PRAYER REQUESTS:

(Send information and/or names you wish to include to the newsletter editor or contact the church office.)

All of our homebound
Jason J. (military)
Janet E.
Betty P.
Martha B.
Sally D.
Catherine R.
Arline M.
Dorothy G.
Hazel H.
Hazel K.
Sue W.
Jim J.
Coming Home program
Faith Lutheran



Our sympathies are extended to the family and friends of Eddie Baisel. Eddie passed away on July 2nd. His smile, laughter, ideas, caring and love will be greatly missed.

WORSHIP MINISTERS: AUGUST

Summer Sunday services have families as servers, greeters, assistants, etc., with one or two families per Sunday. Check the schedule below for your Sunday(s). If you cannot be there, please contact Pastor Paula as soon as possible.

ASSISTING MINISTERS:

8/6, 8/13: E. Manke
8/20, 8/27: V. Metzner

GREETERS:

8/6: Matthiesens
8/13: Robars & Aldriches
8/20: Feskos
8/27: Harbargers & Flaughers

READERS:

8/6: D. Hadde
8/13: Robars & Aldriches
8/20: Hendrick
8/27: Hargargers & Flaughers

USHERS:

8/6: Matthiesens
8/13: Robars & Aldriches
8/20: Feskos
8/27: Hargargers & Flaughers

ALTAR GUILD

Melanie Long

ALTAR FLOWERS FOR 2006

The flower chart for 2006 is posted next to the church office door. Please remember to pay for the flowers you want on the altar. They can't be ordered unless payment has been received. Weekly bouquets are $20.00. If you are providing the flowers yourself, please let the office know the details so they can be correctly noted in the bulletin. If you want a different style arrangement for your chosen Sunday(s), contact Brown-Pleasance (216-226-7850), or the florist of your choice, directly (let the church office know this).

Those wanting to share their musical talents with us in worship during the summer are asked to contact Sherry Galland to sign up for a Sunday. Speak to Sherry at worship on Sundays or call her at home (216) 441-2176. You may also email her at slgmusic2005 "AT" sbcglobal.net.
SUMMER SCHEDULE - Warm-up time will be at 9:10 am
(performance dates will be announced later)

ELCA NEWS

The 2006 Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) offered about 40,000 Lutheran youth and adults the opportunity to participate in a variety of stewardship programs. The gathering took place in two back-to-back events in San Antonio, Texas. Some 15,000 young people, chaperones and volunteers participated July 5-9; more than 24,000 people participated July 12-16. As of July 17 more than $530,000 had been raised for "Hamiltons for Hunger." Under the "Hamiltons for Hunger" effort, every participant was asked to bring $30 or "three Hamiltons" to raise $1 million for the ELCA World Hunger Appeal. Donations are still being collected.
Worship offerings from both weeks were about $580,000 and will benefit domestic and international ministries that support children, youth and families. About $100,000 in gift cards was collected during the gathering as an "in-kind" offering to benefit six San Antonio organizations. In addition to gift cards, about $50,000 in leftover materials was collected that included everything from "TV sets to wood," said the Rev. William B. Kees, director for youth ministries, ELCA Vocation and Education.
Information about the 2006 Youth Gathering is at http://www.ELCA.org/gathering/ on the ELCA Web Site.

STEWARDSHIP

Stewardship is not a program, not a fall campaign for the budget, not a one-shot learning experience. Stewardship is "everything I do after I say I believe."

NEWS, EVENTS, and INFORMATION

10-day pilgrimage to the Holy Land

The Rev. Paul L Larson, Senior Pastor at First English Lutheran, in Mansfield, OH, is leading a tour group on a 10-day pilgrimage to the Holy Land (the informational flyer is on the bulletin board in the back hallway). The dates are November 6-16, 2006. Plans are to visit all of the major biblical sites. In addition, an optional 3-day Jordan Extension, visiting Jerash, Petra, Madaba & Mt. Nebo, will be offered. If you are interested, please contact the First English Lutheran church office at 419-522-0622, or Pastor Larson at his home office, 419-756-3858, for directions. Or you can use mapquest with this address: 53 Park Avenue West, Mansfield, OH 44902.

