English District of
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
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Living Our Baptized Life in Christ
Galatians 2:20
| | 2026 Roger D. Pittelko Award Recipient | | | Beloved member of the English District, Rev. Derek Mathers, Assistant to the Bishop and Mission Executive, was this year's Roger D. Pittelko award recipient. Bishop Jeff Miskus presented him with the award at the Professional Church Workers Conference last week. Congratulations! Well done, good and faithful servant! | | Rev. Michael Dobler was installed at Redeemer Lutheran Church, North Tonawanda, NY. Bishop Jeff Miskus presided over the well-attended service. In addition to serving Redeemer, Rev. Dobler will also be serving Immanuel Lutheran Church, Tonawanda, NY (Eastern District). We rejoice with the congregations he will be serving and pray for continued blessings upon his ministry. | | |
Call Received
The Rev. Matthew L. G. Zickler (Northern Illinois District) has received a Divine Call to serve as Associate Pastor of Advent, Zionsville, IN.
Call Received and Accepted
Commissioned Candidate Timothy E. Mars has received and accepted a Divine Call to serve as Director of Parish Music of Chapel of the Cross, St. Louis, MO.
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Called to Glory
Rev. Peter E. Mills
July 27, 1945 to May 23, 2026
The Rev. Peter E. Mills, Emeritus, was called to glory on Saturday, May 23, 2026. Rev. Mills served Grace, Lamesa, TX (1996-1999) and Grace, Akron, OH (2001-2022).
A funeral service will be held on Friday, May 29, 2026, 12:00 PM at Christ Lutheran Church, 13812 Bellaire Rd., Cleveland, OH 44135. The committal rite and internment will follow at Crown Hill Cemetery, 8592 Darrow Road, Twinsburg, OH 44087.
Please keep the entire Mills family in your prayers.
“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.” Psalm 116:15
Obituary - Rev. Peter E. Mills
| | Lifeline is the English District’s outreach that promotes the dignity and sanctity of life from fertilization to forever. The Lifeline team facilitates a culture of life in English District congregations by linking church workers and congregation members with the life-affirming resources of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, Lutherans for Life, other national organizations, and sister congregations. For more information on Life Ministry resources, click here. | | We encourage congregations to reproduce and share the following message with your members. Click here for Lifeline's "Trinity Sunday 2026" reproducible file in .pdf format. | | 1-1-1 Dollar for Missions | | | |
We read in John 6:9, “…but what are they among so many?" You will likely recognize this quote as the disciples’ response to a boy’s offering up his loaves and fish in an attempt to feed a listening and learning crowd of thousands. Does a weekly dollar offered up to Mission 1-1-1 seem meager sometimes against the backdrop of such a wide and deep mission field of need? But what happens next?
The offering is placed in the hands of the Master, whose creative, transformative power makes it a meal that more than satisfies the need, even supplying leftovers. In faith, we do the same each week, knowing that offering a little can turn into a lot for those who receive it. Later, in this same chapter, the Lord Jesus sets forth the truth that He is the Bread of Life, and those who feed on His Word made perfect by His sacrifice will never die. Human reason and limited knowledge have a hard time accepting His message, then as now. But He takes care of that, too. Matthew 19:26 tells us, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
If you are reading this, and your church has yet to participate in Mission 1-1-1, the message below is for you.
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All the information your congregation needs to get started in contributing to the Mission 1-1-1 ministry can be found on the district website. It is the goal of this campaign to saturate our efforts with Scripture, through where the Holy Spirit moves us.
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High school youth are invited to attend YouthLead 2026, an LCMS Youth Ministry leadership training event in Chicago, June 25-28. Cost is $150 per student and includes food, lodging, and materials. The English District will provide $150 per youth participant. Space is limited, so please register early. Applications should be returned to DCE Rod Lane. For more information, scan the QR code, email DCE Rod Lane or call him at (402) 499-0807, or email Pastor Derek Mathers.
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We ask that you join us in praying for the family of Amy Mathers, daughter of Pastor Derek and Deb Mathers, who was taken into the arms of Jesus and now awaits His promise of resurrection. Despite being born with a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy, Amy was a fighter throughout her life. She was the grateful recipient of three gifts of life: a liver at age 5, a heart at age 27, and a kidney at age 40. Our hearts go out to the Mathers family, but we grieve in hope. Read Amy's obituary here.
District daily prayers for June 2026 are located on our website.
Your prayer concerns are important to the English District. If you have a prayer request you would like shared in this newsletter, email the district office.
| | English District Endowment Fund | | | The English District Endowment Fund is to provide God’s People with a unique opportunity to participate in a perpetual fund which assists congregations in supporting ministries and missions such as Campus Ministries, Human Care & Disaster Relief, and New Missions. There are earnings available for grants. Please visit the website for more information. | | Church Worker (Student Loan) Debt Reduction Grants Available | | | |
Rostered workers who are currently serving (called workers) in an English District LCMS congregation or school are eligible to apply for an education indebtedness grant. These grants are one aspect of the Endowment Fund currently being offered to Rostered Church Workers to assist with paying off their student loans.
