PASTOR’S REPORT
The week of the 2010 Pickle
Fest will long be remembered by the people of Saint Mark Lutheran
Church in Saint Joe! Last year we had an entry in the Pickle Fest
parade on Saturday. For many years our ladies group has sold baked
goods in the Riverdale Elementary cafeteria. Construction at the
school prevented them from doing that this year! But for the first
time our church had a good tent featuring Sloppy Saint Joes(based on
old Mason Family recipe!), nachos and cheese, super nachos(with SSJ
on top!), baked goods, soft drinks and bottled water! Temperatures
in the 90’s each day with high humidity made this a real challenge
by itself!
What we had not planned on
was a record 3 funeral dinners in the same week!
In fact, we have set a new
all time church record with 8 funerals in 2010!
The previous high was 7 in
1962! So far this year we have had 7 funeral dinners!
So all of this came, the very
week after Vacation Bible School and the week before School starts
meaning many families were on vacation! And if all this were not
enough, some of the people scheduled to work the food tent, were
involved in the funeral arrangements! So quite the challenge for a
church our size! But we came through and with flying colors! Plenty
of food and workers for all 3 funeral dinners and each shift covered
for the Pickle Fest food tent and parade! I think all our active
members were either not shut-ins or not on vacation had a part in
some or all of this!
Rex Snyder was the key person
for the Pickle Fest! He set up the food tent, helped take it down,
worked a shift and came to the church 2 hours before the tent opened
to get the food ready! As if all that were not enough, he also
organized our entry in the parade!
Rex is building up massive
rewards in heaven! Kimm Krafft got a super large electric fan from
SDI which made tent conditions bearable! Without that fan I really
do not know how things would have gone! Nate Krafft was also very
valuable because he came in Saturday and showed the first shift how
to do it as well as working a shift Thursday and Friday and being in
the parade! With our right green shirts and brown hats we really
were noticed at the Pickle Fest, both at the food tent and in the
parade! Margaret Weber, not even a member of our church, volunteered
to work a shift! Laune Mason prepared all the SSJ on Wednesday night
and helped when he could but with the death of Opal Mason he had his
hands really full! We had several people interested in our church as
a result of our work and we will see how that goes!
This year was our first attempt at having a food tent
at the Pickle Fest.
Whether we have one in 2011 is up to the church
council. But I think we did learn some valuable lessons from our
first attempt. Soft drinks and bottled water-we used 37 bags of
ice-large bags-we could easily cut that in half by having people
bring in coolers. Use one cooler for Pepsi, one for Diet Pepsi, one
for Mt. Dew and a 4th for MISC drinks. Then have a 5th one for "cool
down" as we move along and have to refill the original coolers.
Continue to use the large cooler Phil Mavis gave us for bottled
water.
This would also eliminate the problem of youth
gathering around the water tank with ice.
Also we found we do not need 6 workers per shift! 3-4
is plenty and this would mean a reduction on the 7 shifts from 42
people to 21-28 people! After conferring with Mary Lu Snyder, our
Financial Secretary, and Kim Scouten, our Treasurer, I am pleased to
announce that it looks like we made $884.24! This, despite the hot
and humid weather which really held down the number of people
attending! One big reason for the profit was all the donations! We
had very little invested! So a big thank-you to all who donated and
worked! The profits will go towards the $3000 we borrowed from the
Building Fund for current expenses in 2009.
On the funeral dinner side,
veterans Marvella Dilley, Marcia Sible and Marilyn Funk came to the
rescue! Linda Hiser, sister of Delores Emenhiser, helped with the 3rd
funeral dinner and she also is not a member of the church! Satan was
also at work that work!
Judy and I have made about
800 trips from Nappanee to Saint Joe over the past 5 years and never
a problem! But Saturday on State Road 3, just outside Kendallville,
someone had left a piece of steel on the road and we hit it! Just as
we were pulling into Jitters for the free ice, the low tire light
came on! We went to a gas station across and street and filled the
tire with air. We then got the free ice and started down County Road
35 but about a mile down the road the low tire light came on again!
So we back to Auburn with the ice still in the car and the parade
starting at 1pm.It was now 11:15 am. The first place we stopped had
4 bays full and the manager said it would be at least one hour
before he could get it in! So off to Wal-Mart we went! They had an
open bay and got the tire fixed!
Then to the food tent with
ice and then the parade, the funeral, the committal service and the
dinner! Back to the food tent and at 8:30 pm we
left! Slept really good Saturday night!
We were challenged as a
church but we came through and we met the challenge and we will be
stronger in the future as a result!
Now on to VBS! The first
night we had only 9 students but we got up to 17! The cook-out on
Friday had around 50 people! A tremendous outreach for our church!
Great job by Sharon Mavis and her staff once again!
Finally, on a financial note.
What is the best way for us to pay back the remainder of the $3000
loan to the Building Fund? After Pickle Fest profits and Thrivent
donations we will owe about $2000. We will also use any profits from
the Spaghetti Dinner on November 5. Beyond that each of us needs to
give as much as we can to current!
When we miss a week, we need
to make that offering up! Then in January, the church council
together with our church treasurer, Kim Scouten, can examine cash
flow and, hopefully, pay back some of the loan! We need to get this
loan paid back and we can do it! Of that, I have no doubt at all!
