The HeartBeat

A Message from Pastor Jeff

My last youth trip...

The plane touched down in Los Angeles at 4:45 am local time after a six-hour flight. While the rest of the plane slept, I contemplated the foolishness of dragging a bunch of high school aged kids and their sponsors to California for yet another youth gathering. But we had already been working for months raising funds, planning, booking flights, arranging for ground transportation, and recruiting kids for the trip. As the wheels touched down on the runway, I sighed and said to the gentleman snoring in the seat next to me, “Here we go.” From then on, it was a God thing.

We met a group from Maui at the airport, and our numbers swelled to thirty-five adults and kids headed out to the Western States Youth Gathering at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA. Having arrived two days before the event, we had time to share a BBQ dinner with Bishop Murray Finck, who welcomed the kids warmly and shared a little about the work and vision of the Center for Mission and Learning, also know as the Synod Office. The office staff and assistants to the Bishop were most gracious hosts as they fed a fantastic BBQ meal of ribs and chicken, coleslaw, and other goodies. As our time to leave neared, one of the staff noticed me dozing in the corner and thankfully offered me a cup of coffee for the drive back to Cal Lutheran!

The next day we traveled to Magic Mountain amusement park where we turned the kids loose on the roller coaster themed rides. While the kids were spinning, rocking, screaming, dropping ten stories, and shooting up in the sky at 90 miles per hour, I sat in a nice “quiet” park and read.

The next day, the 2011 Western States Youth Gathering began. Mahalo to the organizers, musicians, speakers, and caterers who did a truly great job. Each day began with a plenary session complete with ear splitting music (alas, no Bach), inspirational preaching, presentations by all sorts of interesting people, prayer, and worship. Later in the day, youth attended learning centers where they could experience being part of a worship band, learn about various service opportunities, or share their faith. One day all seven hundred participants fanned out across Thousand Oaks and collected food for a local feeding program. Each evening we gathered again to hear more music and be inspired by speakers, including a young man suffering from addiction, an amputee, and a woman who had struggled with a lifelong weight problem. These were real people with real stories that touched our youth.

From 7:30 AM until “lights out” at 1:00 AM the kids played, worshipped, learned, shared, served, and developed relationships with young people from all over the West. Each evening ended with devotions in our small groups, where we shared our highs and lows for the day and talked about where we had seen God at work.

After nearly a week, the event finally came to a close as we touched down at Honolulu International Airport. Frankly, I was good and ready to be home. Every bone in my body ached, I had not had a full nights sleep in a week, and I hadn’t been alone or irresponsible in that same amount of time. As I rose from my seat I thought, “I am too old for this stuff. I just can’t do these youth trips anymore.” But as we waited outside the door of the plane I asked the kids how the week was for them. The response was overwhelming. They had not only had fun, but had also made friends, grown spiritually, were thankful for the opportunity, and were enthusiastic about what the church had done for them. I walked down the ramp and sighed, “I guess its time to start planning for the next youth gathering.”

Aloha,
Pastor Jeff Lilley
pr.jeff@lchwelcome.org

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July Council Highlights

Council met Tuesday, July 19. Here are some of the highlights of the meeting:

• Parking Lot Taskforce update: Discussion on possibility of hiring contractor to take over planning and execution of project.
• Audit Committee has been assembled and is scheduled to meet July 24 to begin work.
• Punahou Parking payments deadline set for August 5. Anticipating all stalls filled by first week of fall semester.
• Fellowship Committee’s catering proposal for Carl’s retirement celebration approved.
• Scholarship recommendations approved. Since the PV installation, system has avoided 34,822.47 kg of CO₂, with a total yield of 49,746.39 kWh.
• Adam Landherr approval as replacement for Chris Bushman on Council.
• Director of Music and Liturgy letter of offer of employment approved for Miguel Felipe.
• Recommended slate for Mission Campaign Committee approved. First meeting scheduled for July 31.
• Finances in order and on track for YTD budget.

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In Stitches

The last Summer In Stiches meeting will take place on Sunday, August 14 following the service in the courtyard. Learn to make the ribbon lei, start a pillow for church, or bring your own project. Join us for crafty fun!

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Writers’ Workshop

Writers’ Workshop will hold our next meeting on Monday, August 15, from 7:00 to 8:30 PM in the Boardroom at LCH.

