Rev. Kevin A. Karner Dr. Anne Stuhlman Pastor Immanuel ...€¦ · If you have a computer, tablet or phone with internet access you can join Pastor Karner’s Bible Class each Sunday

Immanuel Lutheran Church Messenger May 2020 1

May 2020

Vol. 20 No. 4 Messenger

Imma n uel Lu ther an Chur c h a nd Sc ho o l

154 Me ad ow Street Br is to l , C T 0 601 0

860 -583 - 5649 dkra mp itz @ i lc s . org

www.ilcs.org

O U R M I S S I O N

The people of Immanuel

Lutheran Church are living

proof of the grace of God

through salvation in Jesus

Christ. Empowered by Christ,

our mission is to reach out in

love to those who have not yet

responded to the Gospel that

all may be united in Christ.

School Mission

The Mission of Immanuel

Lutheran School is to pro-

vide a loving atmosphere of

academic excellence for

children while developing

in them and their families a

lasting relationship with

Jesus Christ.

Rev. Kevin A. Karner

Pastor

Dr. Anne Stuhlman

School Principal

I M M A N U E L L U T H E R A N C H U R C H A N D S C H O O L , B R I S T O L , C O N N E C T I C U T

DAY Thursday, May 21

As I sit at my desk at home and begin to pen this note to all our Immanuel

family, I know we are in a time like we have never experienced in our life-

time. Despite all the turmoil and life altering situations, I know that the

Lord is with us and he is guiding and protecting us.

We have just celebrated His glorious Resurrection which gives us great joy

in knowing that our eternal home has been secured for us and we can confi-

dently sing the hymn: I know that my Redeemer Lives!

The Church Council has been meeting on a weekly basis by way of a virtual

meeting using Internet technology and have been actively engaged to ensure

that the work of our Lord is continuing. Our Divine Service is being

livestreamed over the Internet and it is important to note that this was ac-

complished within 24 hours of the government’s request to limit gatherings

to no more than 5 people! We now are livestreaming both Pastor’s Bible

Study and our weekly Sunday Divine Service.

We gathered all the necessary information and applied for the Paycheck

Protection Program, which was part of the Federal Legislation passed to as-

sist small businesses and Non-Profit’s to maintain their workforce. We will

be receiving 2½ months of our payroll and benefits costs from this program.

In addition, we will be applying for reimbursements for utility expenses.

We have implemented an electronic giving program called E-Offering,

which will enable members and non-members to make contributions using

either their checking or savings account as well as a credit card. More in-

formation regarding this new Stewardship effort will be detailed in future

communication.

We have been working with the City of Bristol regarding the use of some of

our property, if needed, to assist our community in meeting the needs of

those impacted by the pandemic.

We continue to ask the Lord’s Blessings on our Immanuel family and pray

that this pandemic will soon be over. If you have questions or concerns,

please contact me.

In HIS Service,

Howard T. Schmelder Congregational President

Immanuel Lutheran Church & School 154 Meadow Street, Bristol, CT 06010 Church: 860-583-5649 School: 860-583-5631 www.ilcs.org

Sunday, May 31


Messenger is published

monthly except in August

by Immanuel Lutheran

Church and School for its

members and friends.

Immanuel is a member of

the Lutheran Church

Missouri Synod.

Ed & Dee Krampitz Newsletter Editors

Deadline for submissions

is the 15th of the month.

From the Pastor’s Desk

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at

the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it. — 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

“Pandemic Pastoral Potpourri”

SUNDAY DIVINE SERVICE

10:45 a.m. Live Streaming

BIBLE STUDY 9:30 a.m.

Live Streaming

Go to our website and download the

Sunday Bulletin and Bible Study.

If you miss the live streaming, remember to

go under the Worship Service on the website

for the links to watch the Service and Bible Study.

www.ilcs.org

The above title refers to the fact that I

don’t have any “cute” stories to share

with you this month. Since much of our

congregational communication has been

limited for several weeks now, I thought

I would bring you up to date with the

“State of Immanuel Lutheran Church.”

Despite the disruption to our normal

way, the Lord’s work continues in our

congregation, our school, and our com-

munity. Day to day operations have been

maintained by our wonderful office

staff; Trina Theriault has kept the church

office open for mail delivery, phone

calls, and other important congregational

needs, while Dee Krampitz has worked,

at home and in the office, at providing

our weekly bulletin, the monthly news-

letter, and being a friendly voice to an-

swer questions and concerns.

On the “business” side of things George

Rindfleisch (Accounts Payable) has been

making sure that the bills are paid as he

keeps track of our income and expenses.

