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Live • Give • Grow
The Unshakable St. Mark’s
 What: Since its 1895 dedication, St. Mark’s Lutheran Church has survived two of San Francisco’s most devastating earthquakes—the first in 1906, the second in 1989. In June 2005, the structure underwent a yearlong, $11 million renovation—part of which was funded by a Thrivent Financial church loan—to stabilize it against future quakes.
The Architecture: “The dark brick exterior is stern and imposing,” says Gary Schilling, an architect and member of St. Mark’s. “But you walk inside and it has pastel colors, rounded corners and curved pews. It’s an eclectic mix between Roman and Gothic architecture.”
Notable Feature: “A unique feature is a brand-new Taylor and Boody tracker [or mechanical] organ,” says Schilling, who is also the substitute organist at St. Mark’s. The organ and the church’s superior acoustics draw musicians from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and professionals who practice and give concerts at St. Mark’s.
View more photos of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco.
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Members In Action
 Walk This Way - Thrivent Financial members in Montana take steps to support cancer treatment.
When Louise Nissen heard about Hi-Line Sletten Cancer Center, a new treatment facility coming to Havre, Montana, she knew what it meant: more health care options closer to home. And when the fledgling center issued a call for fund-raising help, Nissen knew just where to turn: her Blaine-Phillips County Chapter of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
Nissen, records director for the chapter, also approached the nearby Hill, Liberty and Chouteau county Thrivent chapters about supporting the center, scheduled to open in August 2008. The Rev. Michael O’Hearn, Hill County Chapter president and pastor of First Lutheran Church in Havre, was on board immediately. “I have volunteered to drive people hundreds of miles to get their chemotherapy and radiation,” he says. “It’s a real hardship for them to have to travel that far for treatment.”
Together, the chapters organized the Walk for the Hi-Line Sletten Cancer Center. To raise funds, 158 participants walked three or more miles in various locations on a mild September day. Some drove more than 110 miles just to walk! About 60 participants then gathered in Havre, where they walked to the site of the future center, ate lunch and released balloons holding the names of friends and family affected by cancer.
The group raised $18,715 and received an additional $7,500 from Thrivent Financial. For Nissen, whose family has been affected by cancer, the walk showcased the best of small towns. “Our communities really pull together to help out people in need,” she says.
—Holly O’Dell
Find out how you can connect with your local Thrivent chapter. Click on Chapter Locator at www.thrivent.com/members.
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Financial Solutions
Balancing retirement savings with college goals.
PROBLEM: Matt and Paula Long, both 34, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, are the parents of two: Alyssa, 6, and Jason, 3. Like many parents with young children, the Longs are doing a financial balancing act: saving for retirement and their children’s education. The Longs started to save for schooling early on. “When our first was born, we opened a 529 plan for her,” Matt says. “With the second one, we started a Coverdell education savings account.” But, their retirement savings ran a distant second.
CONSIDERATIONS: There is nothing wrong with a college savings program, as long as you fund your retirement first, says Rusty Dicks, the Longs’ Thrivent Financial for Lutherans representative. “When I talk to my clients, I reiterate the same thing: Make sure you have enough for retirement and make sure you’ll be protected if you die. Once you do that, if you still want to put money aside for college funding, use college accounts.”
Deciding to put your retirement savings before education funding can be a difficult decision to make. “I walked the Longs through several considerations,” Dicks says. “If you put all of your money in a college-specific account, your options become limited. What if your kids don’t go to school, or they receive a full-ride scholarship, or they go into the service and they don’t need that money? If you take it out and use it for something other than college, you pay taxes and a penalty on the earnings. And if your child qualifies for financial aid, any money in a college savings account may count toward the amount you are required to pay.”
SOLUTION: Following Dicks’ advice to put retirement savings first, the Longs opened two Roth IRAs, one in Matt’s name and one in Paula’s. Once they reach the maximum contribution for the year, they will again start to fund the children’s accounts.
Since contributions to a Roth IRA can be withdrawn tax and penalty free, and earnings can be withdrawn penalty free for educational purposes, the Longs will have money available should their kids need it. At the same time, they are securing retirement income for themselves.
—Sarah Asp Olson
Note This! Look for more tips on college funding in the Spring 2008 issue of Thrivent magazine.
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Pour Another Cup
If you just can’t get going in the morning without that cuppa joe, don’t worry. That coffee you crave is packed with more than just caffeine. It’s actually good for you. In fact, recent studies gathered by the National Coffee Association from the research arms of universities, such as the Harvard School of Public Health and the Department of Medicine at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, suggest that coffee can combat or stave off a number of ailments, including type II diabetes and Parkinson’s. So, here’s to your health—and the health benefits of coffee.
