On Monday, September 5, the first wave of ten LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs and their teams arrived in Uvalde, Texas, to be a calming and comforting presence for the students, teachers, and staff as they return to school this week following the tragic Robb Elementary School Shooting in May. The K-9s and their teams will be present at the District’s eight schools for three weeks each morning, from September 6 to September 23. They will also be available to the parents to walk with them during their healing process.

Soon after their arrival, LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs Abner (Bethany - Austin, Texas), Cubby and Devorah (Redeemer - Fort Collins, Colorado), Damaris (Memorial - Katy, Texas), Elijah (Our Redeemer - Wichita Falls, Texas), Joy (Gloria Dei - Houston, Texas), Katie (Trinity - Fremont, Nebraska), Martha (Bethany - Austin, Texas), Priscilla (Trinity - Lincoln, Nebraska), and Triton (Messiah - Plano, Texas) and their handlers visited with families at the memorial site, with LCC Hearts of Mercy & Compassion, Crosses for Losses still present.

The Comfort Dogs spent time with a family they had met during their deployment in May. It was good to reconnect with the family as they enjoyed some special attention with the LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs.

Our hope and prayer is that our presence will alleviate some of the fear and anxiety that many in the community are feeling about the start of a new school year.

LCC's K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry never goes where we are not invited and never charges those we serve as we bring the Mercy, Compassion, Presence and Proclamation of Jesus Christ to those suffering and in need. We pick up all of our travel, hotel, and meal costs.

Please prayerfully consider donating to the LCC K-9 Comfort Travel Expense Fund so that we can continue serving the Uvalde community.

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HELP INNER CITY STUDENTS AT CHRIST THE KING STAY IN SCHOOL

Over the past 49 years, Pastor John Brazeal and Principal Geri Brazeal, and the staff of Christ the King Lutheran Church and School in the Bronzeville community in Chicago, Illinois, have touched the lives of hundreds of children and their parents with the gospel of Christ's love and forgiveness, giving them hope, a purpose, and a future.

Christ the King has a proven track record with students, who learned their worth in Jesus by keeping them on the straight path, focused on making a difference in the lives of others and staying away from an inner-city life, which could be so very easy to fall into.

We are continuing to send your donations to Christ the King for the scholarships for the students. Your generous support helps children like Magic and Jaylen stay in school.

Magic is an 8th grader who has been with CTK since preschool. He is a talented violin player who assists in playing the violin for service.

His mom is a teacher's aide in a public school classroom. She helped CTK with online learning while school was virtual. She has a daughter who attended Christ the King and just graduated from high school. This is a year that will be a bit more difficult for mom as she has to assist with college tuition at Indiana State.

Jaylen lives with his mom. They both have been working virtually from home for the past two years. Jaylen has been working very hard in his Zoom sessions with teachers at Christ the King. Since 2020 he has completed the curriculum for 5th, 6th and 7th grade. This year he began 8th grade in-person.

It will be a pleasure working with him again in person. Even though he reported weekly to have his assignments checked, he was missing the interaction with his classmates.

His mom is thankful that she still has employment, although her salary was cut. She is also looking forward to Jaylen graduating this year after skipping 7th grade; after great scores on his end-of-the-year exams. He looks forward to someday going into real estate investments.

We are proud of his success, he has been with us since Kindergarten, and he will always be a part of this family as he moves on in his educational pursuits. Pastor John and Principal Geri

CLICK HERE to read success stories of more Christ the King students.

Lutheran Church Charities continues to partner with the Prospect Heights Police Department victim advocates as they identify needs and provide assistance to residents affected by the large condominium fire last week, very near the LCC office. These advocates are working closely with all affected residents to make referrals of available community resources to aid in their recovery, as well as provide interpretive services to the many Polish and Hispanic-speaking residents.

The greatest need right now is to assist residents in securing new housing as quickly as possible. Residents are beginning to work with their insurance companies to understand coverage of their losses and to seek new housing, as many anticipate they will be out of their units for many months to a year.

