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From Pastor Sarah

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July 10, 2025

Dear Bay Shore,

A few years now, the Strategic Plan was introduced with many goals to better build and strengthen our community here at Bay Shore. Several of those goals have been met, or are still in process now. One of the goals was to become a Reconciling in Christ congregation (like Kingo, Lake Park, Redeemer, Cross, St. Paul’s, Holy Cross and many others in our conference and throughout our synod).

The RIC (Reconciling in Christ) Team was formed through the Congregation Council, and has provided now, for over 12 months, learning opportunities like bible studies, conferences, book studies, classes, events, discussions and more to create good conversations and understanding abut the process and basic knowledge regarding the LGBTQIA+ community.

The RIC Team is taking the summer off now, after a busy June month, and will reconvene in late August/September. In the meantime, the Team and I have a special request.

We understood that this process would take a long time and also much discussion. At this point in the process, we encourage anyone at Bay Shore who has concerns, questions or more to meet with me privately between now and October 1. It can be at church or somewhere else. But we hope that if someone has concerns or questions, that they would feel comfortable talking to me, as pastor.

These conversations will be private–I will not share who I have or have not spoken to, nor will I share also particular points of the discussion. I will however (full transparency) summarize the conversations for Council and the RIC Team.

Getting feedback from everyone is important and needed. We pray that you consider this request if you have any concerns.

May God bless you this summer,

Pastor Sarah

Click here to email me to schedule a time.

RIC Team: Susan Foran, Tiffany Pfremmer, Marissa Knopick, Evan Gibson, Beverly Kingma, Laura Anderle, Pastor Sarah Stobie

From Dulcie, Minister of Music

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I loved some of the worship changes we  made this spring, especially adding a cantor for every service. For me, it makes hymn selection more flexible because we can add choices from the new hymnal All Creation Sings (or even less-familiar ones from ELW) and know that there will be a strong voice to lead them. (We usually pick hymns that match the day’s texts or themes, using ELCA resources to guide us.) In addition, Pastor Sarah has shifted the emphasis on special music to the beginning of the service, so that our prelude time is longer and there is no formal postlude, at least for now. I’m excited about this because it allows us musicians the chance to play music we don’t have licenses for at the very beginning of the prelude time (before streaming starts), and opens up new inspiration for making the sending hymn more interesting. One example of two of these changes came on May 11, when I picked an entirely new-to-us closing hymn from ACS, “Ten Thousand Reasons,” asked cantor Sian Whitney to sing the verses, and had the congregation sing along on the very melodic refrain. Scott Cook played the bass line all the way through on cello to underlay the sound and add interest. While it wasn’t a wild sendoff, it had a lot of energy in its newness and message. Watch for more extra touches on sending hymns whenever the opportunity arises. And don’t worry, the old favorites will still be in the rotation throughout the service.

For Easter, much of the music team’s energy went toward the Hallelujah Chorus and a small pre-Easter concert. For the Easter morning service, we had a small orchestra of five strings and myself to accompany the choir (and congregation members who chose to sing!) on the Handel. But besides the Hallelujah Chorus, Ben found a sweet piece that incorporated both handbells and children along with the chancel choir. I thought it was a beautiful day for music as well as the great joy of Easter.

The handbells played a processional and a hymn accompaniment for Pentecost, and we’ll do a piece later in the summer as well. (Please talk to Dulcie if you’re interested in ringing bells this summer, this fall or at Christmas!) I have found a two-day Augsburg Fortress music clinic in Chicago in August that I hope to attend.

I will continue to try to be more creative with the sending hymn and look for new music to extend the prelude time. I also have been selecting much of the music for violist Julie Roubik and providing hymn embellishments for her, and I will be exploring to see if I can find more religious music for us to play together.

Personally, I’m looking forward to a 2-1/2-week trip to Norway and Scotland with my daughter in mid-June.

Thank you for your support.

Dulcie Shoener, Minister of Music

From Pastor Sarah

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Hello, Bay Shore!

Are you thinking about your Easter plans yet? 

Of course, as a pastor, I know where I will be. But I still have to carve time out for the added details that make up the Easter holiday—family coming in, brunch reservations, dry cleaning some clothes, you know what I mean.

But Easter is not just a “holy day.” Easter really is a full week, a holy week. It begins on Sunday, April 13, with Palm Sunday (9:30 am), continues on Maundy Thursday (6:30 pm), Good Friday with its passion story (noon), and then a glorious Easter Morning (9:30 am).

This year, we are truly journeying with Jesus through Holy Week. On Palm Sunday, we will focus on Jesus entering Jerusalem and the events that led to the morning of the Last Supper. On Maundy Thursday, we will delve deeply into the Last Supper (and why we have communion because of it), and on Good Friday (honestly the least attended worship service we have, but truly one of the most important….), we will hear the entire passion story from John’s perspective and leave the church just as Jesus’ followers left his tomb.

My friends, you can’t have Easter without the events of Holy Week. Well, I guess you could—but you’re missing a lot.

I strongly encourage you all to carve time out in your schedules for our Holy Week services this year. Journey with Jesus. Learn or re-remember what led to that tomb being occupied by God’s Son. Re-live how it felt having YOUR first communion. Pause and sit on a day that is “Good.”

And parents, Holy Week is good for children, too. There is more movement and music in these special services, we have recently added a prayground in the back of the sanctuary for those littles who need to move, and I encourage the creation of “church bags”—special bags filled with books and quiet activities, only available to your children during church.

