(Reader 1: Ken)
Today we are here to celebrate a vibrant and mosaic church. We are here to
recognize God’s hand at work in this church; a church made up of many different
people from many different backgrounds and cultures; a church that has seen
change yet has always trusted in the power of God, and the Wisdom of His Word; a
church that has always taught that no matter what part of the globe we come from
or what language we speak, in Christ, we are united, by His Word we are
connected, and by His grace we are saved. We are here to celebrate the work and
ministry of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Whitestone.

(Reader 2: Eunice)
Looking back on Immanuel’s humble beginnings there is no doubt that God was
present in that first official meeting on February 24, 1895 when nine people met
together to organize the congregation. From that day forward, God worked through
the pastors, community, and volunteers to shepherd His people and grow His
Church.

(Reader 3: Pastor Johnson)
By the summer of 1895 Immanuel’s congregation had grown large enough to call
Pastor F. Kronenke, a recent graduate of Concordia Seminary in St. Lewis to serve
as their first pastor. At this point they did not yet have their own building, but
continued meeting in a space provided by the Methodist Church in the area. It
would not be until 1902 that the early members of Immanuel Lutheran Church
would worship in their own sanctuary at its present location. Nevertheless, they
trusted in God to provide and went about His work. They soon formed a Ladies
Aid group and Sunday School that provided language and religious instruction to
the children in the congregation.

(Reader 4: Abisha)
Under the leadership of its next pastor, Pastor George Thomas, Immanuel
continued to carry out its mission to teach and preach the good news of the gospel
to the people of Whitestone, all the while they prayed for a building they could call
their own. By October of 1901 their prayers were finally answered. Immanuel
called it’s third pastor, Pastor H.F. Bunke on October 6th, 1901, and soon after
work began on the new church building which was dedicated on July 6, 1902. By
the Spring of 1905, Immanuel dedicated its first organ, and in1907 the bells in the
were installed. Immanuel’s current organ was installed in 1922 and continues to be
used to sing praises to this day.

(Reader 5: Susan)
In 1937 the lighted steeple cross was erected and served as not only a call to
worship, but also a way for planes to line up on the LaGuardia Airport runway for
landing. The brightly lit cross became a well known feature in the community.
Immanuel was soon known as the church with the lighted cross. Immanuel
Lutheran Church had now become firmly established in Whitestone and continued
to play an important role in the Whitestone community.

(Reader 6: Hella)
This integral part that Immanuel played in the community was expanded further
when it decided to open a Christian day school. By this time, Immanuel had called
its 9th pastor, Pastor Alrin A. Maas from Trinity Lutheran Church in Boston
Massachusetts. Pastor Maas and his wife worked tirelessly to promote the start of
the school and with 179 students in the the Sunday School class by the end of
1949, they had strong reason to believe that God would bless their vision. In the
Spring of 1950 plans for a four room school were drawn up and on September 11,
1950 a brand new four room school was constructed and school began with 57
students in six grades. By 1954 Immanuel Lutheran School had expanded to teach
through eighth grade. The school continued to grow and by 1976 it added Nursery
and Summer School programs which then extended on into the school year. Pastor
Maas served the congregation until his health declined and he retired in 1976.

(Reader 7: Stephen or Barbara)
Immanuel Lutheran Church and School then continued under the leadership of its
principle Richard Liescheidt and its new pastor Pastor Joel M. Janzow. During this
time the church and district went through many transitions. However, through it all
the Dorcas Society, Friendship Club, Men’s Club, Altar Guild, Choir, Naomi-Ruth
Ladies Group, the Council, the Call Committee and all the members of the
congregations helped to keep the church and school running. By 1994 Immanuel
called its eleventh pastor, Pastor Bruce Alan Skelton.

(Reader 8: Cathy Giuliani)
The next several years brought about many changes and transitions but the core
value and mission of the church remained strong. In 2000 after Pastor Bruce Skelton
took another call and there were several years of pastoral vacancy. During that time
Pastor Davie Mueller came to serve as an interim pastor until Pastor David Demera
was called in 2003. Pastor Demera served the Immanuel congregation faithfully
until 2011 when he was called to serve in another Lutheran congregation. In 2007,
Pastor Johnson Rethinasamy was called to serve as associate pastor to help the
church to move forward in reaching out to new members of immigrant
communities. In 2010 the congregation called Pastor Rethinasamy to serve as its
lead pastor.

(Reader 10: Allen)
Pastor Alfred Thiagarajan and Pastor Rajesh Dass serve as the Tamil and Hindi
pastors, while the Chinese ministry is led by catechist minister Mrs. Mimi Wang.
In 2019, Pastor Sean Chapman was called to serve as the pastor for Family Life
and new mission initiative ministries of Immanuel, and Ms. Anna Lutz serves as
the Director of Youth and Campus Ministry for Immanuel Lutheran’s campus
ministry at Queens College. Although the Day School was closed in 2000,
Immanuel Lutheran still offers regular Christian instruction through its weekly
Sunday School for children and youth. Each summer the church hosts a weeklong
Vacation Bible School program for children ages four through twelve, and provides
a weekly Bible study for teenagers and young adults throughout the semester.

(Reader 11: Anna)
Immanuel Lutheran also supports a variety of outreach ministries that extend out
into its community and surrounding area. One ministry serves to reach elderly and
homebound at the Grand Nursing Home, while another reaches out to residents of
the Bronx Psychiatric Center across the river. The third outreach ministry is the
Vine Lutheran ministry at Queens College which is a campus ministry that serves
the students of Queens College and provides spiritual support to young adults as
they navigate through changes in their education, life, and relationships.

(Reader 12: Pastor Sean)
In addition to these outreach ministries, Immanuel is very active in encouraging
and training up church workers for the future to planting new churches in New
York city area as well as around the nation and the world. Over the past several
years, Immanuel in Whitestone has trained, supported, encouraged twenty workers
for service in its own and other congregations. In 2018, Immanuel helped to start a
Chinese Church in Brooklyn which has seen continued growth since its beginning.
Immanuel Lutheran is blessed and supported by over 300 members who gather
together from all over the New York Tri-state area and continue to live out its
mission of “Learning, Living, and Sharing Christ’s Love with All!”