A few units did not sustain any fire or water damage, but because 32 units are in the same building, they had some smoke damage, and all utilities were cut off to the entire building. These residents have been told they could be out of their homes for 4-6 weeks, but since there's no actual fire damage, insurance is not covering many of their expenses.

Lutheran Church Charities anticipates assisting with temporary housing needs as identified and requested by the victim advocates in the coming weeks. Please pray for everyone impacted by this tragic fire. If you are so moved, please donate to help LCC help our neighbors as we bring the Mercy, Compassion, Presence, and Proclamation of Jesus Christ to those who are suffering and in need.

Since March 2022, Lutheran Church Charities has been working cooperatively with pastors of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Ukraine (SELCU) to provide humanitarian relief which combines the clear proclamation of the gospel.

It is estimated that since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, more than half of Ukraine's 44 million populace has either left the country as refugees or become internally displaced persons within the country.

The SELCU pastors are producing a series of video presentations that summarize their work in Ukraine and offer sincere gratitude to LCC donors.

In the second video of the series SELCU Pastor Sergey Bevz talks about his important work in the city of Dnipro and the entire Donbas region.

Click on the video below to watch his powerful message.

Thank You for your support in being the hands and feet of Jesus to those suffering!

LCC received the following request from Archpriest Mykhailo Kuzma of the Ukrainian Church in Palatine, Illinois:

Please prayerfully consider donating to help provide computers for the children in the orphanage.

LCC received a request from our mission partner Ministry in Mission working through Rev. Dr. Marky Kessa in Jacmel, Haiti.

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in." (Matthew 25:35)

Please prayerfully consider donating to help provide food for the prisoners in Jacmel.

LCC has been sending your donations to assist this family in need. The mom is deeply grateful for the generous support. The need is still great and ongoing, and your support is a witness to this family of Christ’s Mercy and Compassion.

LCC received the following request from Pastor Doug Warmann, Assistant Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Roselle, Illinois:

If you are so moved, please prayerfully consider donating generously to help Jessica provide for her five children.

LCC received the following request from Pastor Christopher Browne at Our Saviour Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois:

Please consider donating to help this family bury their loved one.

No other person has impacted human history like Jesus. No other person has lived like Jesus, made claims like Jesus or performed miracles like Jesus. No other person has been followed in the past or present like Jesus. No other person has been more misunderstood than Jesus! This begs the question, who is Jesus really? The WORD course Follow the ComPASSION will answer that!             

The course will be taught live at St Matthew Lutheran Church, 24500 N Old McHenry Rd, Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, on Mondays at 9:30 AM and 6:00 PM (each class is one and a half hours). It will also be recorded and available on the internet for those who are registered.

Learn more and register at LCCWORD.COM

The instructor is Tim Hetzner, past President / CEO of Lutheran Church Charities and founder of the LCC K-9 Ministries. Tim is currently Ambassador for Spiritual Growth for LCC. Tim’s passion is teaching the Bible and helping people explore and come to know Jesus! He has been teaching in-depth Bible Studies for over 45 years. He has studied in Israel and led 30-plus Biblical Study tours to the Middle East. His textbook is the Bible! 

To better manage volunteers and resources, FEMA has developed a guideline on credentialing volunteers for large-scale disasters. The federal guidelines indicate that volunteers responding to a disaster should be trained and certified.

Should a disaster strike, these teams would be put on call and may be asked to deploy in 72 hours or less to the disaster site. This training will prepare a team member for credentialing and will focus on the safety, work, and ministry of Lutherans as Early Responders.

The registration cost for new L.E.R.T. volunteers is $35.00. As a refresher to update your ID, the cost is only $15.00.

Lutheran Church Charities will present the following in-person Basic L.E.R.T. Training. If you know someone who is interested in disaster response, encourage them to register and attend this training.

