North Dakota District Lutheran Women's Missionary League

Check out the latest e-news from national LWML

The Lutheran Women’s Missionary League is offering a special offer for you this Christmas season. From November 16 through December 8 postage is free for online orders of $50 or more. Go online to www.lwml.org and order from our catalog, clearance pages, or Christmas specials!
View this flyer on our website for new LWML products!
Our Christmas specials include the LWML tie, LWML Bible, LWML carryall, 3/6 or 6/9 month layette set, or the teen green sling back, all $5 off! Also, check out the teen hoodie, $10 off. Mention this special if you call in your order and you will also receive free postage.
In this season of our Savior’s birth, consider a gift to LWML and our mission projects. A complete list of LWML mission projects can be viewed on our website at http://www.lwml.org/missions/mission-grants.php. Please consider a donation online, by phone, or by mail. Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, P.O. Box 411993, St Louis, MO 63141-1993. 1-800-252-5965.

The Executive Committee of the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) announces the theme
and Scripture verses for the 35th Biennial LWML Convention that will be held June 27-30, 2013 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Theme: Quenched! by the Water

Scripture verse:

[Jesus said:] “…but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14).

Convention Goal Statement: Quenched by Christ’s redeeming grace, I am empowered by the Holy
Spirit to be a wellspring of the Father’s love.

Convention Objectives — Convention attendees will:

• Glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
• Drink deeply from His Word
• Share His overflowing love

The LWML Executive Committee reflected on the many challenges that everyday life brings in the
world today. The theme for the 2013 LWML Convention reminds each child of God that, in spite of constant change, God continually provides life-giving spiritual blessings for all of His children who know Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

LWML President Kay Kreklau shared,

“Planning for the convention in Pittsburgh is well underway. It is exciting to know that those attending the convention will have opportunities to be filled to overflowing through worship, Bible study, fellowship, and uplifting experiences that will help to strengthen them as they share Christ with others.”

Lutheran World Relief is having a fall drive as there is a shortage of the items listed on this flyer. The dates for the drive are October 17 – October 21st. Please inform your congregation of these dates and times.

Youth Home program moved to Minot Campus

Fargo, Aug. 24, 2011: Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch has made great strides in its flood recovery efforts in the recent weeks. The boys and girls who are residents at the Ranch will start arriving from the Ranch’s Bismarck and Fargo programs, Wednesday, Aug. 24. They will be welcomed back with a special church service and dinner the evening of Aug. 25.

Other pieces of flood recovery are related to the water and sewer service, which has been restored to the campus, although service has not been totally dependable, and campus has experienced outages. Consequently, the portable potties remain on campus, as well as large amounts of drinking/potable water.

The Ranch has completed about 70 percent of drainage tile installation in all the buildings, and anticipates a total completion in all buildings within the next month. The Ranch also is turning the temporary dikes into permanent fixtures.

The Minot Community Youth Home program has been relocated to the Minot Ranch campus, and Ranch officials are researching funding avenues to replace the building.

The on-campus educational center, Dakota Memorial School, will start on schedule for the residents. The day education program will begin at a later date, which synchronizes with the Minot Public School System.

The Minot Ranch is on track for recovery, but it’s not going to happen tomorrow.

“Best estimates show it will take a year to achieve normal operations,” said President Gene Kaseman. “I want to thank all the staff and residents for the patience and resiliency they have demonstrated in the past couple months. Their efforts have responsible for the great strides the Ranch has made in bouncing back from all this flood related adversity.”

Visit www.dakotaranch.org to view flood photos of the Minot Campus and the Youth Home.

The Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML), along with Artesian Ministries, announces a new eight-lesson Bible studies series, Your Strong Suit. Written by Artesian Ministries author, Donna Pyle, the DVD series, based on Ephesians 6:10-18, was made with state-of-the-art filming and stunning graphic design. It is scheduled for an October 2011 release.
LWML President Kay Kreklau shared, “This excellent resource only requires a DVD player and a group of women who seek to learn more from God’s Word. Because of its versatility, the series can be used in a number of settings.”
Filmed this past spring at Salem Lutheran Church in Tomball, Texas, in front of a live audience, the Bible study series has gone through the doctrinal review process of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod.
Author Donna Pyle has been involved in LWML since 1997, having served as a Zone Young Woman Representative, Society President, Zone President, Texas District Recording Secretary and Vice President of Christian Life. Donna said, “No other women’s organization has impacted my spiritual journey as deeply as LWML. God has blessed me incredibly through the mission and ministry of LWML. Simply stated, I want to pass the blessing forward.” To learn more about this talented author, and her teaching ministry, go to www.artesianministries.org.
The study includes an 85-page color-print workbook with wire binding that makes it easy to flip through and take notes. Additional workbooks are available to order. The eight lessons on four DVDs are entitled:

• His Mighty Strength
• The Powers Over This Present Darkness
• The Full Armor of God
• Truth and Righteousness
• The Feet of God’s Peace
• The Shield of God’s Protection
• Our Helmet and Sword
• Pray Without Ceasing

Pre-orders are now being taken for the DVD series, Your Strong Suit, as well as for additional study guides, online at www.lwml.org/shop, or by calling 1-800-252-LWML (5965).

