Connecting with each and everyone of you is a priority. We are reaching out with texts and calls. If you haven’t been contacted, please help us by reaching out to us. We want to support you in any way we can during this time. With the strength of the Holy Spirit, we want to assure you that we will get through this as we always have, TOGETHER.
The church phone line, 727-525-8364, is handled over internet and messages come to us wherever we are. If you need help, we will try to connect you with resources. Even if you don’t need help, we want to keep in touch.
We will be sending out information very soon on how you can help members and those in the community. We will likely raise funds for individual grants to members and Day School staff in the form of grants as we did after Idalia. We will also inform you of other ways that you can give and send those out immediately.
Everyone’s been asking about the state of the church building. The offices, Fellowship Hall, Youth Room and Nursery need water remediation. That work started Saturday and is well underway. The Sanctuary and Narthex areas were spared. We moved critical equipment, records and resources to higher ground that did not flood. As a staff, we can perform most of the functions to support our mission outside of the office. We hope to gather very soon for worship again, so watch for further emails. Remember that the church is not the building, and we are stronger than bricks and mortar.
Don’t try to do this all on your own. God gave us each other for just such times as this. For those needing assistance we are also collecting names with needs to send to Lutheran Disaster Relief. Some of that relief is requested by pastors and then directly given to the church for distribution. The synod has already asked us for names with specific needs for just such checks to be written. Please don’t be afraid to ask for financial assistance. The larger church is there for us, just as we have supported other churches in the past.
In love,
Pastor Lisa and Pastor Bruce
