Come to Sunday worship at 9:30 a.m. or Thursday worship at 6:30 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church!

Thursday, August 4

The Worship Café continues this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at St. Andrew Lutheran Church (1711 S. 11 th Street).

Sunday, August 7

This Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost we will celebrate Holy Communion at 9:30 a.m., using the liturgy from Lutheran Book of Worship.

Thursday, August 11

The Worship Café continues this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at St. Andrew Lutheran Church.

Sunday, August 14

On this Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Holy Communion will be celebrated at

9:30 a.m., using the liturgy from Lutheran Book of Worship.

Thursday, August 18

Worship Café worship begins at 6:30 p.m. at St. Andrew Lutheran Church. (FULC hosts)

The Pastor’s Column will return

in September .

Directors of Children Education

and Middle and High School

Education Needed

The personnel committee is looking for applicants for two positions on our church staff. One is a full-time position with benefits for Director of Children and Family Education for children, birth through grade 6 and their families. The other is for the Director of Middle and High School Education. This is a part-time position, averaging 20 hours per week, without personnel benefits. We are seeking people with an education or teaching background. If you are interested in applying, please send your resume and a list of references to the church office, attention Pastor Karl.

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We offer our Christian love to the family of Don Cappel at the death of his brother; and to the family of Lee Anne Gilson at the death of her uncle.

Thursday Summer Worship

Worship Café

Summer worship takes place in St. Andrew Lutheran Church’s courtyard, 1711 S. 11 th Street, which has been transformed into an outdoor café, complete with refreshments! It’s very casual - wear your shorts and sunglasses, help yourself to lemonade or coffee during worship.

We gather with the other ELCA churches in Sheboygan and Sheboygan Falls at 6:30 p.m. every Thursday evening throughout the summer to worship God and to enjoy fellowship with one another. (Please bring your own lawn chair!)

First United will again be hosting the Worship Café on the Thursday of August 18. On that date we will need a coffee hostess, ushers, bakers, and set-up people. Please sign up on the kiosk in the coming weeks, or contact Lee Anne Gilson at 452-2401. Thank you!

Adopt-a-Summer Missionary

Crossways Camps hires nearly ninety college age Christian adults to serve in the name of Christ as “missionaries” at their camps, and will minister to over 3,000 young people. For many of them, this summer will be the first time they will make a commitment to serve in the name of Christ, and will be put to the test this summer. They need your help, support, prayers and more.

Congregations and individuals are invited to “Adopt-a-Summer Missionary” and support them through prayer, letters of encouragement, care packages, or other ways. Many will be faced with financial concerns when returning to school since Crossways can not compete with the pay at many of the jobs they could opt to take during the summer. Crossways asks that those who adopt a missionary also consider making a gift of $250 to your adopted missionary. This is NOT a requirement for adopting a summer staff member.

If you are interested in the “Adopt-a-Summer Missionary” program, please contact Kenzie Kauth, Coordinator, at 920-882-0023, or by email at kenzie@crosswayscamps.org.

First United participated in this program this summer by “adopting” Kristin Gueldenzopf who has served at Crossways for 2 years. Kristin is a student at UW Stevens Point working toward an Elementary Education minor in Cognitive Disabilities. Her career goal is to work in a special education classroom or with Teach America after graduating. Below is a letter recently received from Kristin:

Dear First United Family,

I want to extend my thankfulness to my church family in sponsoring me this summer as an employee of Crossways Pine Lake Camp. After experiencing my own growth in faith and seeing campers grow in faith last summer, I knew God was calling me back to this place this summer. As I near the halfway point of my 2 nd summer, I know God is here, and is working in me. I owe thanks to this Christian community for embracing me as a child and bringing me up in the Christian faith. I am blessed to know so many congregation members that have helped me come to this point in my life where I can reach out and embrace other youth, and share God’s love with them.

This summer I have had many God-filled experiences. One week, early this summer, a young homesick camper wrote a letter home about how much she disliked camp. After spending time with her, we talked about changing her perception of camp. We made a list together, and then she wrote a new letter. God worked in her heart, and as I read a part of her letter that said, “I like singing the circle songs at camp because the counselors are funny,” I thanked God in that moment. He is amazing!

