A weekly e-newsletter of

Bethesda Lutheran Church

Ames, Iowa

September 13, 2024

Community Pride Worship Service September 15th!

Participate in Community Pride Worship Sunday, October 15th at 10:00 AM at ISU Memorial Union in the combined Sun Room and South Ballroom and also available by livestream if you can't make it out to the event.

A Message from Bishop Amy Current

Dear Friends in Christ,

It is with sadness that I inform you of the death of Bishop Chediel Elinaza Sendoro on September 9, 2024. Bishop Sendoro died in a car accident and his son who was with him is being treated for injuries.

Bishop Chediel Elinaza Sendoro served as bishop of the Mwanga Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), a companion to the Southeastern Iowa Synod. He served as the bishop of the Mwanga Diocese since 2016. Bishop Sendoro was ordained in 2006 and had served in several judicatory ministries in Tanzania. 

More information can be found on the official channels from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. The official press release from the ELCT and auto-generated English translation are available here.

We thank God for the life and service of our partner in ministry, Bishop Sendoro. With sure and certain hope in the resurrection, we pray for Bishop Sendoro's family and all those who mourn.

Sincerely,

 Bishop Amy Current

ATTEND BETHESDA'S CELEBRATION OF GIVING!

YOU ARE INVITED to gather at the Ames Golf and Country Club on Wednesday, October 2nd, with cocktail hour starting at 5:30 and dinner and a presentation at 6:30 for our 2024 Stewardship Event. Themed around "Because of God's Great Mercy" attendees can expect a buffet, and a special keynote presentation from Bethesda's own Steve and Randi Peters.

Register to attend the Stewardship dinner below, call, or come into the office to register.

Welcome Elsa Page!

We are pleased to introduce Elsa Page, our new Children's Church Coordinator! Elsa is an Iowa native attending Iowa State University and majoring in Education. Elsa's position is dedicated to making SPLASH Children's Church the best it can be - from communicating with SPLASH parents to helping plan and implement children's outreach events. We're excited to have Elsa on board with Bethesda and look forward to her assistance this year!

September 18 Living Water Wednesday Dinner

• Chicken nuggets
• Fries
• Mashed Potatoes
• Corn

Calling ALL Bakers!

Interested in baking communion bread for worship services? Bethesda is looking to switch from communion wafers to bread, but we need bread bakers to make this possible. Contact Jeanne Rieck (515-292-2713) if you want to help bake communion bread!

Upcoming MLK Jr. Adult Forums

Russ Melby will facilitate two Adult Forums on Martin Luther King Jr. on September 22 and 29, and we warmly invite all interested members to join. The church office will have copies of two articles available to be picked up during the week of September 16 for those who plan to take the class. 

Please read 'Letter from Birmingham Jail' by ML King Jr. before September 22. Russ will lead a discussion on King's Birmingham Jail piece during the September 22 class. On September 29, we will read in class the much shorter letter titled 'King's Letter to an unfaithful church' by the Rev. Richard Lischer, an ELCA Professor emeritus from Duke Divinity School. There is no charge for the two articles. We will meet in Centennial Hall. 

Iowa State University: Faith & Football

The football season is in full swing, and ISU is offering a special ticket deal for the upcoming Iowa State vs. Arkansas State game on September 21. We would like to extend an invitation to you, your congregation or group members to join us for this thrilling matchup at an exclusive price of $35 per ticket.

It's the perfect chance to come together, cheer on the Cyclones, and create unforgettable memories.

Discounted Tickets: $35 each

Family Friendly: Feel free to bring your family and friends!

Link to buy: https://fevo-enterprise.com/event/ISUFaithandFootball

We kindly request that you share this offer with your congregation or group, and also pass it along to any other churches or organizations that might be interested. We aim to bring as many community members as possible to experience the excitement of Cyclone Football.

Should you have any questions, please call the ISU Athletics Ticket Office at 515-294-1816 or by email at tickets@iastate.edu.

Bring Your Fall Closet Cleanout Finds to Grandma's Attic

If you are doing a Fall closet cleanout and have items that you don't want any more but are something your grandma would put in the attic to save for potential use, we invite you to donate them to The Scandinavian Coffee Grandma's Attic. 

We have room to store the items upstairs until the Scandinavian Coffee 2024, so please let us know if you have items to donate. Please let us know if you would like the items back if they don't sell. 

