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For Starters — A mix of faith, finances and volunteerism
MOVING FORWARD
Better Safe
Jerry Stephens always worked hard. After a 27-year career in printing, primarily as a press operator,
he became self-employed as a general contractor and roofer. It was work that came with risks. “Climbing up on a
roof is a lot more dangerous than the printing business,” says Stephens, of Memphis, Tennessee.
As a result, he purchased both disability income and life insurance contracts in October 1989.
It was one of the best decisions he ever made.
In the late 1990s, Stephens was diagnosed with advanced skin cancer and had to undergo surgery. About a
year later, he underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments, and today he remains under close watch by
his medical team. Stephens, 62, feels the effects of his illness every day and is still unable to work.
Thanks to his disability income contract, Jerry and his wife, Sandra, receive more than $1,000 per month
in tax-free income. “There wouldn’t be enough if he didn’t have that money coming in,” says 60-year-old Sandra,
who recently retired from Kroger Foods. The Stephenses use the disability income for living expenses, including
a medical insurance premium.
“Disability income insurance is often overlooked, but it can be the most important insurance factor in a
person’s life,” says Theresa Harvey-Picard, a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans assistant financial associate
in Cordova, Tennessee. It was fortunate, she says, that Jerry also opted for a waiver-of-premium rider on
his life insurance contract in 1989. “Once the disability claim was approved, he was able to take the next
steps to have his life insurance premiums waived because of the disability,” she adds.
Harvey-Picard knows firsthand the benefits of disability income insurance. It helped pay her living
expenses when she was temporarily disabled after an accident when she was in her 20s. “Every individual,
especially people who are unmarried and self-employed, should have individual disability income insurance,”
says Harvey-Picard.
—Marcia Jedd
HIGHER ARTS
Scripture Sculpture
When Phil Thompson reads the Scriptures, they come to life—first in his mind, and then in his backyard.
An elementary art teacher in the Oil City School District in Pennsylvania’s industrial Rust Belt, Thompson’s artistic endeavors don’t end when the school bell rings. He spends evenings and summers outside the classroom dedicated to producing kinetic Biblical sculptures. “It brings motion to the piece, a natural involvement of time and flexibility that a stationary work can’t have,” he says.
In his piece “Law and Gospel,” a series of tubes are balanced to form a grid of 10 open squares, representing the Ten Commandments. “But when the breeze comes, it breaks the 90-degree corners,” he explains. “It shows how when we break one commandment, no matter how small, we’ve broken them all.” At the center of the piece is a cross, visible only when the motion stops.
Thompson, a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans member, says his work with sculpture wasn’t Gospel-oriented until 1990. “I asked myself, ‘How can I make this useful?’ and I decided to take what I was learning in the Scriptures and make it visual,” he says. “That was significant to me—an affirmation from the Spirit that there’s something to this.”
Since then, Thompson’s work has appeared as a 6-inch accent piece about the alpha and omega for a family’s home in State College, Pennsylvania, to a 20-foot outdoor façade representing Baptism and Communion for Lutheran Church of our Redeemer in Watertown, South Dakota.
Thompson, who holds a master’s degree in art and sculpture, plans to retire from teaching within the next couple years. He expects to work harder than ever during retirement—and he’s looking forward to it.
“I would like to dedicate my time full-time to sculpture to enhance churches,” he says, “so what I make will glorify Jesus in every project.”
—Jennifer Krempin
A LUTHERAN MOMENT
Davey and Goliath
Davey and Goliath are back, courtesy of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
“Davey and Goliath” is a stop-motion children’s television series originally produced by the Lutheran Church in America. The first show appeared in 1960. In all, 65 15-minute episodes and six half-hour specials were created before the show returned to production in 2004.
The show focuses on Davey Hansen and his talking dog, Goliath, who acts as Davey’s conscience. Story lines carry uplifting, moral lessons on responsibility, care for the environment, acceptance of all people, and other topics designed to affirm a child’s faith in God in an entertaining way.
In 2005, the ELCA released a two-disc collector’s edition featuring four classic episodes and a 30-minute special. For more info on “Davey and Goliath,” visit www.daveyandgoliath.org.
—Tara Perre
Sources: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, www.elca.org and www.daveyandgoliath.org
SERVICE SCENE
Extreme Gratitude
Life for Jamie and Chrissy Dolan changed dramatically on Nov. 18, 2004, when a gunman walked into the St. Petersburg, Florida, electronics store where Jamie worked and opened fire. The man shot three people, including Dolan, then shot himself. Dolan, the only survivor, bears permanent scars, including vision loss.
“[We knew that it] would be a long road to recovery for Jamie, and that finances would be a major stress for the family,” says the Rev. Mike Thurau, pastor at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Largo, where the Dolans are members. What no one realized then was how grandly those financial needs would be met.