Dawn Milano and Andy Helming have

done the math concerning our Sunday

(weekly) offerings, and, as I mentioned

before one of our Divine Services, How-

ard Schmelder has gone “above and be-

yond” what he normally does as our

business manager; not the least of which

was preparing all the paperwork in-

volved with the federal government’s

“Payroll Protection Program” that has

allowed us to maintain compensation to

all of our employees (both church and

school).

And speaking of our school, I’m so

proud of our principal, Anne Stuhlman,

and each of our teachers at Immanuel

Lutheran! They didn’t “miss a beat” dur-

ing the transition to online learning. In

fact, our ILS teachers were preparing

take-home packets BEFORE school was

officially closed, and teaching our stu-

dents online TWO WEEKS before the

City of Bristol began its public school

instruction! And the kids (and their par-

ents) have responded equally as well.

What a blessing our school is to the life

and ministry of our beloved Immanuel

Lutheran Church!

I also want to give a “shout out” to all

who serve on our church council.

Through a lot of video meetings, emails,

text messages, and phone calls, our con-

gregational work has been virtually

“seamless.” THANK YOU, council

members!

Three important items have taken a fair

amount of effort on behalf of our con-

gregation. #1 – Most should be aware by

now that we are providing access to our

Sunday morning schedule (both Bible

study and Divine Service) on a variety

of social media platforms: Facebook

(Live), Twitter, YouTube, and Insta-

gram, as well as our radio ministry.

Thanks be to God for the efforts and

abilities of Vern Koch, Rhoda Lange,

Gladys Lagace, Paul Strawderman, and

Marv Heidorn for making it all happen!

#2 – We now have access to online,

electronic giving. If you go to the church

webpage (ilcs.org) you’ll find a

“DONATE NOW myEoffering” button

that makes giving to the Lord and His

Church easy and convenient. Questions?

Call the church office. #3 – Over the last

several weeks I’ve spent a lot of time

meeting with city officials regarding the

use of Immanuel property in an effort to

Worship Services are broadcast each Sunday

at 1:00 p.m. on

WNTY Radio 990 AM 96.1 FM

and online at KoolOldiesRadio.net (Continued on Page 5)


Dear Immanuel Lutheran Church Members and Friends,

Teacher Appreciation Week is around the corner. The teachers of Immanuel Lutheran School are busy teach-

ing through Zoom, videos, Google Classroom and packets mailed or dropped off at students’ homes. They are

doing a fantastic job and I am so proud of them. They have grown professionally through the new necessity of

teaching in a virtual environment. Every teacher has stepped up to meet this new challenge head-on.

The students are keeping up with their daily assignments and are continuing the work through the curriculum.

They get to see their classmates on Zoom, interact with their teachers, and submit pictures of their artwork for

the virtual art gallery on the website. Each class has their own established routine, but all are using Google

Classroom as a platform. Student Zoom meetings include whole

class instructional Zooms, Noon Zooms at lunch, Moon Zooms in

the evening, as well as one-on-one Zoom sessions with their

teachers. Every email and google classroom communication is

copied to me through email, and I get no less than 300 emails a

day. There is a lot of communication, a lot of teaching, and a lot

of learning happening every day!

In March, teachers Jen Drechsler, Lorene Berrian, Chrissy Orie,

and Talie White visited student homes (from afar) to see students

in person. The students were excited to see their teachers. We

added a Virtual Art Gallery on the website to showcase the stu-

dents’ art work. Katja Evans, our art teacher, assigns weekly art

activities. Our PE teacher, Hannah Baldino, gives weekly physi-

cal activity assignments for each age group. Our students regu-

larly submit video and pictures of their projects, work and prod-

ucts. The learning is certainly personalized to challenge while

meeting the needs of each student.

Our weekly faculty meetings are on Zoom as well. We have

started the discussion on what it will look like when we re-open.

Currently, face masks are being made for the students and staff

to wear when we return. Handwashing stations have been pur-

chased for classrooms without sinks. New protocol is being es-

tablished for hallways, drop-off, and pick up. Teachers are plan-

ning classroom arrangements that allow desks and seating to be

apart. We are all eager to get back to the building.

We fully expect to return to in the fall stronger than ever. We

plan to continue using many of the new technology strategies

when we return. We have new families eager to enroll. We are

encouraging our families to stay strong in their faith during this

trying time.

Blessings, and stay safe!

Anne Stuhlman, Principal

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ School News ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~


Spring greetings to all our members and friends,

over age 50, who usually join us for spring lunches,

socializing, and interesting programs. We are the

ones who must socially distance ourselves from one

another, wear a mask when we go out, and mainly

stay in our homes so we can later see one another.

We hope you are staying safe and remaining healthy

through this most difficult time in our lives. Don’t

you just Love the spring flowering trees, bushes and

the lovely spring flowers you see outside.

We had great programs planned for you this spring

and summer but we cannot safely get together now.

