Church Calendar of events
Volunteer Schedule
committee and group meeting times
 

What Difference does Easter Make?

Review of Saturday Night at the Movies
     On January 21, seven youth and four adults had popcorn, pop and fun watching either Pirates of the Caribbean or National Treasure.  The
movies were shown in two different rooms at church.

Review of February Frolic
     Sunday, February 12 afternoon was our annual February Frolic.  Since we had only a dusting of snow on that Sunday, we stayed indoors
where three youth and five adults played a wide range of games.  It was a very healthy time because we laughed so hard!

Our Sixth Annual Swim Party
     Please join us on Sunday, March 12 at the Holiday Inn in Winona for our swim party for youth of all ages.  The time is from l:00-3:00 p.m.  A
parent should attend with their child and each family is asked to bring a snack to share.

Spring Quarter Teachers
     Spring quarter is fast approaching and the teachers are ready.  Dates for this quarter are March 5 - May 21.

Nursery:           Cheryl Graham and Janet Nustad
Ages 3-K:         Dave Polachek
Grades 1-5:       Kathy Rosendahl
Grades 6-8:       Heather McRae
Grades 7-12:     Dave Hansen
Adults:              Loel Gorden
Parenting:         Cindy Burt
Worship Leader: Pam Lica

Thank you to all of these teachers for teaching in the winter quarter also!!!  (That's because they love their students so much!!)  Also thank you
to the substitute teachers in winter:  Janet Nustad, Holly Martin and Kathy Weiner.

Vacation Bible School is coming!!!!
     Join us for a Holy Land Adventure in Bethlehem Village!!  We will visit village shops, learn from tribe time, hear the census taker, watch daily
drama, play games, sing village music.  We will experience the extraordinary events surrounding Jesus' birth!!
     Children ages 4- grade 5 are invited and may bring friends.  Dates are Sunday, June 4 - Thursday June 8, 2006 from 6:00 - 7:45 p.m.  A sign-up
sheet will be available in April.  Please mark your calendar now!!

Adult Bible Study to Begin!
     Starting Wednesday, March 8 at 5:45 - 6:45 p.m. at Grace Church there will be a Bible study led by Pastor Al Klinesasser.  The title of the
study is People Who Met Jesus.  Plan to join us for an in depth look at our Savior.  Bring a friend!!

The Season of Lent is quickly approaching with Ash Wednesday coming on March I". That evening, we will be gathering
in the sanctuary at Grace for a worship service at 6:15 p.m. preceded by the soup & bread supper at 5:30 p.m. During the
worship service, the choir will be singing, several readers will participate, and we will also be having a meditation on the
scripture passage -Jonah 3:1-10.
Beginning on Wednesday, March 8th, we will be offering a series of Bible Studies on the topic "People Who Met Jesus "
which is based on a book by that title written by Ron Lavin. This study is open to both Grace and First Baptist and anyone
from the community who would like to attend. We will be meeting in the evening from 5:45 to 6:45 p.m. at Grace, but we
may also offer an alternative time (depending on the interest) for those who would like to attend a daytime study which
would be at 1:30 p.m. meeting at FBC. The study will concentrate on looking at individuals in the Bible who may not be as
well known as others, but whose lives were significantly changed through their personal encounter with Jesus. The first
session will look at two building blocks and seven story principles (Using the story of the Waiting Father as an example
from Luke 15), and evidences of these building blocks and story principles will also be discussed when we turn our attention
to the characters who met Jesus. A study guide will be available for those who would like a purchase a copy at a small cost.
During Holy Week, we will not be meeting as a study group, but will observe Maundy Thursday and Good Friday at special
services - time, place to be announced. But we will resume our series after Easter on Wednesdays with several sessions that'
will take us into the month of May.
We invite you to participate in this opportunity to growth in your faith! Not all characters in the Gospel accounts met
Jesus in the same way, but all were significantly changed once they had met Him. Come and allow the Holy Spirit to work
in your life!
Just on another note, I want to thank the congregation for your prayers in the recent loss of my Dad. He was a strong
servant of the Lord and left a great impact on many people including myself.
.   God's blessings!
Pastor Al

Grace Church values part IV

This month we are highlighting the fourth value in our list of core values.
Value 4; We believe that worship is at the core of our church community.
Questions: What is worship? Is it what we do on Sunday mornings in the sanctuary? Is a walk in the woods worship,
if we are praising the Creator? If we worship in solitary, is it still at the core of our church community? If we believe that
coming together on Sunday mornings is important, then are there things that we need to do to encourage the participation
of more of our church members in worship? Are there people who feel excluded from our worship? Why? How
can our expressions of praise and thanksgiving repentance in worship be the expressions of all the
worshipers, in a language and style that is genuinely their voice? Is worship for the members, or is it, as some have
suggested, the most visible thing we do as a church community, and therefore a witness and form of evangelism to
those outside our body? If it is evangelism, then what needs to happen in worship? Consider what the following passages tell
us about worship: John 4.23-24; Romans 12.1; Isaiah 58; Psalm 51.15-17; Micah 6.6-8. What can you do in your own
life so that when you are in church on Sunday morning you are worshiping our Creator and Savior with all your heart and
soul and mind and strength?
Share your thoughts with someone on the worship committee

PW SPRING GATHERING

Plan to attend and help at the John Knox P.W. Presbytery Meeting on
Saturday, April 8th , 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.. The keynote speaker is Gina Gustavson,
who has just returned from a Global Exchange to Brazil. Everyone is invited!
We will be serving Coffee and Bloedow's donuts before the meeting and lunch is
at noon!
If you can volunteer, please contact Ellie, 452-9225 or Dorothy, 452-5306.