A congregational freewill offering, in addition to a $25,000 challenge grant, were enhanced when the Florida Region of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans got on board. Tish Wold, Thrivent Financial consultant in Clearwater, Florida, along with fellow Gulf Beaches Group financial representatives Tom O’Neill, Jamie McCullough and Denton Quick sought Thrivent Financial funds. Through the Care in Regions program, Thrivent Financial added $8,400 to the nearly $29,000 that had been raised by the church and community. With the additional challenge grant, the Dolans received more than $62,000 to offset ongoing medical expenses.
In addition, the South Pinellas County Chapter of Thrivent Financial added $2,500 in supplemental funding to a concert that raised more than $5,000 for the Dolans and their three children, aged 3 to 13.
But that’s not the end of the story. On March 6, the Dolans found out they had been selected for a new home, compliments of ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” The program aired May 1.
“The Dolans recognize God’s presence with them,” Thurau says. “Every gift has been cherished.”
—Donna Mulder
FOUNDATIONS
All-around Beauty
Every Sunday members of Concordia Lutheran Church in Louisville, Kentucky, walk into a chapel that reflects, at every turn, the very best in architecture and craftsmanship. Worshipers also find the following meditation printed in each bulletin:
“This building has been created out of thanks for Him and reflects the same bond of loving partnership between God and what God has made. It is a sign of God’s love for us and our delight in God.”
In 1930, the small German congregation had outgrown its building and began making plans for a new one. Led by the Rev. Carl Eberhard, pastor at Concordia from 1927 to 1975, the congregation recruited renowned church architect Ralph Adams Cram.
Cram designed a small but masterful sanctuary in the shape of a cross. The narrow nave, later to be lined with stained-glass windows, leads the eye to the chancel, where, among the most elaborate decorations, are carvings on the lectern, which were done by Eberhard himself.
“My favorite place to stand is at the entry to the chancel,” says the Rev. Curtis Peters, Concordia’s pastor. “At this point one sees symbolically rich stained glass and carvings in every direction. And there my eyes are drawn to the carving of a gracious Christ above the altar.”
The beauty all around, according to Peters, makes it easy to stand in awe of the God they love and serve. “The sanctuary affects our worship,” he says. “Because the setting reflects God’s glory and a human dedication to present our very best before God, we are urged to present our very best in worship, too.”
—Sarah Asp
FUND FACTS
The Sooner the Cheaper
Assuming your goal is to accumulate $750,000 by age 65, look at how much less you need to save each month if you start saving earlier in life—thanks to the power of compounding.
Note: Assumes 8 percent rate of return. This hypothetical example is for illustrative purposes only. It is not intended to represent the performance of any particular Thrivent Financial product.
LABORS OF LOVE
Match Made in Heaven
Wayne Holle can’t pay for a haircut in his hometown of Stewartstown, Pennsylvania. No one will let him. Thousands of dollars have been raised on his behalf. People all over the country have prayed for him. So why all the attention?
“God put me in the right place at the right time,” says Holle, a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans financial associate. Holle donated a kidney to 14-year-old Asa Keimig, a fellow member at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Parkton, Maryland, in March. Asa had Alport’s Syndrome, an inherited kidney disease that causes kidney failure.
Holle learned of Keimig’s need for a kidney donor at church when Asa’s mother, Karen, asked for support in the form of prayers. Little did she know Holle would do much more than pray.
“When he came forward, I argued with him tooth and nail that he couldn’t do it,” Karen recalls. “He has five kids of his own to think about, but he wouldn’t sway. God had laid this on his heart, and he wasn’t budging.”
But soon Asa’s condition worsened, and by August of 2004 it was clear the eighth-grader would need a kidney transplant. “Asa barely had enough energy to do his schoolwork,” says Holle.
So the testing began. Amazingly, Holle was a nearly perfect match. Karen likens it to a match between brothers. Once the match was clear, the concern for Asa turned to a concern for Holle and the time he would lose earning a living to support his family. “My prayer was that needs would be taken care of,” says Holle. “But the Lord has answered that prayer above and beyond anything I was expecting.”
Holle’s church family, friends and coworkers organized a spaghetti-dinner benefit at Redeemer Lutheran on his behalf through Thrivent Financial. In all, they raised more than $34,000. After a $12,500 match from Thrivent Financial, the amount totaled nearly $47,000, which helped to pay expenses for both families. “It’s just been one miracle after another,” says Holle.
As for Asa, he is back to playing baseball with his siblings and shooting baskets at the neighbor’s house. The new kidney started functioning while he was still on the operating table and shows no signs of rejection.
“My face is a permanent smile,” Karen says. “He’s a whole new kid. And Wayne, I just respect and admire him so much. It’s been a wonderful journey. The good Lord has truly blessed us.”
—Tara Perre
For more information on organ donations, visit Labors Of Love.
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