Congregation Council 2020
The Council devotes time to the church’s strategic plan, discusses committee reports and reviews financial matters. The council considers congregation members' requests for action. All meetings are open to the congregation. Council meetings are usally the first week of the month, tentatively Monday evenings for 2018-2019, from 7:00pm to 9:00pm. Please check the calendar or worship folders for an updated schedule.
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Kelly and I joined Our Saviour’s in 2010 with our sons, Nathan, Isaac, and Joseph; this was soon after my father, Ed Lewis, had joined. We live in St. Paul, near Hamline University. I have worked for Hennepin County since 1998 and volunteer to supervise social work interns for Our Saviour’s Community Services. My sister, Liz, recently returned to the Twin Cities and is also a member of Our Saviour’s. My brother, Jon, and other sister, Mynda, also live in the Twin Cities. It is an honor to serve as Our Saviour's council president. |
Linda Thorson, Vice-President |
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Joel Beard, Treasurer
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Suzanne Burke, Secretary Suzanne serves as senior editor for worship at Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry of the ELCA, where she guides the development of annual worship planning content for the Sundays and Seasons family of print and online resources. She joined Our Saviour’s in the fall of 1992 when she moved into the house across the alley as a member of the Lutheran Volunteer Corps. With the help of Nathan Lind, she introduced Godly Play to OSLC in 2007, and in 2013 completed the requirements to become a national trainer for the Godly Play Foundation. Suzanne loves art, food, singing, and reading. She is newly married to Robert Hybben. Together they are enjoying settling in to their new home and making discoveries about what grows in their yard. |
Brent Ellerbee, Worship and Arts Table Chair |
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Samantha Heaton, Ministry Of Community and Faith Formation (MCFF) council representative |
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Allyson Green- Outreach Table Chair |
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Patrick Herson, Member at Large Patrick Herson is the very lucky spouse of Claire Doyle and the fortunate father of three adult children: Mairead, Fiona and Seamus. He has been a member of OSLC since Easter 2017. Besides his vocations of spouse and parent, Patrick is a family doctor by training and lived out that vocation in a variety of settings including private practice, as a medical school faculty member, with two insurance companies and most recently as the leader of the employed provider group in the Fairview Health System. He is currently preparing to do a fellowship in Hospice and Palliative (End of Life) Medicine. Patrick helped lead the Youth Faith Formation program at OSLC in 2017-2018 and is a voracious reader, an AB level racquetball player and rarely thinks of time spent in his garden as ‘work.’ |
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Elaine Johnson, Member at Large I started attending Our Saviour's in 1985 and became a member in 1986. I am the mother of Liza and Dennis. I am also in private practice as a licensed psychologist and alcohol counsellor. My involvement with Our Saviour's has included teaching Sunday school, working on service teams and serving as a member of various committees including the Building Task Force and Strategic Management Group. |
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Solveig Nilsen, Member at Large Solveig has been a member since the early 80’s. She was first attracted to Our Saviour's by the sign out front proclaiming classes in English as a Second Language for adults, and the Shelter Program. As a former Peace Corps Ethiopia ESL teacher, a church that offered shelter to the homeless, and free service to immigrants made it worth checking out, and staying. Solveig is a retired reference librarian, union organizer -- she was the chief steward of AFSCME Local 2864 for many years -- and occasional writer. |
Aneesa Parks, Member at Large |
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Sheryll Mennicke, Member at Large I arrived at Our Saviours through a series of coincidences and chance encounters (thank you Tom Witt) while looking for a congregation that would be a good fit for my sons’ confirmation experience. Ten minutes into our first service we all looked at each other, nodding and grinning. Nine years later, we are still nodding and grinning. I love the energy, compassion, and inclusiveness of this congregation. I am semi-retired from Concordia University where I have worked for many years as a Psychology Professor. |
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Pastor Laurie Eaton also serves on the Council. See bio. |