Challenge - Fall 2007

The Newsletter of the Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission, Rock Point, AZ

From the Board Chair

Dear Friends and Supporters of NELM,

Summer is not a "lazy" time at the Mission . A steady stream of volunteer groups cause bursts of energy, activity, and grace. Whether it's putting on roofs, stuccoing the school building, teaching sewing classes or the Luther College reading course or VBSs, the mission and community are enriched. And so are the people who come to participate in these activities. The mission is a place of grace, touching many lives.

The NELM Board was part of this frenzy of activity. We met at Rock Point, August 10-11 to develop input for the 2008-2010 Strategic Plan. The plan, which will be presented for adoption at the October meeting, provides strategic direction for the Mission's programs.

All of us will be challenged to come up with the funding and personal commitment to carry out the six goals identified in the plan. Thank you for your current support. As you are blessed, so you are a blessing to the mission and the Rock Point community. The mission needs your donations of time, prayers, and money now and in the years to come.

In partnership and fellowship with the Navajo people,

Ron Augustson, Chair, Mission Board of Directors

Christmas Food Boxes

As the Christmas season approaches, NELM will be working in partnership with Southwest Indian Foundation to provide needy families with food baskets consisting of a 20 pound turkey, stuffing, potatoes, flour, fruit, vegetables, milk, and other necessities. If you would like to sponsor a family at Christmas, one food basket will cost $68.00. Please send your donation specifying the Christmas Food Box Program, to the Navajo Lutheran Mission, c/o Tara Chee, Community Services Coordinator. We thank you for making this year's upcoming Christmas season brighter for many families in the Rock Point Community.

The Executive's Corner

It is now just over 5 months since I moved to the Mission, and lots of things have happened during this time. Starting in June, groups of earnest volunteers graced the Mission with their presence all summer. My fears of being isolated during the summer were instantly erased.

Volunteers came from Arizona, California, Nevada, Texas, New Mexico, and even as far as Ohio and Wisconsin! Young and old, pastors and lay persons, youth groups and work groups, craft groups and VBS groups – all here to share in the service of continuing to make the Mission a better place for the Navajo community at Rock Point! It is because of the dedication and service of people like this, as well as all the committed churches and individuals that help us raise money for projects, that the Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission is able to continue its work in the community.

The following pages are filled with stories and photos of many of the events of this summer. As you read and look at the photos, say a silent prayer of thank-you to all who are committed to the Mission.

Your continued support is greatly needed and appreciated!

Blessings,
Dolores Weis, Executive Director

All Creatures Great and Small

"You gave people charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority – the flocks and herds and all the animals, the birds in the sky, the fish in the ocean....."

Psalm 8:6-8

This bible teaching has become a reality for the Mission this summer. Our first experience was with a small starving kitten roaming the grounds, missing half an ear and part of his tail. He was brought into the Mission office and instantly named "Luther". With lots of tender care and nursing, he recovered and soon won the hearts of many of the Mission employees. He stayed at the Mission during the day entertaining office staff, and spent the weekends with our School Principal. Eventually the principal adopted him, because they decided they could not live without him as part of their family!

Our second ward was once again a very small starving kitten who was found wandering in the kitchen, and had a severely wounded leg, and most of his whiskers had been broken. With the help of several loving volunteers who named him Milo, he was nursed back to health and is now living in comfort in a home in California. The same volunteer group adopted a homeless puppy (Jasper), who is now thriving in the care of one of our visiting Pastors!

Often strays from the reservation wander onto the Mission. God gave us the authority over and the responsibility to feed and care for animals of all types. Navajo culture practices the loving care of all living things, but often many families cannot afford the high veterinary fees for health care, immunizations and neutering. Perhaps in the future some type of assistance from the mission or other sources may be available – until then we will try our best to care for those lost animals that need some love and nurturing.

Roofing

Summer of 2007

This was the summer of accomplishments – and what a hard-working group of volunteers we had all summer long! The Mission was abuzz with the sounds of hammering, mixing, drilling, painting and the many other tasks completed to maintain our aging school and other buildings. Among the repair projects that were completed:

• Stuccoing and exterior painting of the school and the Director's house
• Metal roofs placed on the Thrift Shop and 2 other buildings
• New signs placed at the Missions entrance
• Complete interior painting and organizing of the school building
• Inventory and re-vamping of the school library (and what a job that was!)
• Flooring laid in several apartments
• Windows and doors replaced

Not only were there maintenance activities going on, but we were blessed with two groups who offered Vacation Bible School for the community children and adults. VBS has always been a favorite with our community children, and both sessions were well attended.

We also hosted a third year of a summer reading group and leadership program for young adults. In addition, it has been an NELM tradition for the past 10 years or more, for a group of sewing ladies from Wisconsin to come and teach both children and adults how to use the machines and make all kinds of special craft projects.

We truly are thankful for all the hard work these groups donated this year, and know that without them, we could not have accomplished all that we wanted to do this year.

Let us know if you would like come to the Navajo Mission as a volunteer next summer. We always have plenty of work and projects to be done!

Mission Statement

"The Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission, in partnership with the Navajo people and rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is a community seeking to meet the educational, health, social and spiritual needs of the Navajo people."

More Students this Year

For the first time in many years, the Navajo Mission School has reached its limit for accepting students this fall. Because the Mission is a small school, with two grades per teacher, we are limited to the amount of students each teacher can have in their classroom. To date, our school is completely full with 65 students. Pre-registration was at a record high, and even on the first day of school parents were bringing in their children to register. This is truly a statement of how the Mission is reaching out to the community, as well as showing the need for future growth of the school.

Rainbow over Rock Point

Car Donated to Mission

This summer, the Mission was contacted by a couple in Sedona, AZ and we were asked if we wanted a Ford Focus (in very good condition) to use at the Mission. After some organizing and planning, we were able to pick up the vehicle and it is now used constantly for numerous errands and meetings by our employees.

A BIG thank-you for your most generous donation to NELM!

Thrivent Match

For those of you who are members of the Thrivent match program, you may find the donation form at the Thrivent web site, under the Giving Plus program. If you do not have access to the web site you may contact the Thrivent office at 1-800-847-4836 and they will send you a form and more information by mail. Thanks to all who use this process for donating to the Mission!!

Board Completes Strategic Planning

As part of the commitment of the Mission Board to make NELM the best it can be, the decision was made in April to write a strategic plan (the first in many years) that will guide the Mission in growth and direction for the future. The three-year plan will begin in January, 2008 and go through December, 2010.

Ed Naylor, consultant of The Naylor Group and previous interim Executive Director for the Mission, facilitated three focus groups in order to find out exactly what direction the people of Rock Point wanted the Mission to follow. All groups were asked the same questions – including what were the strengths and weaknesses of the Mission, and what they would do if they had One Million dollars to spend!

The first focus group consisted of Mission employees, who spent 5 hours debating these questions. A second meeting was held in the Chapter House for all community members to attend. The process culminated with the Mission Board meeting the second weekend in August to give their input and analyze all the responses from the focus groups. As a result of this final exercise, six major goals were identified and accepted by the Board for use in determining future directions of the Mission.

A summary of these goals are:

• Strengthen Partnership with the Navajo
• Address the Spiritual Needs of the Community
• Implement new Social Service Programs
• Provide Quality Education
• Ensure Financial Diversity and Stability
• Upgrade/replace Mission Facilities and Buildings

The completed written plan, including objectives, strategies and timelines will be presented to the board for final approval in October.

Serving on the mission board in 2007: