Filled with living hope in Christ,

Confessing, Praising, and

Advancing His Kingdom.

Live a Life of Love

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us." Ephesians 5:1-2

Many of us grew up singing this song by George Frederick Root:

Jesus loves the little children

All the children of the world

Red, brown, yellow

Black and white

They are precious in His sight

Jesus loves the little children 

Of the world.

What a wonderful reminder that no matter who we are or where we are, Jesus loves us. We are each created as a special package of gifts, talents, interests, and needs. We fall short of our potential because of sin, yet, Jesus loves and forgives us. He paid for that forgiveness with His life. What better reassurance could we have? The shortcomings that we have don’t make us less desirable to God. He holds on to us tighter and guides us on our walk. That is something we can celebrate each and every day.

Knowing that we are forgiven gives us a living hope to encourage us and the strength to share our love for Jesus with others. Whether we are in a classroom teaching, serving in another capacity, retired and volunteering, etc., we are all loved by God and precious to Him. 

Be uplifted and reminded that you are His precious child.

Serving the Master Teacher,

Lois Stewart

Mission Facilitator for Schools

Congratulations

What a joy to share great news and thank God for the gifted workers in our NID schools! Congratulations and God’s continued blessings to Lori Schneider and Katie Stiek upon their LEA teacher of the year awards. Lori and Katie are both tremendous blessings to their schools and the communities they serve. 

Careers for Christ 



Concordia University Chicago is preparing to host the 2026 Careers for Christ weekend in October. Please see the attached flyer and watch for more information. 

Early Childhood, Elementary and High School Administrators

The next Early Childhood event will take place on Saturday, April 23, 2026 at St. Peter in Schaumburg (202 E. Schaumburg Rd.). See the flyer below for more information.

The spring Elementary and High School Winter Leadership Conference will take place on Monday, April 27, 2026 at Concordia University Chicago.

Our guest presenters will be Principal Donna Laughlin and Assistant Principal Penny Suydam (Immanuel, Batavia). Their presentation will focus on mentoring new teachers, on-boarding new staff, and coaching teachers with best practices. Plan to join us for a great morning of learning.

The on-line registration link will remain live on the NID website if you still need to register for the Spring Conference on Monday, April 27, 2026.

Spelling Bee Recap

On Saturday, February 7, 2026 nine of our NID schools, represented by over 70 students and supporters, gathered at Immanuel Lutheran School in Elmhurst for the second annual spelling bee. It was a great morning! Participating schools were: Immanuel, Batavia; Immanuel, East Dundee; Immanuel, Elmhurst; St. Luke, Itasca; Bethany, Naperville; Immanuel, Palatine; St. Peter, Schaumburg; and Trinity, Tinley Park.

It is a blessing when schools gather to fellowship and get to know one another. Thank you to Immanuel in Elmhurst for hosting. Watch for next year’s date in the near future!  

Hearts for Jesus

The "Hearts for Jesus" focus this school year will be a starting point as donations are collected for the Vacation Bible School program. The program needs to be updated and given new energy. We get to be good neighbors and then speak the Living Hope we have in our Savior. We get to connect the community with the mission. Word,

Wellness, and Witness are all part of the daily walk in Seine Bight where Jesus is the center. The VBS team members love Jesus so much and share that love with all the children in Seine Bight. Let’s be prayerful to support this "Hearts of Jesus" endeavor. 

Conference Opportunity

Design, Build, Lead Together is a conference opportunity at CUC. The dates are April 23-24, 2026. See the flyer below for more information.

Walcamp and Junior High School Youth

From March 20-22, 2026, junior high school youth are invited to gather at Walcamp for a weekend of learning and fun. Please see the attached flyer and QR code to register.

Are you ready for summer 2026 at Walcamp? 

Parish Professionals

To God be the glory for the Parish Professionals that serve in the NID (Directors of Christian Education, Deaconesses, Parish Musicians, just to name a few). The group met on February 19, 2026 at Immanuel, Crystal Lake at 11:00 a.m. for worship, sharing, and learning. Thanks go out to Joe Ferwerda and Immanuel, Crystal Lake (300 Pathway Court, Crystal Lake) for hosting this month. 

Alex Brice serves as the group coordinator. Watch for emails each month with event information. If you have any questions, please reach out to alex.brice@stmarkslife.org. 

SHINE 2026

April 10, 2026 will arrive soon! The dates for our NID SHINE event this year are April 10-19, 2026. In previous years, our schools have done a great job reaching out into the community to serve. Plan ahead to get your groups involved this coming April. You are blessed to be a blessing!

TEC21

2026-2027 School Year Theme

The 2026-2027 theme is...

Wish to stop receiving the School Newsletter? WAIT! Don't unsubscribe below!

Click here and tell us to remove "School Newsletter"

from your preferences, but still remain on other NID lists.