Quick Calendar – Youth
2, 9 – MSYG
3 – Regular Wednesday schedule
7, 4, 21 – MSYG
10, 17 – Emerge Youth Group
10 – Service Night for Confirmation (on-site)
17 – Mentor Group Fellowship Night
21 – High School Senior Recognition Sunday
21 – Confirmation Mentor Appreciation Event
24 – Thunder Road

High Schoolers Serving at Table of Grace
Emerge high-school youth group will be serving at OSl’s partner in ministry, Table of Grace, a new mission congregation in Harrisburg, on Sunday, May 7. Meet in the Youth Room to prepare a meal at 2:00 that afternoon, then carpool to Lava’s Javas, where Table of Grace worships. Our responsibility as a mission partner is to bring a meal to share with the congregation members, greet people at the door, and worship with the congregation. Check your texts for more updates and reminders.

Senior Recognition Sunday
High-school seniors, send a jpeg of yourself to Elise (ehasche@oslchurch.com), to be compiled into a video that will be shown at all worship services on Sunday, May 21. Seniors will be invited forward to receive a gift and a special blessing at bothe Celebrate services on that day. Please come to one of these worship services so the congregation can share in this celebration with you!

Envelope Fundraiser
Thank you to everyone who participated in the Silent Auction—you raised around $8,000 for OSL youth! However, we have about $8,000 more to go. We have 38 students going on trips this year, which is the biggest group since I have been here and which means we need to raise more money! So we are bringing back the envelopes. There are 150 envelopes hanging up in the windows by the Celebrate Center, numbered 1 through 150. Pick any envelope and whatever number is on the outside, you put that amount of money on the inside! Return your filled envelope to the Church Office and all of it will go toward students traveling Kenosha, Wisconsin, or Colorado this summer. Thank you for your continued support of these life-changing trips!

­

—­­Elise Hasche

Faith Formation Notes
Families of third-graders: Your student’s Bible milestone is coming up, on May 14! Students will receive their Bibles at the 8:45 a.m. Celebrate worship service, then go to the Friendship Room for family time with Pr. Sami at 10:00. This event will take the place of Sunday School that day!

All rotation students will be singing at the 8:45 a.m. Celebrate worship service on May 14. Make plans to attend worship at that hour!

As mentioned above, third graders will be receiving their new Connect Bibles on May 14. To encourage them in their faith, you are invited to underline your favorite verse(s) in one or all of them. The Bibles are displayed by the south entrance, next to the library. Thank you for participating in this! As the students use them, they will forever see reminders and feel the support of their church community.

Vacation Bible School is coming! “Passport to Peru” will take place June 12 through 15, from 9:00 a.m. to noon, for kids from age three through those who have completed fifth grade. (Early drop-off will be available at 8:30.) Register your child online (oslchurch.com/children) or in person at the VBS table on the west end of The Gathering Place. And be part of this grand adventure yourself (middle-school and older) by signing up to volunteer at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090c44aeaa29a2f58-vbsday. One-day and week-long opportunities exist! All VBS station coordinators have plans made that you can help carry out. Childcare for children four and younger will be available for volunteers; let Melissa Nesdahl know (mnesdahl@oslchurch.com) if you wish to use this service, so adequate staffing can be lined up.

Faith Formation Notes, continued
Lutherans Outdoors Day Camp, “4 You,” will be coming to Our Savior’s June 10 through 13, kicking off with a pizza party on June 9. Get the camp experience indoors, with engaging worship, games, arts and crafts, and transformative Bible study focused on 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Camp is from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with early drop-off available at 8:30. This camp is for students who have completed kindergarten through fifth grade. Sign up at oslchurch.com/children, or at the children’s table on the west end of The Gathering Place.

Middle- and high-school students are invited to serve as leaders for Vacation Bible School (June 12 through 15) and Day Camp (July 10 through 13). It is important for the younger kids to see the example of older youth involved in congregational activities and to build relationships with one another. It is important for older youth to practice leading, learning responsibility, and seeing God work in surprising ways through energetic little people. Middle schoolers will have opportunities for greater responsibility this year based on their ability and interest. Show this to your middle schooler and help him or her sign up: all the details and online sign-up is at www.signupgenius.com/go/4090c44aeaa29a2f58-vbsday.

Summer Feeding Program to
Come to Our Savior’s

Because of the level of financial poverty in the immediate neighborhood, OSL qualifies as a Summer Feeding Program site and, as a partner with our community, will be serving lunch in The Gathering Place on Mondays through Fridays, from 11:30 to 12:30, from June 5 through September 1.

Although the meals will be prepared, served, and cleaned up by OSL’s sponsor, Embe, there are opportunities for congregation members to serve as greeters and caring adults to the children who participate in the program. Being a caring adult could include sitting with children and building relationships, supervising the Gym, playing games, reading with children, and other activities that use your gifts. You can choose how often you serve and how you would like to participate.

Contact Pr. Sami, sjohnson@oslchurch.com or 336-2942, ext. 12, if you are interested or have any questions.

A Special Note from Melissa
I’m completing my first educational year since beginning ministry with you here at Our Savior’s. In that time we’ve created a new birth-to-age-three parent/child learning room; switched to a rotation learning model for our primary learners; sung in worship every month; grown our Christmas program; created Birthdays in a Bag for children in the community who otherwise would not have a birthday party; had a wonderful Advent Fair; and engaged in intergenerational service and fun family activity with the Project Warm-Up Blanket Making night and Cookies & Canvas.

I’ve watched with joy as children have immersed themselves in Story, made impact on the community, and grown in confidence in worship leadership. This would not have been possible without volunteers for each of these incredible special events, Sunday and Wednesday School volunteers, and the support of Pr. Sami Johnson, Gene LeVasseur, Nicole Mindt, Elise Hasche, and you, as excited families.

Thank you for helping make OSL Children’s ministry the strong program it is.

—Melissa Nesdahl

<p style="text-align: center"><span style="color: #3594bc; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Be Notified When <i>The Intercom </i>Is Updated!</b></span></p><br><!-- BEGIN: Constant Contact Email List Form Button --><div align="center"><a href="http://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?llr=cgxs7srab&p=oi&m=1118399192258&sit=5itf56ajb&f=367e76f6-0208-4b67-b32c-a3d9f409786c" class="button" style="background-color: rgb(0, 0, 144); border: 1px solid rgb(91, 91, 91); color: rgb(255, 255, 255); display: inline-block; padding: 8px 10px; text-shadow: none; border-radius: 10px;">Sign Up for The Intercom</a><!-- BEGIN: Email Marketing you can trust --><div id="ctct_button_footer" style="font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10px;color:#999999;margin-top: 10px;" align="center">For Email Marketing you can trust.</div></div>