All items not sold or returned to their owner after Scandinavian Coffee will be given to Affordables in Story City. Affordables gives all proceeds to Bethany Life.

YOU Can Contribute to Yennifer's ELL Course Success!

In order for Yennifer to attend online DMACC ELL courses and allow them to be her sole focus, the family is in need of someone to watch their two children, Tadeo and Ana Paula, ages 6 and 3 as Jose works Tuesday and Thursday evenings. The requested time commitment is from 5:15 PM - 9:00 PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting ASAP. Contact Russ Melby if you would be available to volunteer your time.

Celebrate the International Day of Peace

"Cultivating a Culture of Peace"

The keynote speaker will be Professor Debra Delaet, Executive Director of Iowa United Nations Association. Recognized many times as an excellent teacher, she currently holds the David E. Maxwell Distinguished Professorship in International Affairs at Drake University. The service will express a vision of peace and a position against war shared by all faith traditions. We will renew our commitment to be instruments of God's peace.

Saturday September 21 at 6:30 PM

Cowels Commons Peace Garden

221 Walnut Street, Des Moines



Rain location: Capitol Hill Lutheran Church, 511 Des Moines St.

Scandinavian Coffee Baking Workshops:

If you want to help make delectable Scandinavian treats to prepare for Scandinavian Coffee, baking workshops are as follows in the kitchen:

• Spritz, Tuesday, September 24th @ 1pm-4pm
• Rosettes, Saturday, October 12th @ 9am-2pm
• Krumkake, Thursday, October 10th @9am-12pm
• Lefse, Monday, September 30th @ 1pm-4pm
• Tea rings, Sunday, September 22 @12pm-3pm, potentially second workshop on Sunday, September 29 @12pm-3pm
• Kringla session 1: Monday, October 14, 2-5pm
• Kringla session 2: Monday, October 21st, 5-8pm

Sign up for the workshops by the Welcome Center.

You're Invited to Women's Ministries Cream Tea Sept. 28!

Women's Ministries invites you to their Cream Tea September 28th from 9:30 - 11:30 am in the Commons! Wear your favorite Tea-party/ Kentucky Derby hat or fascinator and join us for a short informative presentation followed by Tea, scones, fellowship and crafting! Bring your daughters, mothers, sisters, friends and neighbors and join us! 

Register to attend here: http://tinyurl.com/BethesdaCreamTea

Grieving a Loss? Join Us at GriefShare

Sundays through November 24th in the Conference Room. Call the church office or contact Kathy Slocum (kslocum@prodigy.net) or Pat Swanson (swansonrp@gmail.com) for more information.

Upcoming AMOS Events

• Gathering on Saturday, October 5th from 9 - 4 pm at St. Patrick’s Catholic School (1302 5th St., Perry, IA 50220)
• Fall Variety Show Fundraiser on Saturday, November 9th (time TBD)

Join Bethesda's CROP Walk Team!

The 2024 CROP Walk is being held October 13th at 1:00 pm at Ada Hayden Park. Help provide life-saving support by donating or joining the team today!

Decorate a Trunk for Trunk-or-Treat!

This year’s Trunk-or-Treat is October 30th from 6:30 – 7:30 PM! Congregation members and friends are invited to decorate a trunk for this community event! Register yourself, or a group, at http://tinyurl.com/besthesdatrunkortreat.

What's The Difference Between The Current and The Living Current?

The Current is a double-sided sheet consisting of four or more announcements that may widely affect the congregation with a schedule of Sunday-to-Sunday activities and order of worship.

The current, the physical copy members pick up each weekend, is limited to a certain number of announcements and is determined by what events will largely affect the congregation as a whole, often on a first come-first serve basis.

The Living Current, an e-newsletter sent every Friday at 9 am, consists of the larger announcements that make The Current as well as other announcements and events that may not affect the majority of the congregation. Such things may include:

• An announcement for an event more than a month away. (As the event nears, it will be placed in The Current while holding its place in The Living Current.)
• Ongoing support and prayers

If you have an event that you would like advertised in The Current for weekend services, submit your announcement event via email to Tess Hanson and Lynn Anderson no later than the Tuesday before you would like it advertised. Please specify where you want it to be published. If submitted after the stated deadline, it will be integrated into The Living Current e-newsletter and The Current for weekend services the following week.

Address: 1517 Northwestern Ave.

Ames, IA 50010-5299

Phone: (515) 232-6256