High Plains Ministry by Sue Matcha Shrinking population prompts rural parishes to unite At the end of 2003, Lawton Lutheran Church was without a pastor, and as many rural churches, were faced with declining attendance. The congregation had been sharing guest speakers with Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Doyan, and the two congregations were served by lay minister, Don Reynolds. Reynolds suggested the members of Lawton Lutheran contact Concordia Lutheran of Edmore about sharing pastoral services. Concordia had been combined with the congregations of Nekoma Lutheran Church and Our Redeemers Lutheran of Fairdale for a number of years. A meeting was held in January of 2004, and the congregations came to an agreement. The five congregations would unite on condition Reynolds would serve as lay minister, three-quarter time, for the parishes. He was to assist Rev. Erik Johnson, pastor of Concordia Lutheran Church, Nekoma Lutheran and Our Redeemers. At that time, High Plains Ministry was established. Eight months after the conception of High Plains Ministry, Rev. Johnson received and accepted a call to a new church. Members of the five churches rallied together to do whatever was necessary to keep the parish viable. Reynolds is now serving the parish full-time and is seeking ordination. “I spend a lot of time on the road,” Reynolds said. “The parish spans 60 miles and has churches in two different ELCA conferences.” Rick Amundrud, president of High Plains Ministry parish council, and Reynolds believe the parish is successful because the members of each congregation work together as a whole to make the ministry more viable. “We are all part of each other,” Amundrud said. Another factor in the success of the parish is the outstanding leadership from the parish council members, who according to Reynolds, are always looking to the future and planning ahead. According to Amundrud, a member of Our Redeemers in Fairdale, each church still has its own church council and is its own separate entity. Two members of each church make up the parish council of High Plains Ministry. On the council with Amundrud, are Skip Lorenz of Lawton, who is the vice-president, and Debbie Anderson, Edmore, who is the secretary, and council members Renee Ivesdal, Edmore; Duane Gronhovd and Orland Gronhovd, Nekoma; Ed Loraas, Fairdale; Larry Legacie, Lawton; and Roger Perkuhm and Harley Eidsness of Doyan. Amundson also contributes meeting the challenges of the large parish to the work of an amazing staff. With the help of a grant from MeritCare, the parish was able to hire Jodi Myrvik as a part-time parish nurse. Myrvik helped set up a prayer shawl ministry, provides regular health checks for parishioners, and assists Reynolds with home visitations. Irene Levang serves as the parish coordinator. Levang is responsible for designing the weekly church bulletins, as well as a monthly newsletter. She coordinates the funerals, weddings and special events held in all five churches. One of the objectives of the new parish was to revitalize the youth group. Previously, each church only had a handful of teens in their congregation. Now, the teens from all five churches meet twice a month after school, at Concordia Lutheran in Edmore. According to Amundrud, except for those from Doyan, most of the teens attend school at Adams-Edmore High School, making it convenient for them to meet. Confirmation classes are also held at Concordia Lutheran. Six teens from the five parishes will be confirmed this year. There is also a men’s breakfast prayer group which meets one a month at rotating locations throughout the five parishes. Each congregation still has it own WELCA group. Sunday school is held each week at Our Redeemers at Fairdale and at Bethlehem Lutheran at Doyan. Church school is held for all five churches each Wednesday at Concordia Lutheran. The ministry is made up of two sections, the north section being Edmore, Nekoma and Fairdale, and the south is Lawton and Doyan. Each church has Sunday services. Reynolds has a rotating schedule for services. One Sunday he will conduct services in churches in the north section, and the following Sunday in the south section. Lay persons and the parish nurse, as well as guest ministers, conduct services in churches in the opposite section. A joint Palm Sunday service will be held at Our Redeemers Lutheran Church in Fairdale, followed by a potluck meal. Easter Sunday services will be held at each church with the schedule as follows: Nekoma Lutheran, 8 a.m.; Lawton Lutheran, 8:30 a.m.; Our Redeemers in Fairdale, 9:30 a.m.; Bethlehem Lutheran in Doyan, 10:30 a.m.; and Concordia Lutheran in Edmore, 11 a.m. Parish members continue to find new ways to serve. The ministry recently designed a website. Visit them at www.highplainsministry.com. “With this parish arrangement, we have taken churches that may not have been vital on their own and made them viable,” Amundrud said. “God has blessed us greatly with the resources we have.” | 
