Congregational Letter

Posted on May 12, 2009

The following is a letter that was mailed out to all members of our congregation. We should receive it in the mail any day now.

Dear Friends,

This letter will update you on changes regarding the mailing of our Heralds newsletter, and serve as notice to all voting members of the May semi-annual meeting. The semi-annual meeting will be held on May 17, following 10:30AM worship. A light lunch will be served. The agenda will include elections and the redefinition of Wendy’s call at Hope. Pastor Wendy will be redirecting her hours to serve the non-profit teaching mission, Call Inc. Attached is the proposal for redefinition that has been approved and recommended by the Council to the congregation (you may view this by clicking here). It has also been reviewed and received the blessing of the NTNL bishop. Matthew Cleaver desires to assume Wendy’s Ministry Development responsibilities in addition to devoting half of his time to directing the youth ministry. The Council has already approved an opportunity to obtain a youth ministry intern through John Brown University, Zach Poulter (pursuing a youth ministry degree), to assist Matt with the youth ministry. Zach will serve with Hope from May to December. Read more in the April and May Heralds newsletters.

The nominations from the Nominating Committee for the May 17 elections are:

President Elect:

  • Candy Moltz (she is already serving by appointment)

Council Members-at-large:

  • Barbara York (she is already serving by appointment)
  • Carrie Hamilton
  • Bryan Pender

Nominating Committee Voting Members:

  • Margaret Bengtson
  • Steve Harr
  • Carol Newman
  • Janice Wessa

Additional nominations may be submitted to Wayne Wooley.

This letter will also serve as notice that we will no longer be bulk mailing our congregation’s monthly newsletter, Heralds of Hope. We are doing this both to be prudent in tough economic times, and to be more “green,” not contributing to the paper deluge that each of you receives by mail. If you would like to continue to receive it, here are your options. The newsletter as well as other information is available on our newly redesigned website, www.hopelutheran.net under the resources tab. Our secretary, Karine Samer (hopesecretary {at} sbcglobal(.)net), will provide you with email notification when the latest version is available. Many in our congregation have requested to receive it in this manner. It is also available in printed form in the Narthex (lobby) of our building. Notification of the latest version is put in members’ mailboxes. If these options are unavailable or challenging for you, we will still mail it to you. Please consider making a donation to cover the added cost of regular postage ($10-12/year). Please make your request to Karine.

Sincerely in Christ,

Pastor Joel Berthelsen
Pastor Wendy Berthelsen
Wayne Wooley, Council President