First of all, it's an honor to be a member of Gloria Dei's Church Council. A lot of you already know me and my history at Gloria Dei. For those of you who don't know me, here goes. I attended Sunday school and Youth group events through high school. I was married at Gloria Dei and both of my kids were baptized at Gloria Dei. I have served on the church council along with having served as the Stewardship committee chairperson and committee Chairperson for a Pastor Call in the past. My wife and I were middle school Sunday school teachers and Youth group leaders.

That's a little of my history, but what about the future of Gloria Dei? I hope the experience I've gained in life lessons as well as church lessons will allow me to assist church leadership at this time. Gloria Dei has a chance to be a shining light in our community. I think Gloria Dei can teach or at least bring the words of the Bible to those who are looking for meaning and understanding in God's message. I don't know if we have all the answers or any answers, but let's open the doors and give the people in the community a church home. This means we need to evangelize, market ourselves, let people in the community know we're here. Let's greet them and make them feel comfortable at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church.

Of all the things I've witnessed or been a part of at Gloria Dei, two things are for sure: we work well with the youth and man can we fellowship! We need to use our time, talent and treasure to continue building a strong Sunday school and Youth Group program. There are a lot of youth: either members of Gloria Dei, friends of the youth at Gloria Dei, or youth in our community who are looking for faith based activities. As far as fellowship is concerned, there is nothing better than good food and fun to make a visitor feel welcome. Let's go with our strengths!