Hopefully we will get together later this year on the

first Thursday of a month and enjoy a pizza party

together and an interesting program.

If you have a computer, tablet or phone with internet

access you can join Pastor Karner’s Bible Class each

Sunday morning at 9:30, followed by the Divine

Service at 10:45, or just listen to your radio for the

service at 1 pm.

We ask you to phone two friends a week from our

lunch group, just to say hello and chat and see how

they are doing during this pandemic. Take a little

ride in your car around town to see all the colors of

spring; you don't want to miss the beautiful world

God made for us to enjoy. Call the pastor or church

office if you have a real need or concern that they

could help you with. We are all in this together alt-

hough apart. God bless you!

Peace I will leave with you. My peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let them be afraid., John 14:27

What a comfort to here those words, especially in today's world with all the illness and problems surrounding us. We are thankful for our Faith knowing God is in control. Even though we have been separated and homebound, we still have the assurance that Jesus is with us always, no matter where we are.

My thoughts and prayers are with all of you and also to the families that have lost loved ones . May God Bless and Keep you safe and healthy till we are able to gather once again in Our Lord’s House.

A quote from Oswald Chambers, Leave the broken, irreversible past in God's hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him.

Blessings, Roberta

Called Home to Heaven

Joyce W. Raspanti

June 18, 1928 — March 17, 2020

Roald M. “Porky” Erling

March 18, 1933 — April 19, 2020

Sunday,

May 10th


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Scholarships ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Immanuel Lutheran

Church

Scholarships

Scholarship Applications are available in the

church office:

We are accepting applications for Immanuel

Lutheran Church Scholarships.

Scholarships are awarded to members of

Immanuel Lutheran Church or graduates of

Immanuel Lutheran School.

Applications are due on Monday, June 15th,

in the church office.

Notice from Immanuel Lutheran

Church Foundation – It’s Time! Westfall Scholarship Applications are

available in the office.

There are five individual scholarships

that are available to graduates of Immanuel

Lutheran School or members of Immanuel

Lutheran Church that are seeking an under-

graduate degree at an accredited college or

university.

Westfall I scholarship is a single scholar-

ship awarded with preference given to a stu-

dent pursuing a career as a church worker.

Westfall II awards scholarships to four

individuals.

Applications are due on Monday, June 15th,

in the church office.

“Pandemic Pastoral Potpourri”

meet the physical and emotional needs of our Bristol

community. In consultation with Mayor Ellen Zoppo-

Sassu, city councilman Dave Preleski, and representa-

tives from St. Vincent De Paul Mission Shelter, our

church council has agreed (in principal / agreement

pending) to rent our parish center and school gymnasi-

um for the months of May, June, and July to the shel-

ter to provide additional resources in their outreach to

the homeless among us. It seemed to me (and the

council agreed) that, as we have a civic and moral du-

ty to “love our neighbor as ourselves,” one way to

honor that duty was to offer the use of our empty

spaces during this time of community need. The city

has assured us that Immanuel will not have any costs

associated with this agreement.

So, there you have it – The State of Immanuel Luther-

an Church and School as we enter the month of May,

2020.

A final word: as a personal matter, I am truly longing

for the day when we will once again meet together in

the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ! I had no idea

when this all began of just how much I would miss the

people of God here at Immanuel. I’m comforted in

knowing that many of you are being fed (albeit tech-

nologically) in Bible study and the Divine Service. In

fact, I’m pleased that so many are joining us online for

the study of God’s Word! Let’s try to keep that mo-

mentum going, even AFTER the pandemic has

passed!

God’s continued blessings to you and yours!

Stay safe (in Christ)!

Pastor Karner

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

These scholarships

will be awarded in August.

(Continued from Page 2)


Signing up is as simple as going to our church website www.ilcs.org and clicking

on the “Donate Now myEoffering” button. You’ll register an account and within

minutes you will be giving your first online donation. The steps are outlined on

the next page.


April Birthdays

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

1

Thu

2

Fri

3

Sat

4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30

Margaret Cassala

Noreen Kirschner

Timothy Sonstroem

Kristy Wolfe

David Grossmann Michael Triplett

Judith Buonafede

Mary Kuharski

Kendall Raymond

Benjamin Schuler Gabriella Buonafede Morgan Bielert

William Palmisano, Jr.

Ann Winters

Maliki Matthews

Brandon Kohl

Danish Nazir

Sylva Voisine

Bill Emmert

Jennifer Phillips

Dawn Raymond

Janet Hackett Jessica Divinere

Dillon Kohl

Aliza Redman

Alyson Schaffrick

Rick Simons

Preston Fitzgerald

Charles McIntyre

Daniel Bielert, II

Jacob Holcomb

Janice Monzillo

RoseMarie Pavlik

David Ryskowski

Julie Perry Randolf Jabs

Amanda Neumann

Joanne Tanasi

Magda Jabs

Gladys Lagace

Ryan Hislop

Becky Wells

Jared Harrington

Irene Kraus

Barbara Nye

Albert May

Jacob Wolfe

On April, 6, Volunteers for the Orphan Grain Train’s (OGT)

New England Branch assisted Bristol Hospital employees in

loading needed supplies for the Hospital’s use during the

COVID-19 pandemic.

