Thanks to Clara Knudson, we have excellent photos of our new pastor and her family taken on Sunday, June 21.  On the homepage, we feature Pastor Amy Zalk Larson who is joined by her husband, Pastor Matt Larson, and their children, Nathan and Abby, standing in front of the Good Shepherd sign.  They also are shown in photos outside the Fellowship Hall and standing with President Jim Fritz.

Pastor Amy Zalk Larson has accepted a call to become the next pastor at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. Her call was confirmed at a special congregational meeting held on Sunday, June 21. Her first day of service will be August 10, 2015 and become the fifth pastor to serve the church since it was founded in 1958.

For the past ten years, Pastor Amy has served as campus pastor at Luther College where she worked with the Luther Student Congregation as well as students, faculty and staff. Previously, she was the Pastor of Education and Family Life at First Lutheran Church in Fergus Falls, MN and the Intern Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Ottawa, IL.

Pastor Amy graduated from Luther College with a BA in Religion earned in 1996 and received an MDiv degree from Luther Seminary in 2000.

She is married to Pastor Matt Larson, who is pastor of Burr Oak-Hesper Lutheran parishes in the Decorah area. They have two children, Nathan (11, entering 6^th grade) and Abby (7, entering 2^nd grade).

Tuesday, June 23
Newsletter Deadline
7:00 pm – Records Management/Retention Task Force Meeting

Wednesday, June 24
2:00 pm – Pastor April at Aase Haugen Home with Holy Communion

Thursday, June 25
9:00 am-12:30 pm – Women’s Retreat and Salad Luncheon at First Lutheran Church.Pastor April will lead a Bible Study on “Stewardship.” All women are welcome!

Saturday, June 27
5:00 pm – Worship Service using Marty Haugen’s liturgy Holden Evening Prayer; Seminarian Nathan Wicks, presiding. Holy Communion will not be served.

Note: This is the last Saturday evening service for the summer. Wednesday evening services with Holy Communion begin at 5:30, July 1, and extend through August.

Sunday, June 28
8:45 am – Handbell Choir Rehearsal
9:30 am – Worship Service with Holy Communion; Farewell for Nathan, Sarah, & Karl Wicks
10:30 am – Time of Fellowship in the Fellowship Hall – All are Welcome!

The Depot Outlet in Decorah has recently awarded a grant of $2,000 to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for its LED Lighting Initiative.  The congregation‘s goal was to relamp 100% of its interior and exterior lighting.

Following an energy audit of the church in 2014, it was determined that further energy savings, beyond the church’s Energy Star status received in 2013, would be to convert all existing lighting to LED lighting.  This involved every bulb/fixture throughout the entire interior of the building as well as parking lot lights, exterior signage and entry lights, and installation of occupancy sensors for all hallway and restroom lighting.

These improvements provide significant energy savings of nearly 9,000 watts of lighting over those previously used. It will dramatically improve lighting throughout the facility as well as provide uniformity, enhance security and significantly lower maintenance costs. Congregation President Jim Fritz, who led the initiative to improve the lighting, was assisted by Keith Donlon of Decorah Electric and a corps of volunteers from the congregation.

Fritz commented that “These lighting upgrades are an important investment of our energy resources.  It also continues the path towards energy self-sufficiency that has been a hallmark of Good Shepherd.”   Interim Pastor April Ulring Larson also noted that this initiative would make the church more welcoming and hospitable, allowing it to shine its light more strongly.

A Farewell and Godspeed litany for long-time Good Shepherd member Jean Swiggum was conducted by Pastor April and congregation president Jim Fritz during worship services on Sunday, June 14.  Jean will be leaving Decorah on June 18 to live in Cedar Falls.  The farewell and send-off continued during Fellowship Time after the service.