All are welcome. For information, please contact Kathryn Klingebiel through the Church Office (941-2566) after August 10.

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Adult Forum Invites You Sunday Mornings

All are invited to attend and take part in interesting discussions—spiced with fun, films, and faith studies—in our weekly Adult Forum, after the Sunday morning service at 10:30 AM in the Boardroom.

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Celebration for Carl Crosier’s Music Ministry

August 21 • 10:30 AM

On the last Sunday of the summer worship schedule, we will worship with the 8:00, 10:30, F.R.O.G.S. and Compline choirs and celebrate Carl Crosier, as he retires after 38 years of service as an organist, choir and music director, and cantor at LCH.

A reception for Carl will be held in the Hörmann Courtyard following the service. Light refreshments will be served. If you have a 10x10 tent you would like to donate for the reception, please contact the church office at 941-2566. Mahalo!

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Save the Dates!

Wine Tasting • Saturday, September 10

The LCH wine cellar is running low on white wine, and you’re invited to help choose the next vintage as part of the wine tasting. We will meet at 2:00 PM at Oeno Winemaking in Kailua to taste a variety of wines and make our selection. Several individuals will also be choosing wines for their own use as well, and you’re welcome to join in. See Bill Potter for more information or to reserve your spot.

LutherFest • October 29

Food, fellowship, fun, and frivolity mark this annual celebration of our Lutheran heritage. You won’t want to miss it, so mark your calendar! Details to follow.

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First Communion Class

Pastor Jeff will hold “First Communion Instruction” on Saturday, August 27, at 10:00 AM in the LCH Boardroom. We will learn about communion, bake communion bread, and crush some grapes for wine. All children who are ready to receive Holy Communion or who would like to learn more about this sacrament are welcome. Please sign up on the clipboard in the courtyard.

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New Member Inquiry Class

Are you interested in becoming a member of Lutheran Church of Honolulu? Join us for New Member Inquiry Classes beginning September 11, 2:30 to 4:00 PM, and meeting for five Sundays.

During our sessions, we will explore the history, faith, and values of the Lutheran Church and our congregation as well as have wonderful discussion and fellowship time. Email Sarah Roseberg if you would like to attend or mark “Inquiry Class” on the visitor’s card in the pew.

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Our Mission Campaign Is Beginning!

Some Guidelines for Donating

At our May 21 congregational meeting, we approved a $250,000 mission fund-raising campaign for three purposes: to call an associate pastor, to pave the rear parking lot, and to cover the Hörmann courtyard.

Organization of the mission campaign is now underway; however, for those that are already prepared to donate, here are some guidelines for giving:

1. If you wish to donate to the General Mission Campaign, without any preference as to which of the three purposes gets funded, then write your check to “Lutheran Church of Honolulu” and in the memo space write “Mission Campaign.”
2. If you wish to contribute to only one of the three specific purposes, then write your check to “Lutheran Church of Honolulu” and in the memo space write “Mission Campaign—Associate Pastor,” “Mission Campaign—Parking Lot,” or “Mission Campaign—Hörmann Courtyard.”
3. Please keep in mind that if one or two of the three specific purposes is over funded, then Council has recommended that the over funding be automatically deposited towards the other purposes. LCH will make every effort to keep you informed about the funding levels for each purpose. Mahalo!

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Property Update

Aloha! Have you noticed all the good things that are happening around our campus?

A big mahalo to Gaylen (our custodian/handyman) and Seth (our groundskeeper) for their hard work and assistance in doing many of these tasks. Also a big thank you to our volunteer Property Stewards for bringing needed repairs and improvement ideas to our attention.

Here’s a recap of some of what we’ve been able to do so far this year:

• New flat screen TV installed in Boardroom
• New stove and dishwasher installed in kitchen.
• Major Poki Lot clean-up in March.
• New signs mounted on Dominis St. gate, old signs re-mounted on Punahou St. gate.
• New Nave emergency exit doors and Sacristy exterior door installed.
• Emergency lights installed over Nave doors.
• Ramp railings painted.
• New closer mechanism and adjustments made on Isenberg Hall exit door.
• New light timer for lights along office corridor and outside gate installed.
• Poki Lot storage container roof leak sealed and exterior painted.
• Sunken hole in the courtyard filled with cement.
• Benches and doors in the courtyard currently being sanded and stained.

