

26 Jennifer Wentzel, Kelly Stobie, Bob Strauss

27 Michael Hallier, Donald Nielsen

28 Donald Stobie

29 Brenda Pahl

30 Betty Easton

St. Paul April Special Dates Wedding Anniversary

2 Barry and Susan Bergman

12 Terry and Janette Rowbotham

Zack and Treena Kihlken

21 Cole and Jennifer Steinbrick

24 Dennis and Cindy Coles

Baptismal Anniversary

3 William Covey, Kerstin Thompson

7 Linda Dubbert

10 Erik Wadsworth, Tony Wadsworth, Nolan Coles

12 Melissa Widmer, Pastor Chris Young

13 Nick Upson, Laurel Berhent

14 Cindy Coles, Betty Kovach, RayLynn Schenko, Bryann

Schenko

15 Dan Bergman

16 Jennifer Ringeisen

17 Joe Mahler

19 Zack Kihlken

21 Meadow Rohrbaugh

22 Daniel Lambert, Aubrey

Harris

26 Guy Tibbels

27 Bernell Lowien, Tiffany Seamon, Nolan Chapman

28 Bob Glovinsky

29 Joel Lowien

PAGE 9 April 2015

Mutual Ministries

April 5 7:00am April 5 10:30am April 12 April 19 April 26

Greeters Brendon Mullins Joan Harris Linda Dubbert Jim & Dee

Warren

Lorna Eberly

Lectors Chris Freeh Jim Deer Vicky Doski Chis Freeh Dave Hirt

Ushers Erik Wadsworth

Vicky Doski

Hayley Doski

Shirley LaCumsky

Coni Ann Limpert

Marge Bridgett

Shirley LaCumsky

Marge Bridgett

Nancy Kihlken

Betty Kovach

Janet Strauss

Bob Strauss

Janet Strauss

Dave Hirt

Acolytes Larisa Kerik

Matt Seamon

Abby Cameron

Ryan Chapman

Mason French

Erik Wadsworth

Daniel Lambert

Kenneth Kerik

Sarah Bossetti

Brendon Mullins

Hospitality Breakfast Lunch

Altar Guild

Bulletins

Steeple Lighting Nancy Kihlken

Perpetual Light

Assisting Minister Jim Deer

Charles Scott

Altar Guild Shelley Seamon

Shirley LaCumsky

Counters Shirley LaCumsky

Deb White

Thank You

-Thank you for all who helped, who donated, and who participated in our Lunch with the Easter Bunny. Enjoy some pictures by going to our Facebook page at John-Paul Lutheran!

-Dear Congregation of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Thank you so much for your gift toward French Bibles for the Ngambe-Tikar Church in Cameroon Africa. It is so exciting for these members to be able to own and read from their own Bibles. What a gift! Sincerely in Christ, Sara

-Anonymous Donor, Thank you for the N. Church Road street sign plaque that was dropped off at St. Paul.

- To Pastor Chis, St. Paul, and WELCA; Thank you so much for all your support, hard work, and time you gave to make Tina Wadsworth’s burial service so memorable. It was amazing! God Bless, Stephanie Crego

PAGE 10 April 2015

PAGE 11 April 2015