In January at our Annual Meeting, in an effort to be good stewards of all God has entrusted us, the congregation voted to proceed with a Capital Campaign to make much needed improvements to our facility. Some of the improvements needed include: Roof repairs, flooring upgrades, improvement to audio and visual technology in the sanctuary, improvements to our rest rooms, and other minor repairs, as well as work to reduce our overall mortgage debt.
To accomplish this effort the Stewardship and Property committees have enlisted a ministry of the ELCA called Stewardship Key Leader. This ministry brings expertise in implementing Capital Campaigns and raising funds for church construction, renovations, ministry efforts and debt relief. It is their hope to help us lift up the important ministry accomplished through the hands and feet of the people of House of Prayer and to upgrade our facility so that we might continue to serve the people of the community in and around House of Prayer.
The leader that has been assigned to work with us is Pastor Karen (pronounced “Car – en”) Soli. Karen attended St. Olaf College, Lutheran Seminary in Gettysburg and the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. Karen has been a pastor for 35 years and has been working with Stewardship Key Leader for over 8 years. As a pastor she has worked in churches in central, western, and northern Minnesota and also in Sioux Falls, SD.
In her ministry Pastor Soli has focused on helping congregations become vital, caring communities that make the good news of Christ known in word and deed. Before joining the Stewardship Key Leader ministry team she worked on capital campaigns in many of the congregations she served.
Pastor Soli will be joining us the weekend of October 5-6, to train our Capital Campaign Ministry Team and to help us kick-off the campaign. She will then join us again on November 10 for commitment Sunday. She takes great interest in equipping and encouraging people for service in Jesus’ name and helping congregations discover the joy of generous giving to advance the mission of God’s kingdom. Please join me in welcoming her this fall.