Dakotans have an “I’ll pull myself up by my bootstraps” attitude and often won’t ask for help because they believe others may be worse off. So LSS initi- ated a confidential nomination form whereby friends and neighbors sub- mitted names of those who might need help. At American Lutheran Church in


Bison, the delegation met members of 11 churches in northwest South Dakota and southwest North Dakota. “This is a really big deal,” said


Dana Lockhart as he introduced the guests. Lockhart is pastor of Grand River Lutheran Church in Buffalo and Prairie Fellowship Parish (American, Indian Creek and Rosebud congrega- tions) in hard-hit Perkins County. Zellmer called the early blizzard


one of “unprecedented proportions.” Eaton acknowledged that the


storm will have a “multiyear effect” and that, even though several months had elapsed since the storm hit, “we haven’t forgotten about you.” She promised to carry the stories home with her. With an initial $150,000 from


Lutheran Disaster Response, LSS made certain people had money for fuel, food and medication. Volun- teer management areas were set up at 1,100 sites in the 14 counties to assist with debris cleanup. Free mental health services are available. Although LSS doesn’t normally offer relief to businesses, Adler said


cated or hypothermia, it didn’t matter, the end result was the same. ... How was I to tell the folks? God


made it clear. One is a tough Norwe- gian, the other a tough Swede, straight up and to the point. At the time I wasn’t noticing our blessings, which later I


would come to see were many. Chauncey Jorgensen


an exception was made for ranch- ers. More than $4.2 million has been raised through the Ranchers’ Relief Fund worldwide. In Decem- ber, $774,000 was given to 611 ranchers. Michael Stadie, program direc-


tor for Lutheran Disaster Response, promised that northwest South Dakota and southwest North Dakota will never be in a “blind spot,” adding, “We are all in this together.” Eaton and Zellmer visited the


ranch of Gary and Janet Jorgensen, who lost 22 percent of their cows and 7 percent of their calves. Despite a 45-60 mph wind, the delegation took a walking tour of the creek and draw where the Jorgensen cattle perished. “They were the young cows that


we would have had sustaining our herd for seven to eight years,” said Janet Jorgensen. The family started its herd in


1908 and succeeding generations have built on it. Janet Jorgensen’s father had given each of his three children a cow that had originated in his mother’s herd. They were incorporated to make the herd a life- long, family program. The Jorgensen’s son, Chauncey,


Midland, S.D., told the group how he rode in on horseback and was the first to reach the herd at his parents’ ranch. A lay preacher, he recounted his experience the following Sunday (see excerpt). “Yes, it happened. It’s a chapter in


our life,” said Janet Jorgensen, vow- ing to move forward and look to the future.


By Beth Hulm Hulm is a member of American


Lutheran Church in Bison, S.D., and writes for the Bison Courier.


“ ”  8


Missouri and Kansas. Mansholt suc- ceeds James A. Justman who resigned Dec. 19, citing personal reasons.


Super Bowl challenge The Seattle Seahawks may have won the Super Bowl, but Denver Bronco fans had bragging rights Feb. 2 after pledging more to ELCA World Hun- ger (www.elca.org/hunger) than Seahawks fans. But together more than $40,135 was given to hunger in honor of both teams, which was double the amount that had been pledged the morning of game day. The bishops of the Northwest Wash- ington and Rocky Mountain synods had challenged each other to raise money in honor of their team (Bron- cos $22,632; Seahawks $17,502). Not only did fans in those synods hop on the hunger bandwagon, but through social media many throughout the country and church donated in honor of their favorite team.


A LEED first Seminary Ridge, a civil-war museum in the Lutheran Theological Semi- nary at Gettysburg’s (Pa.) renovated Schmucker Hall, is the first LEED- certified project at a Lutheran semi- nary in North America. LEED is the U.S. Green Building Council’s rating for environmentally friendly build- ings, homes and communities. “Cre- ating a modern ‘green environment’


March 2014 9 10 


We realize the information included in these documents is upsetting. It is painful to read. It


is not the church we know or the church we want to be.


The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chi- cago, in a statement accompanying the release of some 6,000 pages of internal documents on sexual abuse by clergy.


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