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Boards, Committees & Others
Groups |
Below you will find
information about each of Immanuel's boards, committees and
other groups.
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The Board of Elders |
Contact:
elders@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Board of Elders
is charged by the church to maintain the spiritual life of
Immanuel. As a part of that charge they see to it that
worship services are held in accordance with our Lutheran
traditions.
-- The Board of Elders recently recommended
that we reduce the number of Sunday services at Immanuel
from two to one. They did this in order to promote a spirit
of unity and fellowship. The result has seen the church
overflow with members and guests giving all the opportunity
to get to know one another better.
-- The Board of Elders
also is charged to ensure that religious education is
offered to young and old. Since the Board of Education
sponsors these programs the Board of Elders offers
assistance in any way that they can. They especially see to
it that Catechism Classes are held for our 6th,
7th, and 8th graders as the Lutheran tradition places a very
high priority on religious education of her young. At the
end of their 8th grade year the Confirmands experience the
Rite of Confirmation where through this Rite they renew the
vows made for them when they were baptized as infants and
are invited to dedicate their lives to Christ.
-- The Board of Elders meets monthly to take
care of the "business" needs of the church. The Board of
Elders also meet every Friday morning at 6:00 AM to spend an
hour in Bible Study and time in praying for Immanuel and her
members.
-- The Board of Elders sponsors a yearly
"Toys for Tots" in support of the Sierra Vista Fire
Department Christmas Drive to see that needy children
receive gifts at Christmas.
-- The Board of Elders has divided the
membership of Immanuel into "Care Groups." That is,
alphabetically, the members of Immanuel are divided into
groups who are assigned an Elder. This Elder is there for
spiritual help for the individual in their Care Group,
visits them, helps them through difficult times, and prays
for them on a weekly basis.
-- In accordance with the Lutheran tradition
of Christianity, the Board of Elders is also that Board to
whom the Pastor of the parish is accountable. The Board of
Elders works with the Pastor to meet the spiritual,
physical, and emotional needs of members. The Board of
Elders also assists the Pastor with any of his needs and
makes suggestions to him as to ways in which the parish can
grow. The Board of Elders is also charged with the
responsibility for the spiritual health of the Pastor and
makes it possible for him to make spiritual retreats to grow
in his personal relationship with the Lord.
-- The Board of Elders assists with the
Sunday Liturgy and Communion Distribution in accordance with
the traditions of the Lutheran church.
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The Board of Education |
Contact:
education@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Board of Education
provides, supports and nurtures Christian education
opportunities for our children and adults.
Our Sunday School
classes meet after service, currently at 10:45 AM, each
Sunday. Classes are available for ages pre-school through
adult, and all are welcome to attend.
Each year Vacation Bible
School is sponsored and usually runs from Monday through
Friday of one week. This fun, educational, time is open to
the community and congregation alike, and is well attended.
All are welcome to attend our
Bible Studies available during the week. These
studies are held at a variety of times and places:
6:30 PM -
Monday Night – Led
by Chuck Patterson at church
10:30 AM -
Tuesday Morning –
led by Ron Witt at the Witt home
6:00 AM -
Thursday –
Men’s Bible Study led by Eddie Yarbrough, at the Landmark
9:30 AM -
Thursday –
Women’s Bible Study led by Marilyn Stults, at church
6:00 AM -
Friday –
Elders’ Prayer Group meets at church each Friday morning.
The Board of Education does
not “run” the Youth Ministry program, but it offers
support to the sponsors for the High School Youth Group.
The current sponsors of the High School Youth Group are
Eddie and Victoria Yarbrough and Chuck and Maureen Potucek.
They have regular Sunday morning meetings. The H.S. Youth
attend the LCMS National Youth Gathering, which is held
every three years, and also attend the Pacific Southwest
District Youth Gathering, which is held every year. The
Board of Ed serves as a sponsoring agency for the Lutheran
Youth Fellowship, which is very strong and active at
Immanuel.
As a part of our Lutheran
tradition, young people in the 6th, 7th
& 8th grades attend Catechism Classes,
which meet weekly. These classes provide not only Bible
studies, but the beliefs of the Lutheran tradition of
Christianity, the history of Lutheranism, and the doctrines
and teachings of our churchbody. As the youth study about
their faith, they grow in their faith and are given a chance
to profess that faith in Christ when they make their
Confirmations. In the Lutheran tradition, Confirmation is
that Rite of Passage when the young person now gives witness
to their faith in Jesus Christ and, in the eyes of the
church, is viewed as an adult.
“Let the little children
come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God
belongs to such as these.” Mark 10:13
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The Board of Evangelism |
Contact:
evangelism@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Evangelism Board has four prongs
to its mission to serve our church, community, and our Lord.