The items included 36 Hospital Beds, 36 Bed Rails, 38 Mat-

tresses, 21 Mattress toppers, 31 Hospital Style Patient Moni-

tors, 10,000 gloves, and boxes of Isolation Gowns and disposa-

ble Bed Pads.

All these items have been received as donations and OGT vol-

unteers have picked them up to store in the warehouse to assist

those in need. After doing 35 shipments throughout the world

and to hard hit areas in the United States, it is wonderful to be

able to help an organization like the Bristol Hospital in a time

of need. OGT has the use of a warehouse in Terryville that is

owned by Mr. Bill Allread who has made space available for

this charitable work.

Other shipments have gone to missions in a number of coun-

tries, e.g. Liberia, Nicaragua, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Moldova,

Lithuania, Latvia, Liberia, Nepal, the Philippines, Ghana and

the Republic of Georgia, as well as Appalachia and hurricane

relief for Puerto Rico, Florida and North Carolina. The Branch

also helps those locally in New England, giving medical items

that have been donated to individuals in need and thru the visit-

ing nurse and hospice care organizations of the area. It has also

helped with a shipment to the Bridgeport Rescue Mission.

The effort is an Outreach Ministry of the Lutheran Church Mis-

souri Synod, and OGT is a 501(c)(3) charity affiliated with the

church and supported locally by Holy Trinity Lutheran in Ter-

ryville, Immanuel Lutheran in Bristol, St. John Lutheran in

Waterbury, and is open to all who want to help others. For

more information, please call Holy Trinity at 860-582-0723

and/or check out the OGT.org website.

Orphan Grain Train

Assists Bristol Hospital During Pandemic


May Birthdays

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

1

Sat

2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Victoria Holcomb

Mary Ann Kalwat

Kaitlyn Thormahlen

Pauline Blaschke

Sue Lutz

Aaron Boutin

David Thormahlen

Kenadee Boney

Edna Kozikowski Morgan Boucher

Cassandra Ewen

Rudy Finger

John Mora

Matthew Raspanti

Robert Boutin

Marian Goodwin

Morgan Moliengo

Michael Rodgers

James Christopher, III

Kimberly Martin

Elaine Blank

Samuel Gahr

Meadow Wells

Kelly Lejeune Casey McIntyre

Paul Strawderman

Carol Young Adam Beaudet

Roberta Kuhr

Nancy Mitchell Nate Kisser

Matthew Tonn

Michael DeAngelo

Annabelle Kirschner

Lorraine Sonstrom

Tyler Bodley

Eva Zebrowski

Savannah Duval Bryan Pavlik Donald Kalwat Christy Hislop

Oscar Jobs

Anne Stuhlman

John Bohn

Seth Foley

Mark Brasche

Sophia Reid

Amelie Hutton

Parker Synder

Gregory Blaschke, Jr.

Henry Darm

Hedwig Maretzki

Billee Wallace

Do You Know?

Are you aware of what the Christian Church considers to be the highest church

festival after Easter (#1) and Christmas (#2)? Is it Pentecost? No. Is it Epipha-

ny? No. What about any of the services of Holy Week – Palm Sunday, Maundy

Thursday, or Good Friday? Nope.

The answer is – Ascension Day! After His resurrection, Jesus appeared sev-

eral times to His disciples and others. During this time, He spoke to them about

the kingdom of God and the coming of the Holy Spirit, for whom they were to

wait. After 40 days of these appearances, He was taken up to heaven for the last

time. As the disciples watched Him go, two angels appeared and declared to

them that, just as He ascended, Jesus would return in glory.

According to one of the early church fathers, Augustine of Hippo, the Feast of

Ascension originated with the Apostles. It may be one of the oldest feasts prac-

ticed by the Church, possibly going as far back as AD 68. There is no written

evidence, however, of the church honoring Ascension Day until Augustine’s

time in the fourth century. Churches around the world have observed Ascension Day Feasts for centuries.

DAY SERVICE

Thursday, May 21, at 7 pm

3rd Saturday in May

31

Isla Kirschner


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BRISTOL, CT 06010

PERMIT NO. 382

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

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Rev. Kevin A. Karner Dr. Anne Stuhlman Pastor Immanuel ...€¦ · If you have a computer, tablet or phone with internet access you can join Pastor Karner’s Bible Class each Sunday