May to Dec 2008 Archive
May 2008 - December 2008
Pastor Ray Mohrmann ('83 & '90)
Karl F. (Fred) Suhr, Jr. ('84)
Emily Matthew Bugay ('08)
Rev. James Armentrout ('99)
Judson F. Merrell ('07)
Paul H. Pingel ('93)
Ray and Ruth Ann Sipe ('08)
James F. Mauney ('78)
John B. McCullough ('42)
Pam Smith ('08)
Rick Johnson ('06)
Sandra Stevens-Poirel ('99)
Herman R. Yoos, III ('79)
Gary A. Weant ('76)
Grace Lutheran, Rock Hill, S.C., needed to reduce debt in order to enhance its ministry. The congregation of about 600 members owed a $1.3 million debt from a previous $2.5 million building project. "We definitely had a need," said 
Pastor Ray Mohrmann ('83 & '90). "It's not easy to get people fired up for debt reduction, but they were excited about the possibilities of future ministry — which means adding staff and reaching the ultimate goal of calling a second pastor."
Aided by members with capital campaign experience, Grace Lutheran turned to SKL Director Pastor Charles "Chick" Lane for an August 2007 campaign launch. "As our consultant, Chick made two visits and kept in touch by phone or e-mail," Mohrmann said. "He knew he didn't need to 'hold our hands' through the process, but provided us with guidance and leadership."
Pledge Sunday was held September 30, a bit of a delay in Grace's annual campaign. "This didn't negatively affect our annual campaign because we were getting a good stewardship education (from SKL)."
Mohrmann said the program was a great fit with their congregational culture, especially in the area of prayer and scripture. "The message was the joy of giving rather than the duty," he said. "We responded well to that. It wasn't heavy-handed, but rooted in the Lutheran theology of grace. The low overhead with the program was also very attractive. We're just very pleased with the results. Contributions have come in faithfully, and I've recommended it to several colleagues."
From the ECLA Publication, Seeds of the Parish Nov-Dec 2008.
Chaplain (Colonel) Fred Suhr named new Joint Forces Chaplain for South Carolina National Guard.
Chaplain (Colonel) Karl F. (Fred) Suhr, Jr. ('84) has been named the new Joint Forces Headquarters/State Chaplain for the South Carolina National Guard. He moves to the senior position in the State after most recently serving as Command Chaplain of the 263rd Army Air and Missile Defense Command.
A graduate of The Citadel (1980) and LTSS (1984), he has served in the military for 28 years. 
As a student at LTSS, Suhr was the first Chaplain Candidate in the South Carolina Army National Guard. He has served on active duty, in the U.S. Army Reserve, and in the Army National Guard. He has been mobilized twice during his career. In his first mobilization and deployment, he served as a Combat Support Hospital Chaplain in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq, during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. In his second mobilization, he served as Chaplain for Task Force 218 as a part of Operation Noble Eagle IV. In that capacity, he coordinated Chaplain support over a 33 state area for wounded/injured Reserve and National Guard soldiers who were participants in the the newly established Community Based Health Care Organization.
As Joint Forces Headquarters/State Chaplain, some of Suhr's responsibilities will include ministry of Word and Sacrament; recruiting and retention of SC National Guard Chaplains; Chaplain, Chaplain Candidate, and Chaplain Assistant personnel assignments; family support; coordinating religious support for mobilization, deployment, and reintegration for S.C. Guard soldiers/units; and coordinating S.C. National Guard religious support for domestic natural disasters.
Suhr serves as Pastor of Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Little Mountain, S.C., where he has been for 15 years. He and his wife, Joan Biser Suhr, have three children, Ashlyn, David, and Rebecca.
Alumna Helps People Get Back on Their Feet - Emily Matthews Bugay ('08)
Published Sun, Nov 30, 2008 The Beaufort Gazette, Beaufort, South Carolina
By CATHY CARTER HARLEY, charley@beaufortgazette.com, 843-986-5512
Afraid and cold, a single mother tucks her children, ages 1 and 9, into a makeshift bed -- in the back seat of her car in the parking lot of a Boundary Street motel. The next day, a friend tells her about Family Promise -- an interfaith, nonprofit organization that helps low-income families find new hope by offering shelter, food, educational training, child care and fellowship.