Time: Registration: 8:30 - 9:00 am | Training: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm

Krentz Center – Rm. 120

(southeast corner of campus)

7400 Augusta St.

River Forest, Illinois 60305

Time: Registration: 8:00 - 8:30 am | Training: 8:30 am - 12:30 pm

200 N Plum Grove Rd.

Palatine, Illinois 60067

Cost: $35.00 per person for new L.E.R.T. volunteers; $25.00 for CUC students only: $15 for L.E.R.T. team members attending to update their ID

Payments can be made online or during registration. If you have attended a previous LERT training, please wear your ID and bring your manual with you.

The online LCMS Basic L.E.R.T. training is geared towards responding to a disaster with Lutheran Church Charities in the Northern Illinois District or wherever we are invited to serve nationwide.

For the online training, you will receive a letter with instructions to access the portal to view the Basic L.E.R.T. training sessions.

Upon verification of watching and completing all Basic L.E.R.T. training sessions and quizzes, LCC will then send your DR manual, badge, your personal certificate, and vest.

If your church is interested in hosting a Basic L.E.R.T. Training or if you have any questions, contact the LCC Disaster Response team at DRAdmin@LutheranChurchCharities.org or 866-455-6466.

The LCC K-9 Ministry is one of presence. When the Lord calls, we must go and serve Him. LCC never goes where we are not invited and the LCC K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry NEVER charges those we serve.

Hearts of Mercy & Compassion, Crosses for Losses provides a physical and spiritual symbol through the giving of hearts and crosses to families and friends who have suffered loss or serious illness of a loved one.

Click HERE to read all the ways the Hearts of Mercy & Compassion, Crosses for Losses Ministry has served this year.

Click HERE to learn more about the Hearts of Mercy & Compassion, Crosses for Losses Ministry or how your church can be involved.

BEGINS WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7TH

Start your day with a free devotion from Tim Hetzner, LCC Ambassador for Spiritual Growth.

A new five-part devotion series

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Lutheran Church Charities sends your donations to Haiti through our Mission Partners, Ministry in Mission and Mission:Haiti. Both have people on the ground, who purchase and distribute desperately needed supplies to help save and improve the lives of the most vulnerable Haitians.

Here are the most critical needs:

Romans 12:15

We have been rejoicing and mourning with our neighbors, co-workers, friends, and family through the last year.

Whether it’s a virtual school, loneliness, under or unemployment, food insecurity, loss, anxiety, depression; we have also grown together as families, changed jobs/careers, established new and maintained friendships via video calls, and packed our belongings for a location change; we are privileged to support one another.

The LCC Nationwide Prayer Vigil provides each of us the opportunity to be in prayer for one another. Please submit all prayer concerns and/or prayers of thanksgiving.

Share answered prayer at prayer@lutheranchurchcharities.org

If you experience difficulty submitting names or signing up to pray, please call 800-524-5464.

Salam Christian Fellowship Mission Dinner - Saturday, October 22

Do you shop on Amazon.com?

You can benefit Lutheran Church Charities automatically, without any extra steps to your purchases.

Just create an account on AmazonSmile and select Lutheran Church Charities as the beneficiary.

Every time you shop, Amazon will make a donation to LCC! What a difference we can make together!

Do you shop the Amazon app via your mobile device? You can now support Lutheran Church Charities by using AmazonSmile through the app!

We’re proud to be a Thrivent Choice®-enrolled organization.

Through the Thrivent programs, Lutheran Church Charities is eligible to receive grant dollars, fee-free donations, and support from Thrivent Action Team service projects.

Directing Choice Dollars is easy!

Visit thrivent.com/thriventchoice to learn more OR call 800-847-4836 and say "Thrivent Choice" after the prompt.

Through the Thrivent programs, you are eligible to receive grant dollars, fee-free donations, and support from Thrivent Action Team service projects.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Thrivent Action Teams.

As always, thank you for all of your generous support - it makes a difference! If you would like to hear more about LCC ministry opportunities, which would benefit from an Action Team Card, please contact Tim Laabs at tlaabs@LutheranChurchCharities.org or (224) 443-4223.