Message to the Lakeside Congregation From Church Council NOTES FROM COUNCIL as of April 14, 2021: Starting in May (instead of June), Outdoor services will be offered on Wednesdays at 7:00 pm. Bring a chair and join us or remain in your car. There will be communion and singing outdoors with family social distancing. The church building remains closed. Should it be bad weather, you will be able to listen from your vehicle. Beginning May 2nd, the church sanctuary reopens for Sunday church service. It’s first come first serve basis with up to 70 folks that can attend with face masks and families social distancing. Face Masks are mandatory. There will be no singing and no communion to begin with. Please, no visiting in the narthex for Covid safety precautions. Little bottles of sanitizers will be in the pews for your use during services. Please leave them in the pew for next time. Facilitators will be available for any questions. Facilitators are: Randy Bennett, Vicki Wier, Mick Peterson, Ken & Linda Dobson, Vicki Struve, Dave & Julie Swan. The church building remains closed during the week. As we proceed through this learning curve of reopening up, Lakeside’s Council thanks you ahead of time for your patience. Adjustments will continue as we move along. March 31, 2021 Special Council Meeting The council has decided to open the church for services starting in May 2021. In addition there will be Wednesday parking lot services will also begin in May. Click to Read the full Council Minutes for details. March 23, 2021 Meeting Highlights: There will be NO Vacation Bible School, due to Covid-19. There will be NO Community Sale in June, aka Trash & Treasure Sale, Services for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday will be online only. Due to Covid-19.Easter Services will be available online as well as a 10:00 am Parking Lot Service. Next Wednesday the council meets again and will address these items further and other parameters for reopening Lakeside. March 1, 2021 Reopening the Church The Church Council has begun discussions regarding reopening our church for services in our sanctuary. The Council wants to remind all members that the decision to reopen the church, along with the parameters for reopening, is the sole decision of the Church Council. It is NOT Pastor Bill’s decision, nor the Synod, nor the Wisconsin Council of Churches. The Council uses information from these three sources, along with other sources, but the final decision is the Council’s, as it has been since the Council decided to close the church last March! The Council is considering another phone call to all members to get your input into reopening the church. In the meantime, if you have questions, comments, or concerns about reopening the church, please contact Council President Mark Whiteside (phone: 715-566-0631, mark.a.whiteside@gmail.com). Thank you, Your Church Council: Mark Whiteside (president) Pat Sulander (vice president) Randy Bennett Roger Jackson Renay Jonjak John LeMay Vicki Struve Dave Swan Deb Wertanen January 25, 2021, 2020 Donations When we closed the church last March because of the Covid-19 pandemic, no one knew what this would mean for Lakeside, especially financially. The Council took some steps to reduce expenses and monitored receipts carefully. It soon became obvious that the members of Lakeside were more than willing to continue to financially support the ministry at Lakeside. We ended 2020 with a surplus with our budget (receipts minus expenses) even though our receipts were less than 2019. After a long discussion as to what we should do with the surplus, with many good ideas presented, it was decided unanimously by the Church Council to first fulfill our budgeted amount to the Northwest Synod, to Lutheran Social Services, and moving the budgeted amount for 2020 to the Building Reserve Fund. It was then decided by Council to donate money to some local, state, and world organizations that are directly related to helping feed the hungry and are also struggling because of the pandemic. The Council would like to thank everyone who generously supported the Lakeside ministry during the pandemic. Not only were we able to continue to meet our budgeted expenses, but also were able to help others in need. Thank you! Lakeside Church Council |