Beaufort County's homeless don't meet typical media characterizations. They are not pushing shopping carts around downtown streets, wearing old clothes and mismatched shoes:
A working mother with a teenage daughter -- who makes just $14 more per month than the federal government allows in order to receive housing assistance -- also is homeless.
A health care worker was laid off from her job, leaving her and her two children with no money to pay rent. An eviction notice followed. While seeking help from the Beaufort County Department of Social Services, she discovered Family Promise. The group helped her move her furniture to a paid-for storage facility, create goals -- and steps to meet those goals. She was given a place to sleep, bathe, three meals a day and day care. She also received advice on finances, refining her resume and work on interviewing and job-seeking skills. Within three weeks, the laid-off health care worker got a job, started bringing home money and to paying off debts, while she stayed with a different congregation each week.
A father of four daughters lost his construction job, and he sought a place for his wife and children to live with no paycheck coming in.
Beaufort's Family Promise opened its doors in July, but has been in the works for two years. It is the 131st affiliate around the country where 30 churches serve as host congregations, and 13 serve as support churches to help provide beds, food and fellowship to homeless families.
Nationally, 80 percent of the families who participate in Family Promise never cycle back into the homeless situation, said Emily Bugay [Class of 2008], , Family Promise of Beaufort County director, who received her master of arts in religion from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia.
St. John's Lutheran Church Pastor Shannon Mullen [Class of 1995], who has worked with Family Promise since 2002 and serves on the board of the Beaufort group, sees it as long-term, lifetime help:
"There are lots of great ministries out there that help people with emergency help, such as giving them some food or paying an electric bill, but this helps people reorganize their lives and to grow in their job skills, provides self confidence, and help with planning and budgeting. It helps them to make a change in their life.
"We can only help a few people at a time, but you are making a big difference in their lives. You are helping more than one generation because we help people with children. Once they learn how to get lives more stable, then their children learn that from them. Hopefully, we are helping generations to come to help break cycles of poverty that lead to homelessness."
The program requires a long-term commitment on participants, he said. "We are giving people the tools to change their lives for the better," said Mullen, who worked with the program in 2002 when he was pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Greenville.
TRUE 'FAMILY' PROMISE
During Thanksgiving week, three families found comfort in the program, which began nationally 20 years ago in New Jersey.
Each week, a family becomes a "guest" of a church where members spend the night with them and support churches supply food. Some churches turn a row of Sunday School rooms into homes complete with beds, window curtains, bedside stands with lamps and alarm clocks. From around 6 p.m. until about 7 a.m., the family calls this home where they eat meals, play games and socialize with church members.
When Bugay, 24, was in middle school, she remembers helping her mother and sister cook food for "guest" families at their church, Trinity Lutheran in Greenville.
One particular Christmas Eve, she remembers spending with the guest family. "We spent the night with the families at the church, and my dad dressed like Santa. The kids loved it, and we got to put presents out," Bugay said. "It was cool to make that warm, home environment feeling I had for so many years, for families who didn't have it.
"One of the really cool things about Family Promise is that families can volunteer together, and they can learn about their faith and how important it is to care about others in their community."Bugay grew up in the Greenville area where a Family Promise has been in existence for more than 10 years. The program also is in Spartanburg and Lancaster, and a new one is starting in Myrtle Beach.
"In the beginning, I may have been a little hesitant," Bugay recalled of her middle-school years. "But I realized the kids were just kids like me. These are families going through a rough situation"
Before being accepted into Family Promise, participants are interviewed, background checks and drug tests are run. The guests meet weekly to set goals for securing employment and a new home.
FINDING THE HOMELESS
Family Promise grew out of a study conducted by the Beaufort County Alliance for Human Services to try to improve Beaufort County. One of those goals was to lessen the number of children in poverty, said Bugay. Researchers found one in every five children in Beaufort County lives in poverty -- either they are living below the poverty line or lacking many basic needs, according to Bugay. They are living in unaffordable housing, which means their housing is more than a third of their income (housing should be less than one third of their income).
"Our goal is to address the underlying causes of homelessness and to not be a Band-Aid," said Bugay. "Many are living paycheck to paycheck and emergency to emergency -- constantly having to use emergency providers. The families still have their hands in the government's pocket. We are trying to get them independent and in sustainable housing so they are not constantly relying on groups to pay their electricity bill each month."
Referrals are found through schools, social workers and counselors, the Department of Social Services churches and other agencies such as Bluffton Self Help, United Way, Citizens Opposed to Domestic Abuse and Deep Well.