Coffee Fast Facts:
Mega Boost: Coffee contains more powerful antioxidants than green tea and red wine.
Quick Step: Coffee increases stamina and can reduce muscle pain during exercise.
Write On: Coffee can improve your handwriting and help you write more quickly.
Think Big: Coffee has been shown to improve memory.
SOURCE: National Coffee Association, www.coffeescience.org
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Together Forever
Listen up, couples! The key to keeping romance alive can be kept to just one word: TOGETHER. There is no way around it—romance cannot happen alone. Gifts and flowers are nice, but there is no substitute for quality time spent together. The Rev. Daniel Thews of Faith Lutheran Church in Appleton, Wisconsin, offers five fun and fresh ideas to get you and your sweetie working together.
- Laugh Together: Whether it’s stopping by a comedy club, seeing a funny movie or simply reminiscing about an event, laughter is good for the soul—and your relationship.
- Serve Together: When two people roll up their sleeves and do something worthwhile, God works through that experience to knit them closer together.
- Play Together: Exercise, go on a date, share a hobby and simply have fun.
- Grow Together: Stretching your minds through Bible study, a book club, lectures at a local college or collaborative research keeps things fresh and new.
- Experiment Together: Do something you’ve never done before. You don’t have to venture far. Prepare a new recipe, paint a room in your house, take dance lessons or try out a new restaurant.
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Travel Talk
 Thinking about a spring trip? These Thrivent Financial for Lutherans colleagues offer a few
reasons to follow through.
For Perspective “The best getaways satisfy the need to be refreshed and renewed. They also help you gain perspective on just how easily the hectic pace of our lives can overshadow the priorities of faith and family.”
—Dale Oelker, 43,
Greenwood, Indiana
Manager, Lutheran community services, Indiana Region, admired Arizona’s Grand Canyon in 2006
For Experience “I love to meet new people and experience new things. When you are visiting someplace outside your comfort zone, it allows you to push your limits and expand your understanding of the world.”
—Jennifer Moard, 28,
Appleton, Wisconsin
Customer service professional, Insurance Interaction Center, hiked the Scottish Highlands in 2000
For Fun “We enjoyed Golden Gate Bridge, the trolley cars, Chinatown and lots of seafood down on Fisherman’s Wharf.
We did it simply because it had been years since we had traveled together just for fun.”
—Jeff Frost, 51,
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Financial representative, saw all things San Francisco in 2007
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 Surf Boldly!
Are you proud to be Lutheran? The folks behind www.oldlutheran.com certainly are. They have designed a fun, interactive Web site perfect for Luther-lovers everywhere. Along with games like “Lutheran Mad Libs,” the site features a “Humor” tab with church bulletin bloopers and an “Ode to Jell-O.” The Web store stocks such Luther-ific goods as a Martin Luther bobblehead doll, “Here I Stand” golf balls and “Lutheran Rose” jewelry. So, show your Lutheran pride—dive in and surf boldly! Bonus: Thrivent Financial members can receive a 20 percent discount on orders placed by April 15. Just enter “Thrivent08” in the coupon code as you check out.
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has no affiliation with Old Lutheran and does not endorse or make any representation as to the quality, accuracy or functionality of merchandise and information found on www.oldlutheran.com.
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Financial Representatives in Action
Thrivent Financial representatives give and realize amazing returns.
 How does it feel to give back? Just ask one of the 30 financial representatives from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans who spent a week in Guatemala with Thrivent Builds SM Worldwide in September 2007. This first-of-its-kind “ambassador” trip, meant to create awareness and advocacy of Thrivent Builds Worldwide, had unforeseen benefits.
The experience offered its participants a new outlook—and a sense of pride in the organization they represent. “Seeing people with little or no money who are still very happy gives you great perspective on your own life,” says Tim Schmidt, a Thrivent Financial managing partner in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. “We also saw Thrivent Financial values in action. We don’t just say we’re going to do good, we actually do good.”
The financial representatives, chosen in part because of their ongoing commitment to volunteering, worked with Habitat for Humanity® and the future homeowners to build four concrete-block homes in Panajachel. Thrivent Financial executives Nikki Sorum, divisional vice president, and Russ Swansen, chief investment officer, also participated in the trip.
When the work was done, the participants found that the value of their experience far exceeded the value of the homes they constructed. “It’s not just your everyday vacation,” says Josh Langholz, a Thrivent Financial representative in Orlando, Florida. “You get more out of this than a normal trip to Disney World.”
—Holly O’Dell
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Continuing to Care | Participants
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