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Two months out Get ready for ‘Docs, Crocs and Frocks’


IMAGES © ISTOCK/ALEAIMAGE; KANTAPAT; LISAISON. T


he phrase “Docs, Crocs and Frocks” might elicit an image


of a fashion nightmare (white lab coat, rubber shoes with holes and frilly dress) or a frantic race between a doctor, crocodile and clergyperson. The latter would be mostly accurate, minus the reptile. In August a series of ath-


2-mile bike, 5-mile run, 1-mile swim and 3-mile walk. In its first year the ath- letes raised $34,000. Jon and Renee Splichal


Professionals of different vocations work together for their community.


letic challenges will pit doctors, attorneys (“crocodiles for justice”) and pastors against each other to raise money for Welcome House, a faith-based housing assistance organiza- tion in Mandan, N.D. (www.welcome-house.net). In 2012, Nadine Lehr, a pastor of Lord of Life Lutheran


Church in nearby Bismarck, was inspired by member Nancy Kleingartner, who served on Welcome House’s board. An avid swimmer at the time, Lehr wanted to raise funds with exercise. After recruiting a district judge and attorneys, inspiration became action. On Aug. 22 eight-person teams of health, law and minis-


try professionals will compete in the fourth “Docs, Crocs and Frocks,” a combination


Good one! Resurrection surprise Worshipers, especially the child-


ren, at Living Grace Lutheran Church, Tucker, Ga., were treated to a surprise on Easter Sunday. The Sunday school children who had “buried” the “alleluia” for Lent (and made “alleluia caterpillars”) gathered around the altar with their pastor, David Hardy, who opened a box that had been under the altar. Not only was it filled with paper butterflies on thin wires, but inside was another box. When he lifted that lid, real butterflies flew out and circled the children. The butterflies flew to the top sanctuary window and were later released outside. Hardy assures folks that no butterflies were harmed in the Easter celebration. For more information, contact Leanne Beutler, parish administrator (lbeutler@aol.com).


42 www.thelutheran.org


Larson, ELCA pastors, have competed, and Jon called it “a beautiful thing for people from a variety of professions to come together to assist


community people … in cri- sis. It was great to witness the


generosity of people who are connected to the wider church, as the ‘frocks’ raised a lot of money.” And there is a growing population of North Dakotans in


need as oil has brought droves of people looking for work. While it’s bolstered the economy, rents have doubled in the area, pushing some families out of their homes. During her tenure as Welcome House director, Brenda


Kriedeman (formerly homeless herself) brought ice to a park to hydrate children while their parents were at work. On that 100-degree day, she came across a homeless single mother with a 2-day-old baby. Now homelessness in North Dakota has a face—a child’s face. Current director Kelly Gunsch foresees an increase in


those “who cannot afford housing if the oil market [pla- teaus] or declines and high-paying jobs are eliminated. Some will need emergency shelter [or help] getting back to their hometown.” Since 2010 the population of Bismarck/ Mandan has spiked by more than 10,000 with families that arrive “without housing or employ-


ment lined up. Others wait weeks to months for urgent men- tal health needs [while] rental and utilities assistance mon- ies run out for grant-funded agencies,” she said. That need, Gunsch added, translates into 120 to 150 shelter-seeking calls each month. That’s why Levi Andrist, an attorney, enthusias- tically cycled in 2012 “to bring to light the needs of the work- ing poor.” In a region of rapid change and uncertainty, the true ben-


efit, Lehr said, is having professionals of different vocations form relationships and work together for their community. 


By Kayla Stenstrom, alumni services coordinator at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn.


Send congregational stories—those for a specifi c month/holiday or your best timeless idea—to julie.sevig@thelutheran.org.


BUTTERFLY: © ISTOCK/NI QIN


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