"It is a struggle to find affordable housing on a single parent's income," Bugay said, noting that it is also hard to pay for child care. One parent was spending 50 percent of her paycheck on child care, 40 percent to housing and the family was unable to live on the other 10 percent. The Family Promise definition of homelessness is broader than government standards, which do not recognize homelessness when more than one family is living in a house together.
"Our definition is three families living on top of each other or families who live in their car," Bugay said. "A lot of times, there is only so long that some families can live together and be civil. This can cause some rift in family situations that is not healthy. Our main belief is one homeless child is too many."
Some families live in their cars for two nights until they can get a paycheck, then stay in motels for three nights. Others have found it cheaper to live in a motel because they don't have to pay for rent and utilities.
Family Promise of Beaufort County is geared to help four families, or 14 people, at once. But the need is growing, and more guests are expected. "It is really hitting a lot of families right now," Bugay said. "It is a tough time. We expect there to be more need, and, unfortunately, the need is growing. We expect to have more phone calls as things go on with the economy."
For more information
If you know of a family who needs help, would like to make a donation or you want to volunteer, contact Family Promise Day Center: 843-815-4211
or go to familypromisebeaufortcountysc.com.
E-mail: familypromisebc@gmail.com
Alumnus Publishes Book on Marriage based on the ELW
The Rev. James Armentrout ('99), co-pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Lynchburg, Virginia, co-wrote a book entitled Christ in Your Marriage with fellow pastor, The Rev. Paul Walters. The book walks couples through the ELW marriage rite as a way of talking about and preparing for faithful Christian marriage. It is published by Augsburg Fortress.
Springs of Grace Lutheran Church understands perseverance
By Glenn D. Bridges [Spartanburg (SC) Herald Journal]
Following God's will doesn't mean things click according to your expectations, as members of Springs of Grace Lutheran Church can testify.
The origins of this church in the Boiling Springs/Inman area date back to February 1999. Despite almost 10 years of setbacks, disappointments and difficult decisions, Springs of Grace has persevered and is beginning to see the "light at the end of the tunnel."
Defining their pilgrimage as "driven by grace," founders of the church spent six months pounding the pavement, knocking on doors and holding ice cream socials before launching its inaugural service on Sunday, September 12, 1999. Led by Rev. Craig Abee, 142 people gathered at a site on Giles Drive in Boiling Springs to formally birth a new Lutheran congregation.
According to Rev. Judson F. Merrell ('07), pastor of Springs of Grace since July 2007, several of the initial "attendees" had been members of Nativity Evangelical Lutheran Church in northern Spartanburg before it folded in 1998. Proceeds from the sale of church were pledged toward the start a new mission in the area, which included the purchase of 11 wooded acres on Highway 9 just north of Boiling Springs, a designated building fund, and other resources.
Shortly afterward, Duke Power expressed an interest in the property and tendered a trade of 12 acres a half-mile to the north. The new site consisted of a house and several buildings unsuitable for a church, but Inman Paving offered to clear the property in exchange for the main structure, which was moved to another site. As a result, the church's holdings doubled in size.
More financial support came from Servants of Christ Lutheran Church in Indiana, which pledged $120,000 over three years, as well as the S.C. Lutheran Men in Mission, which committed $50,000 over the same period.
In March 18, 2001, Springs of Grace was officially sanctioned by the S.C. Synod and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) with 78 adults and 35 children listed as charter members. It appeared the church was well on its way.
However, by mid-2003, building plans were put on hold because its capital campaign was not generating enough funds. Further complicating matters, Abee resigned in October 2003, and coupled with a significant turnover on its council, the church's membership began to decline.
Interim pastor Rev. Newell S. Nelsen was assigned to fill the void left by Abee, and the congregation left its Giles Drive location to worship at Unity Presbyterian Church on Rainbow Lake Road. Two years later, the congregation moved its services to the Episcopal Church of Saint Margaret on Highway 9 in Boiling Springs.
Then, in 2006, still yearning for a home of its own, Springs of Grace relocated two miles up the road at the former Old Country Store & Bargain Host. It began making improvements to the facilities, and by mid-year the congregation had witnessed a shift from its "caretaker" status to a revival of its early mission. The church began to grow again.
