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Then the
king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you
that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I
was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you
gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you
welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was
sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you
visited me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord,
when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and
visited you?' And the king will answer them, 'Truly I
tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of
these who are members of my family, you did it to me.'
~Matthew
25:34-40 (NRSV)
The Care ministries
of Sammamish Hills literally cover the distance of being
present from birth through death. Between the lead
pastor, pastor of worship and outreach, Pastor of Care,
and Parish Nurse, someone from our Care Team is on call
twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for pastoral
emergencies. For those in need of pastoral counseling,
Paul Anderson of the Lutheran Counseling Network is
on-site regularly during the week to work with those who
have been wounded by life and are dealing with divorce,
depression, marital strife, family life, and a host of
other issues. If you are in need of pastoral care,
please call the Church Office (425-392-7799), go to
extension 28, and you will be directed to the member of
the Care Team who is on call.
The various ministries of care also include those who
are willing to set aside time to provide meals for
others in times of crisis or need through the Caring
Friends/Mommy meals ministry. The Fellowship Team
coordinates a variety of events throughout the year that
further build bonds of belonging, one to another, that
build up informal networks of care throughout the
congregation.
The XYZ group is one outlet of caring for others, as
those 65 and above come together on a monthly basis for
a shared meal and other activities.
Under girding all of these activities and ministries are
the Prayer Team and the Health and Wellness Team. The
Prayer Team’s purpose is to support the various
ministries and members of the congregation through the
gift of prayer.
The Health and Wellness Team also offers a variety of
wellness options, including Sunday morning blood
pressure checks, CPR training, Eucharistic visitors to
the homebound, and various educational forums.
Team Leader: Janine Hurn, R.N., Faith Community Nurse,
425-868-1526,
hurncrew@hotmail.com,
Janine@legacyroofing.com,
pnurse@shlc.org
(only checked once/week at church)
Ministry Team Members: Marilyn Favre, Karen Feldt, Gwen
Gilbertson, Bettye Ham, Janine Hurn, Marlene Knie,
Carolyn Spada, Melissa Rooth-Cormier
Our joined ministry seeks to enhance the availability of
health care while educating and promoting healthy
lifestyles within the congregation in persons both ill
and well. We promote the connection between faith and
health by assisting those in the congregation with care
giving, spiritual and emotional support, and education
in achieving and maintaining a state of wholeness in
body, mind, and spirit. In addition our goals are to
comfort, care, and strengthen individuals through
periods of illness or grief, as well as throughout the
dying process as they transition from this life to the
next.
With monies provided through the Good Samaritan Fund,
the pastors of Sammamish Hills Lutheran Church are able
to respond confidentially to a wide range of requests to
alleviate human need. The monies are raised by direct
contributions to the fund, and are allocated by the
pastors.
Team Leader: Penelope Guntermann, MDiv, MA, Executive
Director, 425-455-2960 (Eastside), Web site:
www.lutherancounseling.net.
Individual staff email addresses available directly from
the LCN website.
Names of Ministry Team Members (on Eastside):
Paul A. Anderson, MC, LMFT, LMHC, AiM; Brenda Kerr, MA,
LMFT, LMHC;
Dennis Minno, MA, LMFT, LMHC
The Lutheran Counseling Network is a not-for-profit
pastoral counseling agency and social ministry
organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America. LCN provides licensed professional individual,
couple, family, and group therapy services, consultation
and educational programs to congregations and community
groups in the Greater Puget Sound area. Formed in 1981
by a group of 13 counselors, both lay and clergy, LCN’s
desire was and continues to be of service to the church
by providing counseling and educational services to and
within local congregations. LCN has 9 member board
members plus 15-20 congregational liaisons throughout
the Puget Sound.
Lutheran Counseling Network offices are located in local
churches from Bellingham to Tacoma, including Sammamish
Hills Lutheran Church. These generous congregations
donate their office space to LCN which allows LCN staff
to provide discounted fees to people who may not
otherwise be able to afford counseling. These and other
congregations and individuals also make monetary
donations to LCN to subsidize fees for lower income
people and the highly trained therapists who see them.
It is the commitment of LCN therapists to further its
ministry as a social ministry organization of the ELCA
and reach out to those in need in our communities.
Team Leader: Karen Allyn,
theallyns@comcast.net,
Our team delivers meals to families with new babies,
people recovering from surgery/illness, or who have
experienced the loss of a loved one. We make times of
transition and healing a bit easier for families by
sharing food and kindness.
Please
call if we can help you; it would be our privilege!
Team Leaders: Barb Higgins,
bben617874@aol.com;
Bettye Ham,
bjdh34@verizon.net
Team Members: Sandi Heller, Gail Peterson, Lori Sather,
Jane Shen and Joyce Strand, Ruth Swanson, and Louise
Yockey.
The Prayer Ministry Team seeks to listen to the words of
Jesus, “Watch and pray” (Mark 14:38) while encouraging
members of the faith community to pray for each other,
the congregation, and the world, as we depend on God’s
Holy Spirit to guide us. We also praise God for the joy
of answered prayer. This year, God has answered prayers
in calling two new members to the team.
As in past years, we
keep a current card file in the Prayer Chapel with
requests gathered from Worship Registration forms and
the Prayer Chain. We also provided opportunities for
those who were willing to pray for these needs and to
sign their initials on the back of the cards, and
returned the cards after one month to those who
requested prayer to assure them that there was ongoing
prayer for them.
During that time
period between fifty and sixty prayer requests are
received each week at Sunday worship services. Those
requests are kept on cards in the Prayer Chapel to be
available for those who wish to pray. When these cards
are later returned to those who made the requests, they
are often given to the person for whom the request was
made. Many people express appreciation for the prayer
support they have received.
Team Contact:
Karen Bloomquist, k.bloomquist@comcast.net
XYZ meets the
third or fourth Friday of the month for lunch and
fellowship. We encourage all members and friends 60 and
older to attend XYZ meetings. For more information about
XYZ, please contact Karen Bloomquist at
k.bloomquist@comcast.net
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