Leadership Development Seminar

On Saturday, February 11, Pastor Al KJeinsasser, Janet Nustad, and Pam Lica attended an exciting
conference at Central United Methodist Church in Winona. The seminar was titled "Growing Disciples of Christ"
and was led by Dr. Doug Anderson, executive director of the Bishop Reuben Job Center for Leadership
Development at Dakota Wesleyan University. The topics covered included ministry with younger generations,
developing congregations for 21" century evangelism, developing small group leaders, and identifying the key
ingredients in leading vibrant worship experiences.
We left the seminar with many new ideas and will be sharing them with the Growing Faith Covenant Group and
the Session. From there, the suggestions will go to specific committees who can use their discretion in putting
some of them into practice in the not too distant future.

Joys

Morgan Sophia Fuglestad, daughter of derek
and Angie Fuglestad of Harmony, was born Feb. 18.
She is the 2nd' great-grandchild for Evie Fuglestad

Autumn Lynn was born February 11 to Stacy
Kennebeck and Shane Volkman, of Winona. David and
Janina Kennebeck are the maternal grandparents.
Congratulations!
 

CONCERNS
Betty Hensel's cousin and Norma Stark's niece,
Kathy, died in the Twin Cities.

Pastor Al's father, Al Kleinsasser, Sr., died Feb.
17 in Mason City, IA.

Andrea Foss Essar's parents, Steven and Nancy
Gerth of St. Cloud, were killed in a chain reaction car
accident in South Carolina on Feb. 8 when a semi truck
hit their car from behind, killing them instantly.
Our sympathy is extended to all the families.

SPECIAL OFFERINGS
The Gideons received $151 for their ongoing work.
The Souper Bowl of Caring total, $72.55 plus another $20 donation, was sent to Winona
Volunteer Services for their food shelf.
Thank you!!
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER
World Day of Prayer will be held on Friday March 3 at Faith Lutheran Church, 1717
Service Dr. The service, written by Christian women of South Africa, will begin at noon.
Carolyn Collins will share experiences from her trips to South Africa, emphasizing the positives in
the lives of families in South Africa even though they all face the dangers of HIV/AIDS. A
luncheon of soups and breads will be served following the service.
Everyone is encouraged to attend.

FOOD BARREL
As you go grocery shopping this month, please buy an extra box of food and donate n
to the food barrel. March is Hunger Awareness month and we hope that we can
make a difference to our community by giving generously. Our donations will go to
Winona Volunteer Services. We are reminded that food is great to give, but
money is even better. They can use the money more effectively than we can at the
grocery store. So please help however you can and know that you are making a
difference in our community.

BILOXI BARREL
Mission and Stewardship has placed a barrel outside Fellowship Hall for the Buy One for Biloxi
project. This is an ecumenical effort sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Winona. They are
collecting much-needed products for the hard-hit Gulf Coast. Local representatives have been down
to the Biloxi area to assess the needs there, and they receive regular updates, so that we can be sure
that the items we collect will fill the current needs. While New Orleans has received a lot of attention,
some of the other areas along the coast have been more or less ignored, and so the diocese chose to
focus on the Biloxi area where the needs are great and store shelves are empty. They distribute to all
in need in the area, regardless of church affiliation, and in fact, only a small percentage is Roman
Catholic. They expect this project to be ongoing for a year or more, and they will continue to make
deliveries by truck to the area. Near the barrel is a poster with tear-off sheets that you can take
shopping with you

MISSION

Thank you for all the empty prescription bottles you have been bringing to
church. We especially appreciate the nice clean ones with no stickiness on the
outside.
The bulletin board by the front sanctuary door is our Mission Bulletin
Board. Watch it for news about mission projects, causes, offerings and news
worthy information.
The big bulletin board has news about people and activities at Grace and
information about community activities.
HOME DELIVERED MEALS
Grace Church is responsible for delivering meals in April. The route is
basically homes in the Goodview area. We need at least 5 people to deliver meals
once a week for the month. If you want to help, please contact Dorothy Gilbertson.
If you will be available to substitute at any time during the month, please let me
know. This is a great opportunity to help others, meet new people and feel good as
you volunteer.

PRESBYTERY MEETING REPORT FEBRUARY 18,2006
John KNOX Presbytery met Saturday, February 18,2006, at Presbyterian Church of West Salem, West Salem, WI.
The Worship service, Celebrating Our Call, reminded us of the vows made at Baptism and the renewal of the
Ordination vows.
Those in attendance going on the Presbytery mission trip to Mississippi March 5 to March 12 were commissioned.
Walt Gilbertson, who will be commissioned at a later date, will also be going.
Scott Anderson and the Rev. Mark Achtemeier, members of the General Assembly Task Force on Peace, Unity, and
Purity of the Church, presented their final report. The report will be on the agenda at the General Assembly meeting
this summer in Birmingham, Alabama.
The next Presbytery meeting will be Tuesday, May 16, 2006, at University of Dubuque Theological Seminary,
Dubuque, IA.

CHOW MEIN DINNER
Saturday, March 4,2006
4:00 - 7:00 p.m.
$7.00
Take-Out or Dine-In
Hot Dogs & Chips also available

SALAD LUNCHEON
Saturday, April 1,2006
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
$7.00
Bring a friend or two