A Message from Pastor Summer -- May 2019

An Easter song:

Peter came in anguish on that Easter morning

Remembering that bitter night and the way he had run.

He could hear the accusations, hear himself denying,

He could hear the rooster crowing with the coming of the sun.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun.

His anguish would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Mary came in sorrow on that Easter morning

Remembering that brutal hill and the way he had cried.

She couldn’t hide her tears, or the empty feeling

Or the haunting question of why he had to die.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun.

Her sorrow would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Andrew came in anger on that Easter morning

Remembering the cruel way they had him crucified.

He couldn’t see their reasons or understand their fears

And he vowed that he’d never forgive their lies.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun.

His anger would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Thomas came with questions on that Easter morning

Remembering the dreams they shared as they walked through Galilee.

Was he the Messiah, the one for whom they waited,

The one who would truly set them free?

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun.

His questions would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

May the joy of Easter, the promise of a new day, fill us with hope!

April Council Highlights

The Church Council met on April 11, 2019.  Below are the highlights of that meeting.

· Courtney Rzeplinski reported that the Christian Education Committee is still in search of a Sunday School Coordinator.  If you would like to volunteer, please contact Courtney at courtney@zionoldwick.com.

· The Council voted to direct $1,000 of Endowment Mission Outreach funds to Lutheran World Relief in response to Cyclone Idai’s devastation in Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

· The Communications Committee is in need of volunteers.  The committee will hold an open meeting on May 5 at 9:45 a.m. at the CEB.  Anyone interested in Evangelism or Communications is invited to attend.  (Please see the article below for more information.)

· The Property Committee is working on plans for renovations at the parsonage.

· Thank you to:

* Rebecca Melick for her leadership and facilitation of Feed My Starving Children.

* Frank Stanski, who went above and beyond in his volunteering for Feed My Starving Children.

* Patricia Craig and Cindy Rupprecht for their work on Plan to Protect.

The next meeting of the Church Council will be on Wednesday, May 15.  Meetings are open for all to attend.

Communications Committee Open Meeting -- May 5

One of the major decisions made at the Council retreat this year was folding Evangelism into the Communications Committee.  The reason for the move is that the idea of evangelism tends to frighten people and communicating the good news feels more inviting.  In addition, with the advent of social media, we have so many new ways to share the story of God’s grace and extend an invitation.  On May 5, between services at the CEB, the newly constituted Communications Committee will be hold an open meeting.  Everyone is invited, but we are particularly interested in those who have served on the Evangelism Committee or Communications Task Force in the past.  We’re looking for ideas, hoping to grow the committee, and begin mapping out a direction for us as a congregation.  We will also be rolling out our website, Zion 2.0.  We hope to see you on the 5^th!

June 16 worship at the CEB

Due to the restoration work happening at the church next month, the June 16 worship service will take place  at the CEB.  Remember, we will be on our summer schedule with one service at 9:30 a.m.

Social Ministry Update

Thank you to everyone who participated in Feed My Starving Children this year. Over the two days Zion hosted the event we packed 468 boxes; that is 101,088 Manna Pack meals. 

Founded in 1987, Feed My Starving Children is a Christian non-profit that provides nutritionally complete meals for starving, malnourished and hungry people.  The food prevents starvation and curbs malnourishment in children and families worldwide. FMSC food has reached more than 70 countries.   To learn more go to www.fmsc.org.

Youth & Family Ministries

Dear Members and Friends,

This year of Sunday School is wrapping up. Our last day is May 19^th. We have had a very wonderful year with some great volunteers! Thank you to all of those who made Sunday School a great success.

Over the summer, we will start to see some changes in the youth programming. First, our Plan to Protect child safety policy will be rolling out. Our trainers, Cindy Rupprecht, Patricia Craig, and I will be leading several trainings over the summer, so that everyone will have a chance to become knowledgeable about the ways to keep our students, volunteers, staff, and church protected. Invitations to join a session will be out in June.

The youth ministry study team has also wrapped up their book study and is ready to explore models of youth ministry. It’s important to know that we have the flexibility to try new models and experiment as we go, until we find the perfect fit for Zion. There are a lot of ways to minister to students, and I am confident that Zion will find its ideal model in the coming years.

This summer will also have a week of Vacation Bible School. This event is highly sought after by the community (we have already gotten phone calls and emails). If you have young students, age 3 – completion of 4^th grade, and would like to register them, please call the church office. Also, if you are available to help with this event, please reach out to myself or Melanie Hodges. This year, the theme is ROAR! Life is wild- God is good!

Finally, in July, our middle and high schoolers will travel to Rehoboth Beach, to do mission work and enjoy a time of fellowship. The week is a wonderful opportunity for the youth and adults to strengthen their relationships with each other.

I look forward to all of the events, planning and preparations that happen during the summer. It is a time for us to set our sails into new winds, and chart a course for new horizons!

Peace,

Courtney Rzeplinski

Last Day of Sunday School -- May 19

The last day of Sunday School is May 19th!  We will be celebrating with games, food, and a chance to vote on what we want to donate our offering money towards - Bees, Chicks, or a water filtration system.  Don't miss all the fun and action!

ELCA Piggy Banks

ELCA Piggy Banks are being collected at the Christian Education Building on April 28th thru May 12th. Please bring your filled piggy bank to Sunday school or worship so the money you donated can be added to our Sunday school offering. On May 19th, the Sunday School children we will vote on how to disperse the funds - Bees, Chicks, or a water filtration system!

THANK YOU!