Building on that success, which included a highly successful Stewardship Campaign that commenced in early 2007, Springs of Grace initiated the process of calling its first pastor. That led to Merrell's arrival in July 2007, and the church is now enjoying the most exciting time of its brief history as it plans for a future home on the property it purchased nearly a decade ago.
"This congregation faced many difficult crossroads in its past and persevered through them all," said Merrell, a Salisbury, NC native and life-long Lutheran. "We have a new outlook, and we anxiously await our opportunity to grow God's mission in the Boiling Springs community."
Merrell, who earned a BS in Computer Science at UNC-Charlotte and a Master of Divinity from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (Class of 2007), is actively involved in a number of Lutheran ministries as well as the community he serves. He and his wife, Carrie, a registered nurse, came to Boiling Spring from a ministry in Columbia..
Emphasizing the church's mission - Inviting all to gather and grow in service to Christ - Merrell said Springs of Grace spreads the good news of Jesus Christ by inviting all to come and experience God's love.
"We serve the living God in joyful, dynamic and meaningful worship by sharing the love of Jesus Christ with those in need any time, any place, and any way we are called," he added.
Shelter is solution to neighbors' problems
By The Rev. Paul H. Pingel ('93) - Opinion Guest Columnist The State (Columbia, SC)
I am one of the pastors of Ebenezer Lutheran Church, which is located a block and a half from the Salvation Army facility that the Midlands Housing Alliance hopes to use as a homeless transition center. Each day, our staff encounters the effects of a city that does not have a comprehensive means of dealing with homelessness and the problems that lead to homelessness:
• We clear beer cans, litter, the occasional crack pipe and other possessions left amongst the landscaping and nooks and crannies of our buildings' architecture.
• Our tireless sexton daily interacts and cleans up after those who use our facility and cemetery as a sleeping area, party facility and outside bathroom. Police cannot solve this problem — the homeless know when the police and Center City Partnership come and go during the night.
• Though we have the option of adding a five-figure item to our budget to hire security staff, the heightened security would not address the homelessness, only move it somewhere else — to say nothing about what prioritizing our own security would say about what we really think of Jesus' call for us to be a gospel light of hope for the poor and homeless.
In this way, we are not unlike the homeowners and businesses that deal with the very unwanted side effects of homelessness. It is in part because of this that I have watched with dismay as a plan to effectively address homelessness has been pounded to a standstill by fears and politics, maneuvering and counter-argument, and wrangling in the legal system.
On Thursday, there was a front-page article in The State on the recession for our nation and world, and an excellent commentary by Michael M. Beal about homelessness. The two articles seem inextricably linked. Daily, the number of homeless and working poor asking for assistance at Ebenezer's door has skyrocketed. The article about recession points to a reality that many more of our neighbors will be facing: unemployment, foreclosure and stresses that lead to homelessness.
At a homelessness awareness event last year sponsored by the Midlands Interfaith Homelessness Action Council, we heard from a homeless woman who chronicled her plunge from a well-paying job, home ownership and solid middle-class living to homelessness in 18 months. The distance from security to homelessness is not that great for many people each of us know, and perhaps even ourselves.
Why, in light of this, we are still deadlocked or attempting to derail an excellent plan for addressing the homelessness in our midst is a mystery to me and a source of frustration. It occurs to me that part of the problem is our inability to recognize that there are two issues at hand:
1. Reducing homelessness requires a comprehensive plan that moves a homeless population from a cycle of despair to productive citizenship that includes a home, work and a place in society.
2. If a homeless person, like anyone else, disobeys the law, there are already laws and a police force to address lawlessness.
The key is to recognize two different issues. There may be some overlap as there is a transition for someone either deeply addicted or mentally incapacitated to find help or to learn life or job skills that a person needs to move out of the cycle of homelessness. But homelessness will not go away, and may well be exacerbated, if we so focus on the lawlessness that we set aside the solution to homelessness, which is the best way to reduce that lawlessness.
I appreciate Mr. Beal's clear-sighted commentary, and expression of the Salvation Army's commitment to the homeless. As a member of the Midlands Interfaith Homelessness Action Council, I join with the voices of many in the faith community who are moved and convicted by the biblical mandate of the prophet Isaiah, whose word from God specifically calls for the care of the homeless poor (Isaiah 58:7-8), and I hope for a speedy solution to get the homeless transition center open for business. I do not know Mr. Beal but agree with his assessment that the proposal on the table, ready to go, is "our last and best hope."