I know we all love Christmas—I know.

But, we are Christians because of Easter. And we have Easter because of what Jesus said and did during “holy week.”

May God bless you and your loved ones,

Pastor Sarah

Our Holy Week Schedule

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Palm Sunday/Passion of Our Lord – Sunday, April 10th
8am and 10 am

Spy Wednesday – Wednesday, April 13th
A special Wednesday Night Livestream at 6:30pm

Maundy Thursday – Thursday, April 14th
6:30pm
Bay Shore is hosting the Central Conference Joint Service

Good Friday – Friday, April 15th
Noon Service/Sanctuary will be open from 12-3 pm

Easter Sunday – Sunday, April 17th
8am and 10am

MLK Jr. Day of Service!

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Greetings, Bay Shore!

Our first MLK Jr. Day of Service is right around the corner! And yes, we are planning on proceeding with this event on Monday, January 17, 2022, beginning at 10:30 a.m. and ending by 1 p.m.

To work around current concerns, we have made some updates to the event to offer both in-person and remote volunteering options. We continue to welcome more volunteers and additional donations, and hope that this change encourages you to participate, even if you do not feel comfortable or safe gathering in person.

Here are some highlights to know:

  • In-person volunteers will assemble kits and sandwiches inside the church, with 20-40 additional volunteers. Stations will be spaced out throughout the church to allow for social distancing. Masks are required, and we ask that only individuals who are fully COVID-vaccinated participate in the In-Person option.
  • Remote volunteers will stop by the church parking lot by 11a.m. to pick up supplies for making kits/sandwiches at home, and will return the assembled kits/sandwiches by 1p.m. on the same day. Remote volunteers will be provided with everything they need, including instructions and food prep supplies.
  • BOXED Lunch will be provided to all volunteers (both In-Person and Remote) who register by January 12th as a thank you for helping!
  • Consider donating items that we still need! We will be assembling Winter Care Kits, Personal Care Kits, and sandwiches. Supply needs range from gently used hats and mittens, to bottles of shampoo, tissues, and lip balm. All donations go directly to the kits we are assembling, and the more donations we receive, the more we can donate to our neighbors in need.

Register to volunteer or to donate items, via the church website: MLK Jr. Day (bayshorelutheran.org)  You will find links on the webpage to sign up to volunteer, to donate items and more.

Questions? Please email our chair of the event, Julie Murphy at [email protected].

This is a wonderful way for Bay Shore to be actively engaged in our community and serve those in need. Feel free to welcome your neighbors and more to participate and donate, too. With the ability to do your projects at home, this is truly open to all. I pray that you consider helping as much as you are able. Jesus called us to serve—this is just one way we can do so this January!

In Christ,

Pastor Sarah

Special Message from Pastor Sarah

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Greetings, Bay Shore!

As I write this, the snow is falling softly, and my body is aching—yes, Pete and I have been sick all week with “whatever this is.” It’s been a hard week, I won’t sugar-coat it, and I pray you all are healthy and well. I know Pete and I will recover soon, but it will take some time.

We have all seen the headlines this week and last about the rapid spread of Omicron in our area, affecting the vaccinated and unvaccinated. Several of my colleagues have been down the past 7-10 days, so I was not surprised to become ill. But the spread is still happening. There is a lot of concern being shared, and I know you all are invested in our community’s welfare.

The Wisconsin Council of Churches has issued a statement, supported by our Bishop Ericksson, to cease in person worship for the next 4-6 weeks. I have connected with our staff and the Executive Committee for Council to discuss the recommendations. In response, we will do the following:

  • This Sunday, we will have Zoom Worship at 10 a.m. This will allow me to lead worship from home, and also keep the rest of the staff at home as well.
  • After Sunday, the staff and I will review our health situations and decide if Sunday, Jan. 16 will be on Zoom or through livestream (staff only in the building) at 10 a.m.
  • On Tuesday, Jan. 18, the Council will meet via Zoom and review our current practices in line with the WCC’s recommendations.
  • Each group using our building at this time may use discretion about in person gatherings, but as you will see in the Calendar—most are moving to Zoom meetings for the time being. The preschool was closed this week as well.

I know, this feels like a step back. The good news is that we have the vaccines now, and more and more are getting vaccinated, and the experts last night on the news stated this “wave” has a shorter life cycle than Delta. I do not feel we will be in virtual worship mode for long, but it is best to follow the guidance we are given at this time.

You will see in our eNews that we are continuing forward in our plans as best as possible. The staff and I appreciate your support and patience as we maneuver through the latest situation. I will keep you all updated as best as I can through email, Facebook and our website. Let’s stay as connected as possible in the weeks ahead—call one another, join in the Zooms, and participate as you are able.

Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul. 3 John 2:1 (NRSV) This is my sincere prayer for you and our community in the weeks ahead. Please join me in praying for one another.

 

Peace to you and your loved ones,

Pastor Sarah



This Sunday’s Virtual Worship will be at 10 a.m. on Zoom.

The recording of the service will be uploaded to the YouTube Channel following the service.

Fellowship will also happen immediately after the worship service, using the same Zoom room.



https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82399763795?pwd=M2pYMVdHOC9jb1RtMjN2WU1MbmVWdz09

Meeting ID: 823 9976 3795

Passcode: 135606

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