Thank you to all our teachers, volunteers, parents, and students for their hard work and dedication during the 2018-2019 school year.  If you have an interest in helping with Zion’s youth ministry programs, please see Courtney Rzeplinski, Director of Youth and Family Ministries, or email her at courtney@zionoldwick.com.

1. Tom Gravel #

2. Sue Schermerhorn #

3. Cindy Rupprecht +

4. Jeff Livingston +

5. Sandy Matsen*

6. Melanie Hodges**

7. John Melick

8. Courtney Ronaldo*

9. Linda Smith*

10. Brooke Schumann**

11. Richard Schumann*

12. Lou DiCriscio*

13. Rebecca Melick*

14. Brian Hodges*

15. Jennifer Hodges*

16. Kristen Hodges*

17. Tami Mendenhall*

18. Donna Hunter*

19. Bonnie Stanski*

20. Meghan Stanski*

21. Mike Jennison*

22. Tiffany Shin*

23. Steve Shin

24. Ellen Stevenson

25. Linda Dierking

26. Paul Batkowski

27. Kristen Batkowski

28. Carol Anne Bredeson*

29. Laura Bredeson*

30. Susannah Allen*

31. Rod Briscoe*

32. Linda Held*

33. Patricia Craig*

34. Betty Lanka*

35. Richard Pepe*

36. Cheryl Rodrick*

37. Laura Spann

38. Jim Dierking

* denotes Sunday School volunteer

** denotes Sunday School Superintendent

+ denotes Confirmation volunteer

# denotes Youth of Zion volunteer

Meet Our Members

Joe & Linda Lovas

Linda and Joe Lovas joined Zion Lutheran Church in 1971 when their oldest son was almost a year old.  They had just purchased a new home in Clinton Town and moved from their North Plainfield apartment.  In 1969, they were married by Pastor Roy Milner at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Dunellen, NJ. They are both lifelong NJ residents.  Linda was born in Jersey City and Joe’s family is from Clifton.

They have two sons, Jeffrey and Gregory who attended Sunday School and were confirmed at Zion.   Both boys were active in the Youth Group and both attended national events with Pastor Summer. They also were faithful attendees of Pastor Summer’s Rehoboth Beach retreats.  In 2000, Pastor Summer married Jeffrey and his wife Jodie and in 2001 he married Gregory and his wife Amy. Both affairs were lovely and made very special because Pastor Summer was there to officiate.  They have four fabulous teenage grandchildren, Julia, Jack, Jessica and Megan.  Three were baptized by Pastor Summer. They all attended and volunteered at Vacation Bible School for many years

Linda and Joe are both retired.  Joe retired in 2000 from the automobile business and headed to the local golf courses for some fun.  When Linda retired in 2011 from The Chubb Corporation, she had just finished 25 years of service. She worked as Senior Executive Assistant to the Chairman and CEO for 23 of those years.  It was an exciting and challenging position which she thoroughly enjoyed but it was time for a new chapter.

After retirement, Linda and Joe began to travel extensively.  They started with Sweden, Norway and Denmark.  It was something they had talked about for years.  Then they got the bug and continued on to Singapore, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, Hawaii, Germany, Italy, France, Budapest, Amsterdam, the Greek Islands and more.  It’s one of their favorite things to do together.  Exploring all the new and exciting places they visit and meeting lots of interesting people is the best part.

Over the years, Linda and Joe have been active in many areas at Zion.  Linda has served on Council many times and has been Vice President twice.  She has also been Secretary to the Council, a Sunday School teacher, worked with Vacation Bible School, Family Promise and Faith Kitchen in Dover.  They both enjoy all the social activities of the church and consider many members to be like family.

When Linda and Joe hear people say “Come Home to Zion” they often think, we never left!!!!  How wonderful is that?

Larry & Arlene Martin

Hi, we are Arlene and Larry Martin.  Arlene is a true “Jersey girl” and a lifetime Lutheran.  Larry was born in West Virginia and came to NJ via Baltimore. We met while working for a German pharmaceutical company in Bridgewater and were able to exchange homes and jobs with a German colleague.  Larry was a medicinal chemist and Arlene was Production and Inventory Control Manager.  We are both retired now and enjoy traveling with friends and family. We have two children—Liz who lives in Yorktown, Virginia with her husband and nine-year-old son and Larry who lives in Tewksbury with his wife and two children.  Those of you who go to the 11 AM service know our three-year-old granddaughter, Emma, who loves “her” pastor, “her” choir, and “her” church.

We joined Zion the same Sunday that Mark and Bonnie Summer joined.  Both our children were confirmed by Pastor Summer and enjoyed many weeks in Rehoboth with the youth group.  Arlene has been on council, taught Vacation Bible School and substituted in the Sunday School.  She was also there for the first guests from Interfaith Hospitality Network (now Family Promise) and was amazed that one of the children went to school with her daughter.  It was quite a shock to realize we do have homeless in Hunterdon County.  The second set of guests helped Arlene assemble gingerbread houses for Advent Parish Night and she will be eternally grateful to them.  Twenty gingerbread houses was a challenge but they pitched in and we had a great time.

In the past 30+ years, Zion has been there for us through strokes, cancer and those wonderful teenage years.  It was a blessing to have a minister who had a son my kids age.  There were some sermons that I swore Mark must have been a fly on the wall in our house it was so relevant to our lives.  I had a neighbor who once remarked on how caring our church was when she saw people delivering food when I came home from the hospital.  She had gone through a triple bypass and not one person from her church even called to see how she was doing.

We have many fond memories of Zion and the people that make up the congregation and feel blessed to have known all of you.