First is our outreach to the Community. We sponsor events
throughout the year to reach our community. For example,
annually we sponsor a January seminar with noted historian,
theologian, and Second Vice-President to The Lutheran Church
Missouri Synod,
Dr. Paul Maier. Dr. Maier’s seminars attract
attendees not only from our immediate area, but from Tucson
and Green Valley. His educational and entertaining seminars
fill our church to overflowing. We also sponsor an annual
seminar by Rev. Jerry M. Kosberg. We have a booth at the
Chamber of Commerce Annual Expo at Buena High School and
sponsor Friendship Sunday, a special Sunday each year for
our congregants to bring their friends to church.
The second prong to Evangelism’s mission is welcoming
visitors. We want every guest to our church to feel welcome
and at home.
Third, we help new members integrate
into our church. Those who wish to join our congregation are
invited to attend a six week class taught by an Elder to
familiarize them with our beliefs and our church. At the end
of the class, the Board of Evangelism sponsors a New Member
Sunday to introduce new members to our congregation. We also
sponsor a New Member Potluck, an opportunity for our boards
and committees to tell new members what they do and recruit
interested participants.
Finally, Evangelism serves our congregants. We sponsor Open
Sanctuary each Wednesday from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. During
this time our Sanctuary is open for members to come in and
pray silently, meditate, or study the Word. We also sponsor
a Tape Ministry. Recordings of our weekly Divine Worship are
provided to our shut-ins and ill congregants. Members who
are traveling or missed a service can also request a
recording on tape or CD. We also have a Care Ministry. We
assure that ill members’ needs are met, from meals to rides
to doctor’s appointments. We call our shut-ins to assure
they are well and do not have any unmet needs. We provide
rides to those who cannot drive, but want to attend our
Worship Service. In summary, we make ourselves available to
meet the needs of our congregants and guests.
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The Board of Stewardship |
Contact:
stewardship@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Stewardship Committee is responsible for the following
three areas in the life of the church. They are Time, Talent
and Treasure.
Time
In this regard, the Stewardship Committee strives to get all
the members of the congregation involved in the work of the
church. When new members join, they receive a briefing on
the types of tasks that need to be filled. It could be in
the area of Trustees (taking care of the property) or in
Evangelism (telling others of Christ and our church). There
are many areas of service available and the Stewardship
Committee endeavors to get all the members involved.
Talent
Once a year, the Stewardship Committee conducts a survey of
the talents possessed by the members and matches up the
talents of the members with the needs of the church. For
example, a person may be a good accountant or CPA. The
Stewardship Committee would endeavor to get that person
involved as a church treasurer or financial secretary.
Immanuel is blessed with many talented people as is
reflected in the outstanding leadership exhibited by the
Church Council.
Treasure
This concerns the finances of the church. The Stewardship
Committee meets periodically to check on the financial
health of the congregation. It looks to see if offerings
are matching budget. Should a shortfall occur, the
Stewardship Committee will then sponsor stewardship
awareness to ensure that the congregation can honor its
pledges and meet its commitments. A special area assigned
to this committee last year was the task of raising $500,000
for the Capital Stewardship Campaign, a campaign designed to
raise funds for our new church building which is expected to
be built in the future. The campaign was a huge success and
so far $308,042 has been received. This amount is over and
above normal giving and reflects the great love of the
members for Immanuel.
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The Board of Trustees |
Contact:
trustees@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Board of Trustees is comprised of those individuals who
are elected or appointed by the members of Immanuel to use
the gifts that God has given them to see to the physical
needs of the church. This Board is a "hand's on" board.
That is, they use their God given talents to do much repair
and maintenance work of the church. Immanuel is blessed to
have the individuals she has who serve on this board, for
they are able to serve our Lord with their gifts to keep the
church always ready for worship services, available for
social functions like cook outs, pot lucks, making sure we
have all the items we need for our annual "Worship Service
in Veteran's Park," as well as making sure that ordinary
repairs are taken care of such as water pipes breaking,
light bulbs being burned out, mowing the lawn (or in the
case of Arizona, "mowing the cactus and sand").
In the prior year the Trustees worked as a blessing to our
Lord and to our parish by seeing to it that the entire
inside of the parish was given a fresh coat of paint (for
the first time in 18 years); and a special blessing for our
worship services was authorized this past year by the Board
of Trustees. The Board of Trustees authorized the purchase
of a Baby Grand Piano. This Baby Grand Piano has such a
beautiful quality to it... that when Francie plays the piano
we are all truly blessed.
The Work of the Trustees tends to the property and to the
facilities of Immanuel, and they also see to it that our
worship of our Lord, our fellowship with each other, and our
witness to the community through our facilities honors our
Lord. Presently we have 11 men who serve on the Board of
Trustees and we thank our Lord for their using of their
gifts in service to our Lord and to Immanuel.