Youth Home extensively damaged; youth continue treatment in Bismarck, Fargo

Fargo, July 29, 2011: Due to the historic and catastrophic flooding around Minot, about 50 residents of the Minot campus temporarily have been relocated to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch campuses in Bismarck and Fargo. Minot staff have been deployed on working shifts to these campuses to maintain the quality of care.

Because of the emergency levees that were quickly put in place, the Minot campus did not experience flooding, but suffers from high ground water and sewer damage. These issues should be resolved in the next couple weeks. However, there is no water, sewer or gas service at the Minot Ranch. Residents cannot be moved on to the campus until these services are restored. It is hoped that this will happen by the middle of August, but there are no guarantees.

The Minot Community Youth Home was flooded to the second floor and suffered extensive damage. It will have to be demolished and, in the short term, the program will be moved to the Minot campus. Whether the program is continued on the Minot Campus or a new facility built has yet to be decided.

Dakota Family Services—the Ranch’s outreach mental health service, still operates out of Bremer Hall on the Minot Campus using portable toilets and bottled water.

The Ranch continues to accept referrals appropriate to the present situation. But the residential population is down from where it normally would be, due to consolidation of residential services at Bismarck and Fargo.

In a similar fashion, the Ranch has lost some employees who have relocated to different communities. Every effort is being made to keep as many staff as possible employed and on payroll.

Best estimates indicate that the Ranch will not resume normal operating status until March 2012.

Meanwhile, all the above elements have created cash flow issues, which are manageable due to the wonderful support we have received from donors, church and community toward making the ranch recovery possible. And even with all the flood related issues and problems, DBGR is still proceeding in construction of the residential center and school on its Fargo south site. The completion date is March 2012.

The Ranch is experiencing a very difficult and complex situation, and many agencies would not survive the challenges facing the Ranch. But, the board of directors and President Gene Kaseman are confident that DBGR will weather this crisis and–because of that, become a stronger agency.

The road to recovery will be a challenging goal and will require the efforts of all employees of DBGR. The real test of an agency and its staff is not only to immediately respond to a crisis in the short term, but also then to aggressively work toward the goal of complete recovery.

The Ranch asks for continued prayers for employees and residents whose lives have been directly impacted by the flood, that it may continue its mission of helping at-risk children and their families succeed in the name of Christ.

Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch is a Recognized Service Organization of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and is an Affiliated Social Ministry Organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Leaders plan preventative measures for future
Fargo, July 8, 2011: Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch continues to assess the flood’s impact on its ministry. Unfortunately, right now, there are many factors that prevent it from having a full understanding of the disaster’s total effect on Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, and programs and services provided to the Ranch’s children and families.
Yet, at this time– in addition to responding to the present situation, the leadership of the Ranch is beginning to plan for the future and is discussing ways to prevent the impact of disasters like this one in the future.
We will continue to keep you apprised as more information becomes available.
We appreciate everyone’s continued prayers and support.

We have lost 6 schools to the flood here in Minot!! I am asking that everyone sends any and all box tops they can collect from home, friends, family, and workplaces!! This is an incredibly simple way that anyone can contribute from all over the country and all it costs is postage!!
I would like this to be hugely successful.
You do not have to come to Minot to participate. All you have to do is send them in the mail. Please invite everyone you know!!

We will also be collecting:
Campbell’s Soup Labels
Land o’ Lakes Caps
Our Family product UPC’s

Please send them to
Erin Edgerly
15 Vista Dr
Minot, ND 58703!!

EVERY BIT IS GOING TO HELP!!! We will need everything we can to get these schools operating again!!!

Thank you EVERYONE for your support, And remember to SAVE AND SEND!!!

Minot Youth Home devastated,
main campus must be cleaned
Fargo, June 30, 2011: Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch wishes to acknowledge and thank everyone who has expressed concern for our ministry due to the flooding in Minot, N.D. Flood waters are receding, but through July 4, the water will be at historic levels and above flood stage.

The Ranch has lost its Minot Community Youth Home, located near downtown Minot and home to male children with addiction issues.

The ministry is blessed as the main campus, located four miles northwest of Minot, has less property damage then we could have sustained. The Ranch’s dikes were raised six feet and held, which protected much of the residential part of campus.

The main campus has water issues in four of the five cottages, and one administration building. It also had sewage backup in two cottages, which was able to be contained.

In the entire area, many sewer line breaks, and now water line breaks have occurred. Unfortunately, a number of these breaks cannot be fixed as they are under water. Therefore, access to and use of water is extremely limited. The campus will not have running water for several more weeks.

Prior to the flooding, the Ranch evacuated all children from the Minot programs to their facilities in Bismarck and Fargo. It is unlikely that the children will be back on campus until late July or early August.

Over the next week, DBGR will be assessing all damage and the impact on its operations. After that assessment is complete, a more substantial update will be provided on the ministry and its work with at-risk children and families.

With regard to the Ranch’s staff, we have many whose homes have been inundated with water and/or sewage. We are compiling a list to determine how we may best assist them.

It has been reported that more than 4,100 homes in Minot are inundated with water, and that at least 20 percent of these homes have so much water they cannot be repaired and sadly, will have to be demolished.

We appreciate everyone’s continued prayers and support at this time.

Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch is a Recognized Service Organization of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and is an Affiliated Social Ministry Organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.