Equal Exchange Coffee

Sign up sheets for the next ordering opportunity will appear in August (on the church office window) with an order deadline of September 10 and distribution on September 24th. You may also order online at www.equalexchange.com/interfaith/. Cleveland has become one of the top regions for Equal Exchange fair trade coffees, teas, and chocolates in the country. Of the top 50 congregations in Ohio selling Equal Exchange products, virtually all are in northeastern Ohio: 12 Lutheran churches, 10 Catholic, 9 UCC, 8 Methodist as well as Presbyterian, Mennonite and Episcopalian.

WestShore Separated, Divorced and Widowed Catholic's Support Group

"We are a support group of caring people who have experienced a loss though separation, divorce or death. St. Brendan's Catholic Church generously provides a meeting place where we can offer positive reinforcement through discussion groups and planned social activities." People of all faiths are encouraged to attend. Meetings are held on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Sundays of each month at 7:00 PM. St. Brendan's Church is on Brendan Lane, which is South of Lorain Road, just one street west of Clague Road. Look for Marco's Pizza at 23657 Lorain Road and turn south on Brendan Lane. Go past the stop sign. You will find St. Brendan's driveway on the right just after the school speed limit sign. The Church Hall is on the left as you go in the driveway. Contact Clifton, the president, at 440-886-2529, to receive the August 2006 schedule or for more information.

LUTHERANS CONCERNED CORNER

Our next gathering will be a picnic on Friday, August 25th, 7:00 pm, at Edgewater Park. We will try to be the first group at the original Pavilion on the top of the hill; the road enters from West Blvd. If we are too late for a Pavilion spot, we will direct you to where we are. We hope you can join us for this relaxing evening and stories round "the campfire" of the assembly in Toronto!
Invite your friends, fellow church members, and family on Friday, September 22nd as we return to our regular meetings at Hope Lutheran Church, 2222 N. Taylor Rd, Cleveland Heights. We will begin at 7:00 pm with a potluck dinner and fellowship time/community building, followed by our topic/speakers at 7:45pm, and a brief worship with Eucharist at 9:00 pm.

Thrivent News

Three separate foundations, sponsored by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, address different needs in the community and assist Thrivent Financial members with charitable giving. Learn more about the foundations and how they can help you give in ways aligned with your values. http://www.thrivent.com/foundations/index.html?wssrc=enews0706a

Property Committee meetings for 2006 (all meetings after service, 30 minutes long):
Sunday, August 20th and Sunday, October 15th
"Whistle While You Work" Sundays will be Sunday, September 24th (fall clean-up, exterior or interior) and Sunday, November 12th (interior jobs). We are looking for volunteers to start-up the "After-Hours Lock-Up Crew" again. If you have any questions or would like to volunteer for specific dates, please call Dave Robar, Property Chair, at 216-529-9316.

CONGREGATIONAL NEWS

Mark these dates and invite your friends to Trinity!
o Aug 6: Elizabeth Rawlings is scheduled to preach. Ron Zoesch will speak after worship about TRANSFORMATION.
o August 20: Picnic with Faith and hopefully St. Thomas in an area park. Yes! We like hot dogs!

Don't forget the READY, CLICK, GROW! link to family activities on our website. There are fun things here to connect your faith life with car games, computer games, and interpersonal conversations. Go to http://members.core.com/~trinitylutheran/TLC/index1.html and click on the icon.

Sarah H. (former member) let us know that her daughter Amanda was married on July 1st. The wedding was held in Aurora NY on one of the Finger Lakes (near Ithaca).

Elizabeth Rawlings' mission team, from her church in Seattle, will arrive the beginning of August and spend three days at Trinity. They will work on community meal preparations and some yard sales for items needed for our before & after school care, again giving our usual teams a respite/vacation from these works of ministry. If you have other ideas for the second mission/work team, please let Dave Robar know (529-9316).

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION NEWS

Coming Home is open for summer day care. Contact Cathy Aldrich for more information and the pricing structure. If you would be interested in taking the training courses to be a substitute staff person for the Coming Home program, please call Cathy Aldrich.