God has also given me many opportunities this summer to work with children who have special needs. I am excited by how my spirit becomes alive when working with these children and am confident God is using those experiences this summer to guide me into my future.

I want to thank you for supporting me this summer in prayer. I know that all of your prayers make a difference in my summer. I will be praying for you as a congregation, especially the youth, that God is working in them. I look forward to seeing you all again when I am in Sheboygan and sharing more of my experience with you. God’s grace and love to you all.

~Kristin

Yarn Available for Holy Knitters

Thanks to some generous contributions, we now have yarn available for any of our Holy Knitters who are ready to start another Prayer Shawl or Lap Blanket!

We also have a large variety of yarn “remnants” available that are perfect for anyone wanting to make mittens, hats and scarves for Adopt a Family and for our local schools. These “remnants” consist of many small to large balls of yarn, and partial to full skeins of many different colors and types of yarn. The smaller balls would be great for making a design, or “striped” mittens! They could also be used to knit or crochet small squares for an afghan. There are many possibilities, and we would love to see this yarn put to good use!

If you are in need of yarn to begin another project, please stop in or call the church office (452-2401), or talk to Deaconess Deb.

Come knit with us onMonday, August 8, in Room 8, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.! Everyone is welcome!

An Invitation to

New Choir Members!

The Sanctuary Choir is having a pot-luck picnic on Wednesday, August 24, at the home of Louis and Joyce Milsted. We would like to extend an invitation to anyone who might be interested in singing with the choir this fall to join us for the picnic! Please call or email Joyce Milsted at 565-2531, or jmilsted@bytehead.com.

The South Dakota Mission Trip group is back!

By the time you read this, our mission trip to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota will be over, even though (as this is being written) we still haven’t left!

Thank you again for all the support you have given our group. Your prayers have strengthened us, your financial support has empowered us, your generosity in giving through our Baby Shower has encouraged us, and your friendship in Christ has united us. We look forward to sharing our stories and pictures with all of you!

~ Deaconess Deb

San Antonio Fund Raisers

The planning and fund-raising for our trip to San Antonio has already begun! Sign-up sheets for two opportunities are located in the Youth & Family Ministry area. The first is pre-selling and making pizzas on Tuesday, August 23, at Fountain Park United Methodist Church in Sheboygan. All of the youth attending NYG will be taking orders for pizzas and these pizzas will be assembled and ready for pick up at Fountain Park Church on August 23. NYG Youth and parents who are available to help make the pizzas should sign up on the “Pizza Making” sign-up sheet at church.

The second opportunity is selling “Walking Tacos” at the Christ’s Shore Youth Worship Conference being held at the Armory on Saturday, September 24. This is a full day event and help is needed morning, noon and evening to prepare and sell the “walking tacos.” Sign up on the “Christ’s Shore” sign-up sheet at church.

Can you drive with Emmanuel?

Emmanuel Kamana has his temporary driver’s permit, and is taking professional driving lessons with Lakeshore Driver’s School. He is doing well, but needs to spend more time driving with a licensed, adult driver. Getting his driver’s license will help Emmanuel and his family be much more independent and self-sufficient. We hope to have a car available soon for Emmanuel to use during these driving sessions. If you can help and take Emmanuel driving, please sign up on the kiosk or call the church office (452-2401). Thank You!

Help Is Needed at Bridgeway

on August 7!

Bridgeway is a transitional housing facility run by the Sheboygan County Interfaith Organization (SCIO) for single women with children who are struggling financially or in other ways. First United is a member of SCIO, and has agreed to help with their evening meal program once a month. On the seventh of every month two volunteers are needed from 4:30-6:30 p.m. to help with this meal program, wherever needed. This may mean helping the moms prepare, serve and clean up the evening meal, or it might mean playing with the children so the mom can make dinner. The food is provided by Bridgeway, and the volunteers are invited and asked to stay for dinner and eat with the family. We still need volunteers for Sunday, August 7, and the next few months. Bridgeway is located at 1251 Geele Avenue, in Sheboygan. Please consider helping, and sign up on the kiosk to get involved. Thank you!