I know at Ebenezer that there are differences of opinion about this issue. Some join me wondering why there hasn't been a groundbreaking already; others have concern for their homes, property and security. But it's time. We at Ebenezer deal with the problems every day, knowing there's a solution close by. We need to get moving.
Rev. Pingel is a pastor at Ebenezer Lutheran Church and a member of the board of the Midlands Interfaith Homelessness Action Council.
October 5, 2008
Becks Lutheran Church Couple Begin Ministry Together
BY SHEILA KILLEBREW, Correspondent, Lexington (NC) Dispatch, Photo by Donnie Roberts/The Dispatch
When Ray and Ruth Ann Sipe left their private-sector jobs to enter seminary, their hope was to be able to minister somewhere together. "We had looked and hoped to be at one church. That's rare, particularly for first-call pastors," Ray said.
After completing their studies at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, S.C., in May of this year, they began looking for a place to begin their ministry. At the same time, Becks Lutheran Church in Lexington was looking for a new pastor to fill the position left by Pastor David Huddle, who retired in November 2007 after serving the church for 17 years.
When the Sipes met with Becks Lutheran's call committee, they realized many common bonds and felt very comfortable with their conversation. The members of the call committee, after hearing each of the Sipes preach, felt unity in their impressions of the couple.
"We came to realize we were all feeling the same thing, even before we began talking about it," said Jeremy Lovell, chairman of the call committee.
The Sipes began working at Becks Lutheran on Sept. 1 and were officially ordained and installed as the church's new ministers in a service that took place two days later.
The Sipes became accustomed to working together during their third year at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. Students customarily spend that year completing an internship. The Sipes' internship consisted of helping churches in Alabama develop disaster preparedness plans.
"We had a unique opportunity to do our internship together, and it worked," Ray said.
Both had accumulated knowledge in that subject area through past work with organizations such as the Red Cross and National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster as well as by conducting their own research.
Before leaving for seminary, the Sipes resided in Charlotte for 21 years. She worked as a customer services and materials manager for a machine tool manufacturer. He worked in sales and installation for a company specializing in electric metering devices. During that time they raised two children and were very active in their church. They have been married for 31 years.
Then, more than four years ago, they began feeling a pull toward ministry. "We both realized separately a strong sense of call," Ruth Ann said.
The candidacy process for entering the Lutheran ministry typically takes 12-18 months; the Sipes completed it in four months. "What we thought would be hurdles suddenly weren't," she said.
Both of the Sipes said their friends and family were supportive of their decisions to change careers. "Most people said, 'What took you so long?'" Ray said. "I think many people saw in each of us gifts and leadership that just, for them, seemed like the logical next step," Ruth Ann said.
Lovell said the call committee saw benefits to a couple serving as their church's ministers.
"It's all about working together. They are the perfect role models for that," he said. "They work well together and complement each other. They can literally be in two places at one time. There will be benefits we haven't even thought of yet and neither have they. We haven't seen an end to the benefits."
For now, the Sipes are trying to learn all they can about the 221-year-old church and its 270 members. "They (church members) are very close-knit," Ruth Ann said.
Who delivers the sermons each week will vary. While one is preaching, the other will preside over the service. Both recognize sharing in ministry presents special challenges. "It requires an interest in doing that, along with special skills," Ruth Ann said.
Bishop James Mauney Calls on Public Officials to Take Action on Poverty
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Elected officials and candidates for public office should remember people living in poverty and speak about specific proposals to alleviate poverty, said the Rev. James F. Mauney, bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Virginia Synod, at a Sept. 16 prayer vigil on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. Mauney is also a member of the class of 1978 and is currently working towards a Masters in Sacred Theology at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary.
The prayer vigil concluded "Fighting Poverty with Faith: A Week of Action," Sept. 9-16, during which people representing a variety of faith groups called on candidates and elected officials in the United States to address poverty and related issues. A coalition of 21 churches and church-related organizations, including the ELCA, participated.
Mauney noted that there are 38 million people in the United States living in poverty. He cited statistics that showed the United States spends $51 billion in an average year on domestic feeding programs, serving nearly one in five people, including nearly half of all infants.
"How strong can a nation be if we can't care for our weakest and most vulnerable infants?" Mauney asked. Candidates must address prenatal care and care for infants in the first year of life, he said.