With grateful hearts for all of your helping hands,
April Smith and Jean-Paul Klingebiel
Property Committee Chairs

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Reflections on the Western States Youth Gathering 2011

The 2011 Western States Youth Gathering was a life changing experience for me. The whole event was well structured, combining Bible study, worship, and service projects with fun activities like games and 4th of July fireworks, to create an incredibly deep, fun, and interactive experience.

The highlights for me were definitely the guest speakers. Each one had his own unique experience and a unique way to share it. One guy used slam poetry to express himself; others did so through song and dance. One man in particular caught my attention: a recovering drug addict/alcoholic that had found Christ and turned his life around. His story may have seemed crude to some, but I felt like a lot of teens are in a situation very similar to his, and it’s important that they hear how he handled his recovery.

Oh, and the people there were absolutely incredible! Everybody was so friendly and outgoing; nobody ever felt like they were left out. I have yet to find another group of seven hundred kids where everybody is so cool. Guess it’s a Lutheran thing.

Jordan McCreary

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What’s New on the LCH Website?

Bill Potter, Webmaster

It started out innocently enough. Jean Lilley posted a happy note on the LCH Facebook page that “LCH is in Wikipedia.” A friend of her daughter Meghann had run across a picture of folks at our 8:00 AM service taking communion and recognized Pastor Jeff. The friend told Meghann, Meghann told her dad. Pastor Jeff was in California with the our youth for the Western States Youth Gathering and couldn’t post himself, so he told Jean, and she posted on Facebook so everyone could share the good news.

The photo is in the “Church fellowship” section of a major Wikipedia article on “Lutheranism” and certainly represents some serious recognition for our church out here in the middle of the Pacific. It may even use up a significant chunk of Pastor Jeff’s fifteen minutes of fame.

I immediately recognized the photo. It’s one that appears during “green” seasons on our Worship page. It’s not a great photo technically, but it seems to be one that communicates something significant about how Lutherans receive communion.

Only problem was that I couldn’t remember giving anyone permission to post this picture that I had taken for our website.

So I clicked on the photo to look at the linked page that provides information about the photo. It showed that it had been taken at 9:02 AM on October 21, 2007, the description did contain a link to the LCH website, and it was used on three other pages about altar rails and Lutheran worship (“Divine service (Lutheran)” and “Eucharist in the Lutheran Church”). The shocker was that the person who had written the page on “Lutheranism” had also listed himself as author and source of the photo!

I got another surprise when I checked out the other three instances where the photo was used. On the other two pages about communion in Lutheran churches, there was another photo of Pastor Jeff preparing the table for communion that I had used in the 10:30 AM worship slideshow.

What to do? I signed up for a Wikipedia account so I can edit that pages for these photos to properly identify myself as the author of these two photos. Then I sent a message to the person who had written these pages asserting my ownership of the photos and asking for an explanation. Within a few hours, he had replied apologizing for the mix-up and made corrections on both pages.

You might be interested in knowing that this was not the first time I had found this photo used without attribution on the web. About a year ago I was looking at a blog by a Lutheran pastor in the Midwest who had used the same photo to illustrate one of her postings about communion. She also quickly corrected the attribution of the photo when I emailed her. But come to think of it, I bet that her source was this Wikipedia article. I wish she had told me!

I’m always happy when people think enough of the contents of our LCH website that they want to use it, but I do wish people would ask permission. After all, every page of our site is under copyright. But much of the world seems to think that everything on the web is public domain.

If you run across a photo on the web that comes from our website, please send me the URL of the page, and I will contact the people responsible and make sure LCH gets credit.

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News of the Call Committee

The congregation voted to establish a committee to call an associate pastor to a two- year term at a special meeting held on Saturday, May 21, 2011.

The members of the Call Committee include: Karyn Castro, Peter Flachsbart, Chuck Huxel, Carolyn Koehler, Crystal Landherr, and Bob Zimmer.

At our first meeting on July 7, Pastor Jeff reviewed the guidelines of the call process from the Pacifica Synod. At the conclusion of the meeting, we elected Bob Zimmer to serve as Chair and Chuck Huxel to act as secretary. Karyn Castro, Crystal Landherr and Peter Flachsbart agreed to share the duties of correspondent. Karyn Castro will coordinate that effort. This team will handle communication and correspondence with potential candidates as well as with the Office of the Bishop. They will also keep the congregation informed on the progress through articles in the HeartBeat and through announcements in Sunday bulletins.