Now we come to a milestone! I
have now been your pastor for 5 years! It has been an honor and a
great privilege to serve as your pastor! Together and with the
guidance of the Holy Spirit we have achieved much! Communion every
service, new service books, a Wednesday service, a new handicapped
accessible addition to the church, and average weekly numbers at
worship growing from under 20 to 75! This has taken the involvement
of all of us and especially the leadership of a very strong church
council! But I must confess I have been a total failure in one major
category! I have not convinced enough of you that regular attendance
at worship is so critically important! For August our weekly worship
numbers will be under 50 per week! This is most distressing to me
and it should be to you!
When we offer a Wednesday
service for those who can’t attend on Sunday, the numbers show a
decided lack of commitment! Since I am the spiritual head of the
church, I take full responsibility for this! It is my greatest
failure but with God’s help I will keep working on it! All of us
need to understand we have much work to do and the time to do it is
very limited! Three funerals in one week should convince us of that!
We need to rededicate
ourselves to winning and nourishing souls for our Lord and Truly
Risen Savior Jesus Christ! The first step in that process in regular
weekly worship!
Together, lets all move ahead and work for Christ
until, one by one, we are called to our eternal home! What a
blessing it will be to hear Christ say “Well done that good and
faithful servant!” I do know what the next 5 years hold! But I am
anxious to find out!
W O W
Women of the Word
WOW did not meet in August
because of the Pickle Fest. However, we did furnish baked goods for
the St. Mark booth. We also served three funeral dinners the same
week.
Thanks to all who helped by
furnishing goods and working at the booth and at the dinners!
September 9th we
will meet at 12:00 noon. Please note the time. We will
start with a potluck lunch, then have the meeting. The lesson, the
second on prayer, is on patience. Judith Holden will lead the
discussion. Ladies, please bring your ideas for future studies.
Penny Sechler and Jane Carpenter are the September altar committee.
Don and Penny Sechler are the cleaning committee for September.
Walter Ervin was baptized at
St. Mark Lutheran Church in Saint Joe.
In his funeral message Merle
said that Walter was an example of the type of person that made the
United States such a great nation!
He paid his taxes, served his
country well, was married to same woman for over 60 years.
Walter displayed great pride
in keeping his home and grounds in immaculate condition!
Walter S. Ervin, 91, died
Wednesday at DeKalb Memorial Hospital in Auburn, IN. He was born on
July 2, 1919 in Auburn, IN to the late Walter & Ethel (Scott)
Ervin. He married Lelah Mae Richards on January 6, 1940 in
Spencerville, IN.
Surviving are:
Wife Lelah Mae Ervin St. Joe,
IN
Daughter Jean (Phil)
Pinkerton Auburn, IN
Grandchildren Cheryl (Joe)
Terry St. Joe, IN
Eric (Hollie) Kessler
Lafayette, IN
Great Grandchildren Paige &
Payton Terry
Grace & Caroline Kessler
Walter worked for the
railroad and then went to work for County Line Cheese as a tester
for 29 years. He was a WWII Army veteran, and a 50 year member of
the American Legion Post 409. Private family services will be held
at Carnahan-Baidinger & Walter Funeral Home in Spencerville, IN with
Merle Holden officiating. Burial in Riverview Cemetery, Newville,
IN. Memorials to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church.
In his funeral message Merle talked about knowing the
Mason family for many years.
He told a story about living across the road from the
Trenarys when John and Opal were courting.
He also complimented Opal’s family for the excellent
care they had given her during her final illness. Merle felt Opal
and God had reached and understanding and Opal had said several
times she was comfortable with her relationship with God.
Opal Mason, 77 of St. Joe died Tuesday August 10,
2010 in Miller’s Merry Manor in Garrett.
She was born August 8, 1933 in Auburn to Brooks and
Mary (Witt) Trenary. They have both passed away. Opal was a
bookkeeper for several years for Auburn Motor Sales and she also
worked for 16 years for I & M Electric in Fort Wayne before her
retirement in 1976. She was a member of St Marks Lutheran Church in
St. Joe.
She married John D. Mason on October 5, 1968 in the
Mt. Pleasant Church in Butler and he survives in St. Joe. She is
also survived by a son John B. Mason of Kendallville; 2 step
daughters, Linda (Steven) Sims of Fort Wayne and Letha Chambers also
of Fort Wayne; 2 step sons, Larry Mason of Yulee, FL and Laune
(Debbie) Mason of Fort Wayne; 3 Grandchildren; 5 sisters, Mary Lou
(Jordan) Baughman of Butler, Doris (Chet) Matherly of Elkhart, Audry
Walter of Big Long Lake, Ruth (Ervin) Fetters of Diamond Lake, Alice
(Dale) Yarde of Garrett; Brother in law, Loran Cook of Lemington,
Canada.
She was preceded in death by her parents, a sister
Joan Cook, a brother Forest Trenary and a step daughter in law
Barbara Mason.
Services will be 11 AM Friday August 13, 2010 at
Feller and Clark Funeral Home, 1860 South Center Street, Auburn, IN.
with Rev. Merle Holden officiating. Memorials can be directed to
St. Marks Lutheran Church of St. Joe
JOINT SERVICE WITH ST. PETERS
