08/27/20 Tidings

Dear Trinity,

On Sunday, August 23, we held our semi-annual meeting with 64 voting members and four confirmation students attending. We accomplished the following work:

1. Election of New Council Members – I’m excited to work with Randy Recob, Jill Henze, and Maggie Messler. I’m thankful for the work of outgoing council members Sheryl McCarthy, Craig Gierzak, and Vicki Steinke.

2. First Ratification of Constitution – Trinity had not kept up with the regular updates from the ELCA to the constitution and we’ve accomplished the work to bring us up to date. Thank you to Ron Michaelis and Tom Hawkinson for your diligent, detailed work on this project. We will vote on this for a second, and final, time in January.

3. Sale of the Adams Street Property – The Council now has permission to sell this property. According to tax records, we purchased the home for $150,000. While we hope that we can get out what we put in, we know that the house requires some significant updates by the new owner. Council has started the task of identifying a realtor to assist with this process by reaching out to the realtors at Trinity.

On Sunday, our new Council members were elected and two days later they attended their first Council meeting! It was a good meeting. One of the many important things we did was to vote that we will start regathering for
worship on Sept. 6. Please know this wasn’t an easy decision for us. However, we feel that the precautions we have in place will help us hold worship as safely as we can at this time.

If you choose to worship in person at Trinity, you will need to wear a mask the entire time you’re in the building. Pews are marked to guide you in social distancing. We will enjoy listening to music from our talented musicians,
but we will not sing. Nor will we pass the peace, shake hands, or hug. Worshiping in person will look and feel different but it will remain centered on Jesus Christ.

Those who attend in-person worship should be healthy and not have had recent contact with Covid-positive people. Attend in-person worship because you want to and feel safe, NOT because you think you should. Online worship will continue and it remains a valid, meaningful form of worship.

The council may choose to discontinue in-person worship based on what the public school systems are doing. They will close the entire district IF there is a significant community outbreak. Just as we follow their lead for weather closings, we will follow their lead in Covid too.

Please read the rest of the Tidings for details on signing up for in-person worship.

With gratitude,
Pastor Amy

Change in Tidings Frequency

Starting in September, Trinity Tidings will move to being published every other week.

How to sign up for worship

Step 1: Pick a day!

Will you come Sunday at 9 a.m. or Thursday at 6:30 p.m?

Step 2: Call Trinity

Call 563-4145
Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Step 3: Speak with staff

Sarah will happily place you on the sign up list for worship when you call during the specified times. Please don’t leave a message.

Step 4: Come to worship!

Thanks for signing up! Church is open 15 minutes prior to worship. Bring your mask. If you forget, we will have one for you.

Sunday School in a Bag

Trinity Lutheran is offering families with students ages 4K-6th grade the opportunity to continue Sunday school lessons at home. We are calling it Sunday School in a Bag! Every 4 weeks a new Bible story will be featured, along with a bag of engaging activities to help families explore the story.

Go to trinityfort.org and look for “Register now for Sunday school in a bag!” A link will take you to the registration form. You will find several options to choose from; all options will be available simultaneously throughout this Sunday school season.

Families having questions about Sunday school are encouraged to contact Julie by calling Trinity, 920-563-4145.

Trinity has an app!

Trinity Lutheran Church has an app! Get all of your Trinity
news and updates in one convenient place!

Click this link to download the app today!
https://tithely.app.link/trinity-lutheran-church-fort-atkinson

Church open for prayer

Starting in September, the church will be open for those wishing to pray in the church during the week. You must sign in at the office before going into the sanctuary to pray. While in the church, you must follow social distancing guidelines, wear a mask, and sanitize your hands before you enter. If the sanctuary is at capacity at the time of your arrival, you may be asked to come another time. When you are finished praying, you must sign out at the church office and sanitize where you were praying. Wipes will be provided. Please do not come if you have had any symptoms of COVID-19 or have recently been exposed to COVID-19.

The church is open for prayer from 9 a.m.-12 p.m., Monday-Thursday. Please call the office with any questions.

Drive-Through Communion

We will have drive-through communion on Sept. 6, 10 a.m.-11 a.m.

Little Free Pantry

We Need A Little Help!!

Due to the current economic events, we are noticing a higher demand for food items in our Little Pantry. (It is located on the east side of the church, off Adams St., on the lawn next to the driveway.)

We would like to make sure it has items in it every day, but we can’t do it alone. We have come up with an idea that would require a SMALL amount of time, but be a HUGE help!

We were wondering who would claim one (1) day per week or every other week (i.e.: 1st and 3rd Monday each month). Responsibilities would be to check on and add items to our Little Pantry. Items could be purchased by you, supplemented from collected food pantry items in the church or even
collected from work places.

The MORE people we have share in the responsibility, the FEWER days we all take per month!

Please contact:
Becky Tuttle: bjtuttle@charter.net or
Polly Schull: pollya@charter.net

When we determine how many people are willing to pitch in, we will confirm the weekday each is responsible for and send out a list of suggested items.

Thank you!

Becky Tuttle and Polly Schull

Quarters can make a difference

How do the quarters grow?

Just as our gardens and our children/grandkids grow, so does our impact on student lives in Guatemala who are able to attend school because of our donations. In 2019, money raised from various gifts (including ours) funded 308 scholarships! This year, it’s been much more challenging for the women’s
cooperative called UPAVIM (a Spanish acronym meaning united for a better life). Craft sales which support the school itself are way down, and the women who make the crafts are not earning enough for their families’ needs.

Please bring your donations of change, cash or checks to every drive through communion! Thank you! Just an update. So far this year, we have raised $260. At this point last year, giving was $525. Our total gift for scholarships last year after the usual September increase was $1,200.

P.S. If you need a craft item or a gift, please contact Kay Falk. She has a great variety of items on hand and just ordered new items. One of them is similar to a glasses chain holder, but is designed to hold your face mask so it’s handy when you need to wear it, not lost in your purse, car, wherever. You can look at all the group has to offer at upavimcrafts.org.

Prayers Requested for . . .

Judy Almquist, Marsha Anderson, Sandy Anderson, Alberto Calderon Castro, Linda Doerr, Melissa Endl, Kim Hannan, Bob Kyle, Phyllis Lang, Steffani Liebel, Rick Liebel, Wanda Mello, Jane Milan, Dan Morrow, Pam Nicholas, Debbie Pierce, Tom Pomraning, Violet Prust, Paul Reed, Shelley Scheurm, Ruth Smithback, Donna Weeks, Aryzone Zick, Donald Zuehlke.

Do you have a prayer concern? Email the prayer force at prayerforcetlc@gmail.com. People will gladly pray for you or your loved one
with their whole hearts!