At our second meeting on July 25, we reviewed and began the process of updating the congregation’s Ministry Site Profile. We expect to complete that process at our third meeting on August 2. We hope to complete all of our work, (which will run simultaneously with that of the Mission Campaign Committee), by the end of this year.

During the call process we sincerely encourage everyone in the congregation to send us their thoughts and aspirations regarding the person to be called as associate pastor through our new email address: <callcommittee@LCHwelcome.org>.

Please pray for us daily as we seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our work on your behalf.

Sincerely,
Your Associate Pastor Call Committee

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Thank You Letter from Kristen Hubble

If you may recall, last year the Hubble calabash fund was set up to help support Kristen Hubble and her family during her breast cancer treatment. Kristen, a family friend of one of our LCH members, was taken is as part of our LCH ohana, as an account was established to allow individuals to donate support funds for their family. LCH responded with overwhelming generosity and raised nearly $15,000 in support. Below is heartfelt letter of thanks received from Kristen in response to our church’s support during these challenging times.

Dear Lutheran Church of Honolulu,

Thank you so much for raising so much money to help me and my family through this rough time with breast cancer. The check you processed and sent to us has helped me heal and gave my kids stable help at a time when all I could do was lay in bed. I had no idea what I was going to do after I received my first chemo treatment and felt too weak to care for my three kids, especially my brand new baby, Noah. Included are photos of this time so you can picture us all. My heart is so full of love and gratitude for each of you who gave to us. We will be sending individual thank yous soon. Thank you for carrying us through such a hard year. As my cousin Terri put it so well, you all are ‘amazing, generous, and compassionate.’

If I am ever on the island again, I will come and meet you personally. I can’t wait till that day when I can hug you and cry tears of joy for being so giving and caring. If any of you are dealing with breast cancer or know of someone who is who needs help or would just like a friend who has been through it all, please contact me at 801-702-7456. I’d love to give back any way I can.

We thank you again and could not have imagined what we would have done without the money you provided us. God answered our prayers through such an amazing church!

Love,
Kristen Hubble and family

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Pau Hana

Thank you to everyone who came out and participated in last month’s Pau Hana event at Ala Moana Beach Park. We were blessed with beautiful weather for this fun BBQ event, and even more blessed by the turnout of about fifty members and guests.

A big thanks to Pastor Jeff for grilling up the burgers and dogs, and to everyone else who contributed to the potluck!

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Mark J. Brommer Memorial

The family of Mark J. Brommer cordially invites the members and friends of Lutheran Church of Honolulu and surrounding community to a Memorial Service Saturday, August 6, 11:00 AM at LCH.

Mr. Brommer worshipped at Lutheran Church of Honolulu for some years and indicated his desire for a memorial service here in Hawai‘i. Mr. Brommer passed away in the early hours of April 24.

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One Pot One Hope

Last month’s “One Pot One Hope” took place on Saturday, July 30. We will continue to meet for this event on the last Saturday of each month. A carpool is available leaving the church at 8:30 AM. Donations of chili, fruit, and cash are welcomed and will be collected on Sunday, August 21.

Come and enjoy the comrades from the other ELCA congregations as we pack “chili and rice” for the homeless in Wai‘anae. It is a great experience and a beautiful ride to Maluhia Lutheran church!

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Attendance and Offerings for Sunday, July 31, 2011, were not available at time of publication.

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Prayer Requests

Carl	Judy	Maggie
Cindy	Karen	Marion
Debbie	Katy	Susan
Gene		Ulrike

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August Birthdays

Date	Name
08/02	Michael A.
08/02	Arthur B. Wilson III
08/03	Elizabeth Pearson
08/04	Veronica Weeks
08/05	Nedra Walker
08/06	Sissy A.
08/09	Linda Mizuno
08/11	Jonathan Scheuer
08/12	Charlotte D’Evelyn
08/13	Alexa Sueda
08/14	Benjamin F.
08/16	Barbara Dickinson
08/17	Gordon Wallace
08/18	Ernest Freund
08/18	Jean-Paul Klingebiel
08/24	Dennis Hethcote
08/27	Peggy Khan
08/29	Melissa Schmidt
08/29	Selena Schmidt

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Heart Beat Deadline

Next Heart Beat Deadline is Tuesday, August 16!

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