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Stay informed
If you are a church worker (rostered or lay) within the LCMS Northern Illinois District, we want you to stay informed.
Visit NIDnews.org for stories, an events calendar and feature news.
Submit your contact information (online) for the district office if you are new in your ministry location or when you change work or personal email or address. (NOTE: This is in addition to what is provided for LCMS Rosters and website.) Church workers automatically receive Our Northern Illinois District magazine in the mail if they provide a home address and the Parish Resource Connection by email if they provide an email address.
Church Worker Care Team
The Church Worker Care Team is a group of fellow church professionals that the LCMS Northern Illinois District has asked to be available to come alongside fellow District church workers during a challenging time in their lives to provide them with a listening ear and spiritual support.
The Church Worker Care Team was formed to give our church workers currently serving congregations, schools, and ministries, someone to whom they can speak who is a fellow church professional who can be that safe and spiritually caring colleague to provide support during a challenging time.
Crisis Support – Responding to Church Workers Suffering Financially
Covid-19 has dramatically affected our world in a variety of ways including making a global economic impact that has directly affected congregations and many church workers, perhaps even you. This has rapidly left many of our synod’s workers in economic distress.
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, the Lutheran Church Extension Fund, and the Northern Illinois District have joined together in creating a response to this economic downturn, designed to provide some temporal relief for those suffering financially due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This assistance is driven by the Soldiers of the Cross – Covid-19 Response Fund.
With the financial support of the Northern Illinois District and other LCMS entities, this fund is available to all church workers whether called, rostered, or lay workers, who serve in our Northern Illinois District ministries (congregations, schools, and RSOs). These funds will be distributed through reviews of those who submit the application below.
If you are a church worker in the LCMS Northern Illinois District and find yourself in need:
Who to contact in the district office:
- President Allan R. Buss is your contact for ordained minister issues and critical incidents.
- Lois Stewart is your contact for commissioned minister issues and incidents. She can help you work through unifying church and school mission for outreach.
- The President’s Office provides assistance to congregations calling ordained workers and ordained workers seeking calls as well as the contact for information on services and grants related to missions – The Gospel in Action
Update: All Worker Conference Postponed
As we work together in the Northern Illinois District, it is a great blessing to join together on an all worker conference. We will worship together, have an uplifting plenary session, and many breakout sessions to choose from. Our focus will be on worker wellness.
We have been advised that Concordia University Chicago will not be hosting any outside groups during their fall 2020 semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And we understand and support their concern for the wellness of the students, faculty, and other university workers.
We will reschedule the All Worker Conference. It is very important for us to gather together in worship, learning, and fellowship as underscored in our theme Bible verse.
Schools are encouraged to use that day for ‘in house’ professional development. If you do that, you may request professional development through CUC. Administrators should contact Robert Smith at Roberta.smith@cuchicago.edu.
You are asked to watch for other announcements as they are sent. And, we express our gratitude to all of the hard work already done by the conference committee.
The LCMS Northern Illinois District works together with the LCMS Ohio District in a partnership called CoachAdvance. Coaches meet one-on-one (often by phone) for a specified period of time to help a church worker develop in his or her ability to set and accomplish ministry goals. Coaches work across the two districts so that there is a wide selection of available assistance. Go to the CoachAdvance website for more information.
Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF) provides services available to anyone connected with our LCMS churches and schools. Go to the national LCEF website to learn about investment and loan opportunities, StewardAccount financial services, ministry support and more. Or speak to our local LCEF VP Vanda Toner to learn more.
Helpful information
Go to these pages:
Conferences: Pastors Regional Conferences
Locations of Churches and Schools
Church Worker News – Installations, obituaries, roster reports, etc.
Vacancies – Looking for Educators and Parish Professionals
For District – update information online
For Synod – Rostered commissioned workers must fill in CMIF online. Contact Rosters & Statistics at 888-843-5267 or rosters.stats@lcms.org for personal log-in access.