    BIRTHDAYS

(Remember these "children of God" in your prayers!)

AUGUST

Jeanne H.	8/3
Elizabeth P.	8/4
Emily P.	8/4
Sandy D.	8/11
Brenna C.	8/12
Audrey D.	8/13
Judy F.	8/13
Ruthanne W.	8/13
Marissa D.	8/18
Aron D.	8/22
Cathy A.	8/27
Dave M.	8/30
Becky F.	8/31

Pastor's Pen

Dear Friends,
     May our Lord bless you today and bring you songs of joy, wonder & imagination. As I write this I am singing happy songs and thanking God for partners in ministry. We have had the delightful presence of 13 teens and their 2 adult chaperones from Birmingham, Alabama's Shades Valley Lutheran Church. This mission team has come to HELP US!
   All sorts of things are everywhere at our church building. There are air mattresses in the sanctuary with sleeping bags and suitcases. After working all day on our building the air conditioning at night keeps them resting comfortably and cool.
   Here's a list of the gifts God sent us through the hands of this mission team: front, side and rear entry doors have been sanded and varnished; railings, door hardware, and light poles have been painted black, windows on the educational unit have been scraped, primed and painted; our big kitchen has had a thorough cleaning and was painted from top to bottom - white walls and lovely blue/green cabinets; the stove and oven have been scoured & degreased; the exhaust fan has been thoroughly cleaned, windows that were cracked or broken have been replaced; the plexiglas coverings on the windows of the educational unit were removed, cleaned, & replaced and some were actually replaced with new; all of our beds outdoors have been weeded and the Peace Garden mulched and the Peace Pole refinished and varnished. All these little things make a BIG difference in how our congregational grounds & buildings meet our neighbors.
   On top of this, the mission team assisted in removing the final items from the former Chat Room basement, spent 2 hours at the Cleveland Food Bank where they organized 3,150 pounds of donated meats. The meat was sorted into chicken, beef, and variety packs. Then they were weighed into 20 pound packages for readying to institutions that feed the hungry. A second night the team walked over to the Lakewood United Methodist Church and assisted in serving and cleaning up after their Community Meal.
   After having been to S. Africa last summer and doing a variety of rehab work for our sisters and brothers there, I can only hope you will contact Shades Valley Lutheran, 720 Shades Creek Pkwy, Birmingham, AL, 35209, and offer a note of thanks for all that we will enjoy.
   15 missioners X 6 hours of work per day = 90 hours of work per day X 3.5 days = 315 hours divided by 40 = almost 8 weeks of work on our behalf! Trinity supplied no cleaning products, paint, varnish, glass, plexiglas, or mulch. This was all a gift of the mission team! All we supplied was the place to sleep and a welcome touch with showers at members' homes, one home cooked meal supplied by members, a call to Lakewood Rec to get lower rates at the pool for the group, some administration to connect with Lakewood UMC and the Food Bank, and a willingness to say, "Thank you Lord for coming to help us!"
   We continue to struggle as a small congregation. I thank God for the respite we have had with this mission team's assistance. We can enter the fall with a sense of "looking good" and moving into a new future, with some renewed energies to maintain the labor the group has offered us.
   WOW! Can you say, "WOW!" with me? Please, take time and write a thank you note and pray to God that such sweat, sunburn, energy and faith will fill Jesus' youth for their future in Christ.
       Pastor Paula

Here's a scripture I used at the closing communion with the Alabama team: Acts 20:35: "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: "It is more blessed to give than to receive.""

VOICE Information:

Issues of the Voice and weekly bulletins are posted at Trinity's website. The Voice is emailed to those for whom we have an email address. This saves on postage and printing supplies. If you have not supplied an email address and would like to receive the Voice electronically, please contact the church office or send your email address to mclong53@adelphia.net. Print copies of the Voice are mailed to those for whom email is not available or where print is their preference. Please let me know if your email address changes or if you no longer wish to receive the Voice.
If you have anything you would like to include in an issue, send it to me at mclong53@adelphia.net or leave it in The Voice mailbox in the church office by the 15th of each month.
http://members.core.com/~trinitylutheran/