Mauney said elected officials and candidates must talk not only about the U.S. economy, but include "economic stimulus or recovery measures that are truly targeted (to) those people and programs most in distress." He cited needs for food stamps, unemployment insurance, child support enforcement, health care and home energy assistance.
The U.S. Congress should provide disaster relief where needed, reform the child tax credit and lower the eligibility threshold of family earnings of $8,500, Mauney said. Lowering the eligibility threshold will enable people living in poverty to have more disposable funds, he said.
Mauney also reported several examples of human need, such as the Midlands Food Bank, Columbia, S.C., which he said can't keep up with demand for food, and a rural life director in South Dakota who collected 50,000 pounds of food. That supply was exhausted in only 45 minutes because of heavy local demand for food, Mauney said.
"We as Christians remember how St. Paul spoke to the Corinthians: 'For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.' As our Lord remembered and zealously died and rose for us, so let us remember the poor and zealously act for them," Mauney said.
Mauney was one of 28 ELCA synod bishops who attended a briefing in Washington, D.C., Sept. 10-12, organized by the ELCA Washington Office. The bishops met with members of Congress and staff to discuss poverty issues and other concerns.
Mauney was joined at the prayer vigil by seven other speakers representing
Bread for the World, Catholic Charities USA, Islamic Relief USA, Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Jewish Reconstructionist Federation, Network: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby and Sojourners.
Last Surviving Member of Class of '42 Enters the Church Triumphant
The Rev. John B. McCullough was born in Columbia on March 6, 1917, attended Columbia city schools and graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1939 with a double major in English and Latin. He received a Master of Divinity degree from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia in 1942 and later attended Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He received a Master of Arts degree from Teachers College of Columbia University in New York City in 1946.
Rev. McCullough's first pastorate was St. Paul Lutheran Church in Aiken from 1942 to 1943. He then joined the Naval Reserve as chaplain and was commissioned lieutenant junior grade in May 1943. He attended Naval Training School (Chaplains) at William and Mary College and then saw active duty during World War II, both ashore and afloat, in all three theaters of the war. After being released from active duty in 1946, Rev. McCullough continued to serve as a chaplain in the Naval Reserve until his retirement in 1971 with 28 years of naval service. During that time, he served as chaplain of the Naval Training Center in Augusta (1956-1971) and as auxiliary chaplain at Aiken Air Force Station (1969-1975).
After the war, Rev. McCullough was the pastor of the Lutheran Church of the Ascension in Chattanooga, Tenn., from 1947 to 1948. He then received a call to return to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Aiken, where he remained from December 1948 until his retirement in May of 1979. He was a member of various ministers' associations and served on numerous committees of the South Carolina Lutheran Synod.
Rev. McCullough always remarked that he would not live anywhere but Aiken, and he took a leadership role in his beloved community. He was a longtime member of the Aiken Rotary Club and was awarded the Paul Harris Fellowship Award, exemplifying the highest ideal in Rotary in placing service above self. He served as PTA president and on the board of the Aiken Community Chest. Rev. McCullough was a five-gallon blood donor to the American Red Cross Blood Program. Throughout the years, many in the community knew him as "Padre," for the personalized license tag which he adopted in 1975.
Please visit www.shellhousefuneralhome.com to view and sign McCullough's online guest book.
Courtesy AikenStandard.com
Alumna named First Female Pastor at Grace Lutheran in Clearwater, FL
Pam Smith ('08) has been called to serve as the first woman pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Clearwater, Florida. Her journey in life and the congregation's reaction to her call were reported by the St. Petersburg Times. (Click here to view the article)
Smith was ordained and installed as pastor at Grace Lutheran Church on Saturday, July 26, 2008. For a list of other ordinations and calls to ministry by Southern Alumni, please visit the link at the top of this page.
Alumnus Elected to Nebraska Synod Council
The Rev. Rick Johnson ('06) was elected to the Nebraska Synod Council at the synod assembly held at the Heartland Event Center in Grand Island, Nebraska held May 30 - June 1, 2008. Pastor Johnson serves at St. Paul Lutheran in De Witt, Nebraska, an approximately 300 member congregation in the nation's heartland.
Pastor Johnson, a native of Georgia, has served at St. Paul since graduating from seminary. He has now made Nebraska his home and enjoys the atmosphere of his rural congregation and its members.