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The Hospitality Committee |
Contact:
hospitality@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
Every
Sunday after our Worship Service, the Hospitality Committee
prepares coffee and juice and distributes pastries for us to
enjoy as we share each others company. Members of our
congregation are invited to contact the Chairman of the
Hospitality Committee if they would like to bring baked
goods for the congregation to enjoy after our service. The
Hospitality Committee and the ladies of the church also
provide refreshments for funerals and church events not
sponsored by a particular committee. They do the clean-up
after church events and keep the kitchen clean and well
supplied.
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The Building Committee |
Contact:
building@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
We are working to build a new sanctuary with ground breaking
scheduled for September of 2008. Our board consist of 13
members and we meet approximately once per month. The
responsibility of this board is to work with our architect, Hank Krzysik, and the congregation and through the Holy
Spirit develop a pleasing and functional sanctuary.
The following
links are the architectural plans for our new sanctuary:
Site
Plan
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The Remodeling Committee |
Contact:
remodeling@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The
Remodeling Committee is charged with determining how the
current Sanctuary will be used after our new church is
built. Once this decision has been made and the appropriate
approvals secured, the Remodeling Committee will determine
what structural changes need to be made to the current
building to accommodate its new functions. The Remodeling
Committee will propose a budget and will hire contractors to
make these changes. If fundraising is necessary for these
alterations, the Remodeling Committee will work with the
Board of Stewardship. We invite members who have a
background in construction or who are interested in
participating in redesigning our Sanctuary for new uses, to
contact the Chairman.
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The Youth Group |
Contact:
youth@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The Youth Group at Immanuel Lutheran Church is comprised of
youth who are between confirmation and high school
graduation age. We provide a safe, faith-based social
organization that allows teenagers a chance to slow down and
reevaluate where their busy lives are taking them. The
teens of Immanuel participate in activities such as church
lock-ins, camping, day trips, and guided discussions
pertaining to the changes in their live as they get older
and prepare to move out into the world.
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The Altar Guild |
Contact:
altar@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
The
Altar Guild consists of a special group of ladies who
have the sacred and solemn responsibility for the
preparation of the Altar for the Sacrament of Holy
Communion. This also involves changing the paraments on
the altar, pulpit and lectern for the different seasons
of the church year - such as Advent, Christmas, Lent,
Easter, Pentecost, etc. The Altar Guild also prepares
the Baptismal Font for the Sacrament of Holy Baptism
whenever that joyous rite takes place. At the present
time sixteen ladies serve on the Altar Guild. The Guild
meets two or three times a year to set up a schedule and
discuss any changes or problems. Our chairman will
train any lady who wishes to join this group.
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The Lutheran Women's
Missionary League |
Contact:
lwml@immanuel-lutheran-sv.org
On July 7
and 8, 1942 one hundred women from 15 districts met at St.
Stephens Lutheran Church in Chicago to organize a mission
society that we know today as the Lutheran Women's
Missionary League, LWML. At that founding convention they:
1) adopted a constitution, 2) approved the name, 3) chose
two projects, 4) decided that mite boxes would be used to
collect all their mites - in other words, their mission
offerings, and 5) decided that one fourth of the mites
collected in the local districts would be given to the
national organization and three fourths would be used for
district projects. The women attending that first
convention could never have imagined what a successful
mission organization LWML would become and the millions of
dollars that it would raise for the myriad mission projects
it would undertake. What a blessing this organization has
been to our church.
The
following January the first
“Quarterly,” the LWML magazine, was printed. It's a
great magazine- filled with LWML news, inspirational
articles, and Bible studies.
This last
June LWML held its 32nd biennial convention in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota with 5000 women and men attending.
The attendees voted for 18 projects around the world:
Sudan, India, Guinea, Bangladesh, Africa, Russia, Tanzania,
Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia. They voted for projects in our
country also. They set a record goal of 1.7 million
dollars. With God’s help and blessing, the LWML will
reach and perhaps exceed that goal, just as the LWML
exceeded its last record goal by over $400,000!
Immanuel’s
LWML meets the 3rd Tuesday of the month. We
invite all of the women in our congregation to attend. The
last Sunday of each month, the women, children (we are
blessed by giving children who collect their change in their
own mite boxes), and some men in our congregation bring
forward the mites they have collected during the month in
their mite boxes. We have had a wonderful response! In the
last year and a half we have contributed over $2000 for the
spreading of the good news of the Gospel.
We are now
blessed to have two missionaries from our congregation,
Rebecca and Lou Hillebrand, who have gone to the
Philippines. Our LWML will be holding some fund raisers to
help finance them in their mission. But what an inspiration
they are to each and every one of us!
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