A 2016 MNS LCEF outreach grant helped fund this National Night Out block party hosted by Trinity Lutheran Church in Northfield, Minnesota last summer. Pictured is local law enforcement interacting with the community; more than 250 people attended the event. Several people from the neighborhood met their own neighbors for the first time, and many of them commented on how much they appreciated Trinity’s special invitation to the event.
Five Minnesota South (MNS) District ministries will receive $1,000 each from the Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF) to help provide funds for outreach events:
- POBLO International Friendship Center, Rochester, Minnesota
- Host a Christmas/New Year’s outreach event for neighbors who come from many religious backgrounds, including atheism, Buddhism, and Islam; some of whom have never had Christian friends or heard the message of Jesus’ love.
- Rose of Sharon Lutheran Church, Cottage Grove, Minnesota
- Host a community open house event to invite local families to the church and tour the new Christian Child Care Center. The center will be the only faith-based child care center in the community.
- St. Paul Lutheran Church, Pipestone, Minnesota
- Host a “Thank You Lunch” for local police officers, fire fighters, EMT workers and National Guard members, plus an outreach event to Jamaica to conduct acts of mercy in conjunction with the church’s 125th Anniversary.
- St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Fulda, Minnesota
- Host "Praise in the Park,” an event that includes outdoor worship, vintage farm and auto display, and a community meal on the last Sunday in July.
- University Lutheran Chapel, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Provide bilingual Bibles in Arabic, Chinese, Somali, Farsi, Russian, Korean (and others as the need arises) for University of Minnesota international students attending the weekly Bible study.
Special thanks to all MNS District Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF) investors and our Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) loan partners for their support. Based upon another LCEF strong fiscal year end, this nonprofit ministry of the LCMS was able to award grant funds with a portion of its year-end operating results. It is a blessing to put funds right back into mission and ministry at the local level via these grants.
Online grant applications are accepted at lcefuppermidwest.org beginning in September. All LCMS Minnesota South District organizations are encouraged to apply.
For more information on how to become a Lutheran Church Extension Fund investor to support ministry via affordable loans, support and more, visit our national website at lcef.org.