Bishop Mauney receives state Faith in Action award
Bishop James Mauney (left, accompanied by his wife, Lynda) received the Virginia Council of Churches Faith in Action award on May 20 at a luncheon at Ramsey Memorial United Methodist Church in Richmond. The award was established in 1991 to recognize persons who exemplify personal faith commitment and who build bridges that make human community possible.
Mauney, the first Lutheran among the 20 recipients, is a former president of the ecumenical body. The award recognizes exceptional individuals and/or congregations whose daily walk with God serves as a beacon for all.
Southern Seminary Alumna receives the Denman Evangelism Award
The Reverend Sandra Stevens-Poirel was the clergy recipient of the prestigious Denman Evangelism Award during the annual conference of the SC Conference of the United Methodist Church, held June 1 – 4 in Florence, SC. The Denman Evangelism Award was established in 1980 by the United Methodist Church's Foundation for Evangelism to recognize and honor pastors and lay people who are doing the vital work of responsible evangelism in ways that are in keeping with United Methodist history and tradition.
Two annual Denman Awards have been established, one for a lay person and one for a clergy person. Those eligible include lay people or clergy who are effective in developing true disciples of Jesus Christ. This can be by personal witnessing, speaking, inspiring individual persons or the local church to be actively involved in effective evangelism and outreach. Accomplishments in the area of evangelism are what really count as he or she establishes a lifestyle, provides witness to ministry and brings honor to Christ and the Church.
Pastor Stevens-Poirel, a 1999 graduate of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, was cited for her personal witness and inspiration of individuals to evangelism and outreach in the community. Pastor Stevens-Poirel is currently appointed as Senior Pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Andrews, SC.
Seminary Alumnus Elected Bishop
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Herman R. Yoos III, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Columbia, S.C., was elected May 18 to a six-year term as bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) South Carolina Synod. On Aug. 1 he succeeds the Rev. David A. Donges, who announced earlier his plans to retire.
Yoos was elected on the fifth ballot for bishop during the synod assembly May 16-18 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center, Columbia, S.C. He received 351 votes to 243 for the Rev. Melvin E. Amundson, assistant to the bishop, ELCA South Carolina Synod.
The Rev. Tony A. Metze, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Columbia, was also a candidate on the fourth ballot. There were 84 names on the nominating ballot.
Yoos, 56, will be installed as bishop in a service Oct. 11 at Newberry College, Newberry, S.C. Newberry is one of 28 ELCA colleges and universities.
Born in Concord, N.C., Yoos graduated from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (Southern), Columbia. He studied at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) and earned a doctorate in ministry from Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Ga. Southern and LSTC are two of the ELCA's eight seminaries.
Ordained in 1979 Yoos served as pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church, Charlotte, N.C., and Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Charleston, S.C., before Good Shepherd Lutheran Church called him to Columbia in 1996.
Yoos and his wife Cindy are parents of three adult children.
The ELCA South Carolina Synod consists of approximately 58,000 Lutherans in 163 congregations across South Carolina. The synod office is in Columbia.
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The home page for the ELCA South Carolina Synod is at http://www.sclutheran.org/ on the Web.
May 8, 2008
Pastor Gary Weant Recognized for Distinguished Leadership
The Alumni Association of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary gives thanks to God for our brother in Christ, the Rev. Gary A. Weant, Class of 1976, and honors him with the John Benjamin Bedenbaugh Award for Distinguished Pastoral Leadership in recognition of his ministry as a pastoral shepherd who has encouraged bold congregational witness to the Great commission, and has offered exemplary service to the church at large.
In recognition of this award, Pastor Weant was presented with the Bedenbaugh honorary stole, given each to year the award's recipient, and a certificate commemorating the award. In attendance were Dr. Bedenbaugh's surviving siblings and alumni spanning over 60 years of service as public ministers as well as the current and three former seminary presidents. Pastor Weant is a member of the class of 1976. Since ordination, Pastor Weant has continuously served as Senior Pastor of Philadelphia Lutheran Church in Philadelphia, NC., a small but thriving congregation that focuses on excellent worship and outreach. A superb pastoral leader, he has excelled at helping others struggling with difficult and sometimes divisive issues. A church-wide resource, Gary penned the first draft of the resolution calling for the study of scripture in discerning the church's position on sexuality.
Contact
Sandra Cline
Associate Director of Development and Alumni Relations
scline@ltss.edu
803-461-3252
4201 Main Street
Columbia, SC 29203