Wanted: Clothes for the Needy

Thank you for your donations of clothing. We continue to collect new and gently used clothing for Wellington Park Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, where Pastor Howard Fintzen is currently serving as their interim pastor. Wellington Park serves needy people throughout the city of Milwaukee through their monthly clothing distribution. Their greatest need is children’s clothing, but they also have a need for adult clothes that can be worn to work or for job interviews. Coats and shoes are also appreciated.

Please bring all items to the designated area in the Gathering area. All items must be CLEAN, UNSTAINED, and in VERY GOOD CONDITION! Thank you!

ELCA Churchwide Assembly

Orlando, Florida

From August 8-14, Pastor Karl and Pastor Gail will be attending the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Orlando, Florida. Pastor Karl will be taking minutes and Pastor Gail will be one of 1,018 voting members. The theme is “Marked With the Cross of Christ Forever.” Major agenda items include:

* Faithful Yet Changing: The Plan for Mission in the ELCA

* Renewing Worship proposal (towards a new worship resource for congregations)

* Proposal for full communion with the United Methodist Church

* Recommendations from the Task Force for Studies on Sexuality

* Arab and Middle Eastern Ministry Strategy

* African American Ministry Strategy

General information about the assembly can be viewed at: http://www.elca.org/assembly/05

Please keep the voting members and presenters in your prayers as they seek to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all of their deliberations.

Crossways Golf Outing

A golf outing is scheduled for Sunday, October 2, to benefit Crossways Camping Ministries, which includes Pine Lake, the camp that our Confirmation students attend each year. The event will take place in the Green Bay area at two courses to accommodate 18 and 9-hole golfers with an all-you-can-eat chicken dinner to follow. The Packers do not play this day. Registration for 18 holes is $75; for 9 holes, $55 per person, payable to Crossways. More registration information and registration forms are located at the kiosk in the gathering area. Sign up by September 19 and help benefit our Lutheran camps!

Are you bound for college?

If you, or your child, is headed off to college, we would greatly appreciate your help in giving us their college address, and possibly an email address. We would love to keep in touch with all our college students! We’ll send out the Good News to each college student, and any other important information that may come our say. Just call the church office, email us at office@firstuni.org, or drop the address on Debbie or Lee Anne’s desk. Thank you!

“Here We Stand”

Confirmation Program

We have an exciting year of Confirmation planned for our 7th-9th graders, utilizing a brand new curriculum, “Here We Stand.” This curriculum utilizes solid Lutheran resources that connect with young people and includes Power Point presentations, Internet resources, and other multimedia in order to make faith come alive. “The Lutheran Handbook,” part of the “Here We Stand curriculum, was featured in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, an article that is posted on the Youth and Family bulletin board near the gathering area.

We still need small group guides for the 7 th and 8 th graders in order to make this program successful! Every Wednesday guides are responsible for leading groups of six students in conversation about the material presented by the pastors in the large group. This year the small groups will only meet for 30 minutes and preparation time is minimal. If you are interested in becoming a small group guide, please contact the church office. Spaces are filling fast, so act now!

We also need mentors for our 9 th grade students, men and women, who meet one-on-one with a 9 th grader for conversations on faith and life. Mentors meet on the first and third Wednesdays of the month with their mentees, attending large group sessions from 6:45-7:15 and spending 30-45 minutes with their mentees afterwards. This is a highlight of the confirmation program for many of our students and the mentors who have served in the past say that it is a valuable and rewarding experience for them as well. Please contact the church office if you would like to become a mentor to a 9 th grader this year. Your ministry to our young people would be greatly appreciated.

VBS Youth Mission Project

This summer the Vacation Bible School’s mission project will be to collect food items for the Food Pantry at St. Mark Lutheran Church. Each child attending is encouraged to bring an item each morning during VBS. Items most needed are SOUP, CANNED CORN, and CANNED CARROTS. Other items include cereal, canned fruit, macaroni & cheese, baby food, and baby diapers. All members of the congregation are welcome to donate these food items, as well, and deposit them in the food barrel at the entrance of the gathering area, which will then be distributed to local food pantries in Sheboygan.

Great Beginnings Preschool is a wonderful place for your child to grow and learn!

Believe it or not, the beginning of the school year is just around the corner. Great Beginnings Preschool still has openings for this fall. If you are interested in more information about our preschool, please call the church office or stop by to get the registration forms.