For a Church Worker (Student Loan) Debt Reduction Grant, we ask that you complete an Application for Church Worker Transitional Assistance. These forms will be available on our District website beginning May 25, 2026. The deadline for applications is Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
To support our congregations, ministries, and church workers through the English District Endowment Fund, click here to donate.
If you have any questions, please contact Rev. Derek Mathers at 1-800-755-9335.
| | Financial Aid for Future Church Workers | | | |
The LCMS Church is facing a significant shortage of professional church workers. The English District provides financial aid to English District applicants enrolled in synodical-approved church work programs (pastor, teacher, DCE, DCO, deaconess, etc.). Click here for more information and the application. (Scholarships are not given to interns, vicars, or graduate students.)
There is a separate application for colloquy students which also can be found using the link above.
The deadline for receipt of applications is June 1.
Please consider sharing this information with your church and school families, especially those considering professional church work. It might be that this assistance will add one more worker to the Kingdom!
| | Contact John Hoover, LCEF District Vice President, by email or phone 314-276-3370 for more information. | | Lutheran Federal Credit Union | | | For more information, please contact our Operations Department at 314-394-2790. | | |
Faith, Overgaard, AZ
Members of Faith Lutheran Church, served by Pastor Rodney Schmeltz, recently held a successful rummage sale. The congregation's fellowship hall was organized and demonstrated no shortage of items. The event drew community members in to peruse the assortment for their next treasure, and congregation members were on hand to assist and build fellowship.
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Redeemer, Sarnia, ON
It was a great Pentecost Sunday at Redeemer Lutheran Church as four young people joined Vacancy Pastor Roger Ellis in the chancel to affirm their Baptismal faith and confess, with God’s help, to love and serve Jesus throughout their lives. Many family members witnessed this blessed event of their young confirmands and celebrated with pride the professions of faith made by the confirmands.
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Ascension of Christ, Beverly Hills, MI
Several families of the Childcare Center Ministry of Ascension of Christ Lutheran Church, served by Pastor Larry Loree, walked in the Memorial Day parade and passed out a total of 2200 little American flags along the mile-long parade route.
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Grace, Mitchell, ON
The congregation of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, served by Pastor Gerald Andersen, recently held a LEGO event alongside Youth Unlimited Youth for Christ (YFC) Mitchell. Youth Unlimited YFC Mitchell provides community outreach with a focus on sharing the good news of God with young people. The two-day LEGO event allowed participants to bring their own creations and build with LEGOs, which had been donated by the community. This event offered a chance not only to create imaginative structures, but also to build relationships and foster fellowship among youth in the community
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Tree of Life, Inverness, FL
Trinity, Ocala, FL
Shepherd of the Coast, Palm Coast, FL
Faith, Naples, FL
At the recent English District Professional Church Workers Conference, members of four of the five English District Florida churches gathered for a group photo. Pictured (L-R) Pastor Eric Linthicum (Tree of Life Lutheran Church), Pastor Dan Howe (Trinity Lutheran Church), Pastor Greg Michel (Shepherd of the Coast Lutheran Church), Pastor Owen and Evangeline Duncan (Faith Lutheran Church). Pastor Santiago Keinbaum, who serves Celebration Lutheran Church, was unable to attend.
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Redeemer, Oakmont, PA
Pastor Adam Koontz and the congregation of Redeemer Lutheran Church welcomed four new members by Holy Baptism and six new members by confession of faith. Thanks be to God!
| | Continuing Education Opportunity | | | |
The congregation of Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church, served by Pastor Luke Zimmerman, will be hosting "Treasured Themes in Philippians," presented by Dr. John G. Nordling.
With the writing of a commentary comes the opportunity to enter further and deeper into treasured themes in Paul's letter to the Philippians: partnership in the gospel; Christological preaching amid the imprisonment; the Christ hymn (2:5–11); apostolic use of Roman military language; intertextual themes; regarding all things as loss for the sake of Christ (3:7); and the nature of the Philippians’ gift and implications for their life together. The present course covers all these themes, and then some, and relates them to preaching, parish, and ministry.
This educational opportunity will be held August 4-6, 2026 at Calvary Lutheran Church, 208 Woods Drive, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050. Click here for more information. Register here.
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Please share the unique ministries of your school or congregation with the rest of the English District. Send pictures and stories for consideration to llinthicum@englishdistrict.org by Wednesday at 12:00 noon ET.
We want to see how YOUR congregation or school is showing the love of God to those in your community and around the world.
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