Member Updates

No metro. No car. No Uber. I walked. For my first two weeks, in the blazing, DC summer heat, I chose to walk the 30 minutes from my temporary place of residency to the headquarters of Lutheran Services in America (LSA). Aside from collecting rare Pokémon along the way, I walked to get a feel for DC, a place that I would be calling home for the next year. As I walked, I was captivated by the scenery. I marveled at the ambitious people: locals waiting for the bus, little children walking to day camp, joggers, Hill interns, White House staffers, tourists, and government officials. My daily walk to LSA confirmed that the road to resilience for this Buffalonian would be one full of growth and adventure.

After a late flight back the night before from a training with an LSA member in North Carolina, I felt a bit groggy as I entered the Falls Church, Virginia office of LSA member Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area (LSS/NCA). Housed in an old Lutheran church, this location manages adoption and refugee and immigrant services.
I was there to volunteer with LSA’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Tania Hernandez-Andersen, interns Nura Zaki and Danielle Steinwart of the Valparaiso University CAPS Fellows Program, and Member Engagement Fellow Natalie Goodnow of Harvard University’s Kennedy School.

Language matters.

When people ask what I do, I usually respond, “I work in government relations for a nonprofit organization.”

Right away I’m telling the person I am speaking with what my organization does not do.

No other industry says what it is not. Where Mosaic falls under the Internal Revenue Code does not define our organization’s mission.

As I come to the end of my first year working for Lutheran Services in America I continue to discover new and wonderful ways that LSA members are making a difference in the communities they serve. The uniqueness of each organization combined with a shared Lutheran heritage makes the LSA network both diverse and united in a common mission. I discovered the same dynamic holds true for the more than 100 organizations that belong to Lutheran Outdoor Ministries (LOM) when I attended their annual conference in early November. Lutheran Outdoor Ministries is a professional organization for camp and retreat center leaders. Camps and retreat centers encourage spiritual growth for the whole person through intentional Christian community.

What makes the LSA network so unique? In the words of LSA President and CEO Charlotte Haberaecker, "we grow and we do." It is in the "doing together" that our network of Lutheran social ministry organizations achieves true impact. It is in the doing that we combine our collective strength to achieve better outcomes for the people we serve.

Being part of this broader faith community called Lutheran means that our work in social ministry has longstanding connections with the Church. LSA is aligned with two national Lutheran Church bodies, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS). This affiliation takes shape through our bylaws, our Board of Directors and our members, who are affiliated with or recognized by one or both Church bodies. Our members are very closely connected with their Synods, Districts and congregations in their communities.

Sheri Hicks was recently honored for her enthusiastic community involvement at Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota's 150th anniversary celebration. Sheri says building connections with people who can help you find the supports you need is important to living well every day.

Though I've only been at Lutheran Services in America for four months, I've discovered that visiting our members is its own reward: each meeting reminds me that each social ministry organization is unique by dint of its unique history and rich heritage, and that each is an inspiration.

Wheat Ridge Ministries, a member of the LSA network, is committed to engaging young adults as the next generation of effective Christian leaders. Through their Burst Grant program, Wheat Ridge supports the creative sparks of young adults called to serve by funding innovative social service start-ups around the country. These programs address needs and critical gaps in communities in a wide variety of ways, from after-school programming to community gardens, services for seniors to resources for immigrants and refugees.

What does it mean to be part of a larger faith community called Lutheran? And what does Lutheran Services in America — a network of 300 Lutheran social ministry organizations — have to do with it? For Lutheran social ministry, being part of a broader faith community means that we are connected.