CARE ABOUNDS IN COMMUNITIES®  
Each year, Thrivent Financial provides members in each chapter a certain amount of dollars for volunteer hands-on service projects and/or fund-raising activities that help people in need and not-for-profit organizations. Each chapter has a leadership board, elected by the members of the chapter, to represent members in managing and administering the funds available for the year.

Members -- LIKE YOU -- form service teams to plan a project. Before the activity, the service team submits a funding request to the leadership board. The board votes to supplement the funds the service team raised (e.g., provide $1 for every $3 raised by the service team) or to provide funds for the purchase of materials needed to do a service project. Funding is provided after the activity is completed and the service team submits appropriate reporting to the leadership board.  Of these funds, some are set aside specifically for social and fund-raising events for Lutheran schools.

Last year, members from our chapter conducted 12 service projects and 48 fund-raisers, raising $376,456. In addition, $72,070 of Care Abounds in Communities funds were provided to support these activities. For all 60 projects, service team volunteers contributed 19,959 volunteer hours.

In other words, members took the Care Abounds in Communities program funds and turned them into something much more—think of the impact that this $448,526 and the 19,959 hours contributed through acts of love had on the recipients of these activities and on our community.  

In 2009, members of our chapter have $59,656 of Care Abounds in Communities funds available to them. To date, the leadership board has approved 9 projects for a total of $17,650 in funds, meaning we have $42,006 remaining.  

If you are starting up a volunteer project or are part of a volunteer project where Care Abounds in Communities funding can help your effort, please contact one of the chapter leaders listed on the next page and we'll provide the guidelines and help you through the process.

CARE IN CONGREGATIONS®
Similarly, Thrivent Financial provides its members in each Lutheran congregation a certain amount of dollars each year for volunteer service projects and/or fund-raising activities that help the congregation or its related Lutheran institution(s). All 21 Lutheran congregations in our chapter have congregational coordinators who are responsible for managing and administering these Care in Congregations funds.

Last year, members in our chapter turned $30,846 of Care in Congregations funds into almost $80,000 ($47,831 of funds raised) and 9,836 volunteer hours.  They completed 47 fund-raising activities and 17 hands-on service projects through this program.

If you have an idea for a fund-raiser or service project to help your congregation, contact a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans congregational coordinator from your congregation to see if Care in Congregations funds can help increase the impact. You can find your congregational coordinator on our Chapter Web site at www.lutheransonline.com/southeastoutagamiecountychapter

YOU, our members, are what make Thrivent Financial for Lutherans a unique and special organization. As you can see above, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and its members, through our Care programs, multiply the good that we can do together.

President -- Janie Kinder, 920-380-2315, jkinder@radissonpapervalley.com
Records Director – Sandy Potts, 920-993-0034, spotts@lsswis.org
Financial Director – Wayne Koffarnus, 920-788-9226, wkoffarnus@aol.com
Congregational Service Team Director – Oliver Kruse, 920-989-1943, okruse@execpc.com
Community Service Team Director – Ranae Sommers, 920-832-4064, fsommers@new.rr.com
Communications Director – Nicole Doebert, 920-628-4403, nicole.doebert@thrivent.com
Events Director – Dona Schimmelpfenning, 920-734-0682, donutspring@att.net
Assistant Financial Director – Ted Landmann, 920-739-4636, tlandmann@new.rr.com

To find out more about the chapter, how to request funding for an activity you are conducting, and other chapter needs, please contact any of the leaders listed above. We'll be happy to help you!

ADVISORY ROLES
In addition, the following people serve in special advisory roles to help the leadership board and work with unique needs:

Thrivent Builds Chapter Specialist: Fred Ebbesen, 920-836-2153, fred.ebbesen@gmail.com
Thrivent Builds Chapter Specialist: Julie Van Sambeek, 920-788-6447, julievansambeek@new.rr.com
Financial Associate Advisor: Dan Voss, 920-628-5500, dan.voss@thrivent.com
Financial Associate Advisor: Susan Stellmacher, 920-205-9576, susan.stellmacher@thrivent.com
Financial Associate Advisor: Dave Buss, 920-470-3189, dave.buss@thrivent.com

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and our members strongly support the purpose of this special day and the impact it has on communities nationwide. Last year, youth and adult members conducted nearly 3,000 activities across the country.

How can you participate in 2009? It's easy. Find a need, form a service team of individuals from six separate Thrivent Financial households, and contact one of our chapter leaders to see how we can help you. We have many resources to help make your activity great, including:
- A checklist that includes everything you need to know to conduct a successful activity and receive funding from the chapter.
- Promotional items to help you recruit volunteers and publicize your activity for optimum attendance.
- Funding to purchase T-shirts, refreshments, supplies and more.

To strengthen the impact of this special day of service, we prefer chapter service teams to conduct JOIN HANDS DAY activities on or near May 2, but eligible activities may be held between April 1 and June 30. Also, activities held on May 2 may be considered for national recognition by JOIN HANDS DAY—see the JOIN HANDS DAY website at www.joinhandsday.org.

You’ll find that the rewards of participating far outweigh the time and effort involved in planning an activity. So tell your family, friends and congregation about this day, then "join hands" and see the power of membership grow!

Your chapter leadership board is here to help you along the way. Please call Ranae Sommers at
920-832-4064 for more information.

We want to make this site a "one-stop shop" for members who want to request funds for volunteer activities and/or who want to find out more about the chapter and how volunteering through the chapter can help multiply the good they do. To visit, go to:

www.lutheransonline.com/southeastoutagamiecountychapter