News Releases - Prince of Peace

Please attend a special congregational meeting on August 16, 2009 at 12:30 PM in the Fellowship Hall. The purpose of this meeting is to vote to extend a call to a new Senior Pastor.

Rev. Julie Rowe, a Lutheran pastor for 15 years who is now working with the Europe and Middle East Desk of the ELCA's Global Mission unit, will present an adult forum giving insight she has gained over the 6 years she spent in Israel/Palestine. Join us for a lively discussion in Room 206 at 9:45 a.m. March 22.

Plans are in the works for this year's Mission Trip, and registration has begun. Packets with more information and registration forms may be picked up in the Fellowship Hall. High school youth and college age and other adults are needed to work to restore homes damaged by natural disasters. We will be going to Cedar Rapids, IA to repair damage done by flooding last summer. Skilled adults are especially needed for carpentry, electrical, sheet rock hanging and finishing, painting, and cooking. Registration is open to those who have completed eighth grade and older. Registration and down payment of $100 will be due by Sunday, April 5th 2009. Contact Mark Gamb or Karen Wagner at 847-885-7010.

This year's Vacation Bible School (VBS) will be held from June 22nd to 26th. The theme of this year's VBS is an exciting bayou adventure titled Crocodile Dock: Where Fearless Kids Shine God's Light. This program is designed for children who were 3 years old by last September through those children currently in fourth grade. This program is an effective outreach to the community of and around Prince of Peace, and we encourage you to invite friends and neighbors. Registration will be limited to the first 130 registrants, so please register early.

Whether you are a veteran VBSer or are just getting your feet wet, consider volunteering to help this year. You will have a great time and be part of an exciting ministry. Volunteer and registration forms will be available in April at the church office.

Starting this spring, we are changing our baptism preparation model to focus on the centrality of God's grace, the journey of faith, and the partnership between congregation and parents and sponsors of the children who are baptized. Beginning April 5, 2009, we will offer quarterly baptismal retreats, which are a prerequisite for baptisms at Prince of Peace. These retreats will be held on Sunday afternoons, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. They will begin with a meal. They will include time for fellowship with other families, learning opportunities, and talking about practical issues related to the baptism rite.

If you would like to schedule a baptism at Prince of Peace, first call the church office and share some basic information with us and it will be kept in a request form. The Pastor will contact you to confirm the date of the baptism, answer any questions, and enroll you in one of the baptism retreats. It's important for nonmembers and members who will baptize their first child to note: no baptism dates will be scheduled prior to participation in a baptism retreat. If you are a member and have already taken a baptism class, you may schedule a baptism at any time. You, also, will not be required to attend the baptism retreat, but we invite you to be a resource person for the retreats. We feel that this new model better reflects a Lutheran understanding of baptism and provides an educational opportunity that fits the busy schedules of families today.

Schaumburg - The Prince of Peace Church Preschool will open registration for the 2009-2010 school year starting at 9:30 a.m., Monday, Feb. 2 in the Welcome Center. Registration forms are available at the church. Interested families should feel free to schedule a visit at the preschool before registration if they are interested.

The preschool will also be holding an "Oodles of Noodles" Spaghetti Dinner from 5:00-7:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 7. Dinner will be served at 5:30. There are lots of activities, crafts, a movie and even an interactive opera! The cost is: $6.50 for adults and $4.00 for children 3 and older. For more information, call the preschool at 847-885-7036.

This year the special Thanksgiving Food Drive was sponsored by the 9th Grade Confirmation Class. Monetary donations were good, however original food donations were significantly less than previous Thanksgiving Food Drives.

The 9th Grade Confirmation Class at Prince of Peace is in charge of packing and sorting the donations. When they saw what was collected they were dissappointed and discussed it in their high school Sunday School class with teacher, Lynette Perry.

They and Mrs. Perry challenged each other to go out and collect food during the comming week. On the next Sunday, November 23 they were happy to sort and pack another 400 plus pounds of food which was delivered by the Perry family to Elijah's Pantry in time for Thanksgiving.

The guest preacher will be Rev. Stephen Bowman, Executive Director for Evangelical Outreach and Congregational Mission for the ELCA. He served as Bishop of the Metropolitan New York Synod during the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

A pie fellowship will be held following the service. Participants are asked to bring a dessert to be shared with other worshippers.

Prince of Peace Preschool celebrates Holidays
Special holiday events are being planned at the Prince of Peace Lutheran Church Preschool in Schaumburg.

Students will be holding a feast with Pastor Gordon Straw on Nov. 24 and Nov. 25. Students and Pastor Straw will share a special snack together.

Students at the school are also preparing a Christmas program that will be performed from 6:30-7:30 p.m. and again at 7:30-8:30 at the church, 930 W. Higgins Rd., Schaumburg.

Baptism Classes
Parents who would like to have their children baptized at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Schaumburg must attend a series of three classes.

The classes explore faith development, the sacrament of baptism, how church and family partner to raise children in faith, and other topics. The next classes will be held at the church on June 1 at 11 a.m., June 8 at 9:45 a.m., and June 22 at 11 a.m.

New Member Classes Scheduled at Prince of Peace Church
Looking for a great church? The next series of New Member Classes for Prince of Peace Lutheran Church (ELCA) will be held at the June 1, 8 & 15 at 9:45 a.m. at the church.

Anyone interested in membership at Prince of Peace should contact the church office at 847-885-7010 to confirm your attendance.

Schaumburg Church Celebrates 50 Years In Community
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church (ELCA) celebrates its 50th year in the community in 2008.

In addition to offering Sunday services for all those years, the church has served as a gathering place for community members who aren't necessarily church members. The building is used as a meeting place for groups like Boy Scouts, but also AA. Prince of Peace has also offered pre-school for the past 40 years.

The church continues to look new ways to reach out to other communities, and is in the midst of co-sponsoring a successful series of "Abraham Salons," in which Muslims, Jews and Christians have gathered to discuss both their common heritage, as well as ongoing differences.

Church members have been looking back with a visit from pastors who have previously served the church, as well as services based on bulletins from Sundays in the past.

A formal celebration will be held from noon to 3 p.m., April 27 at the Seville, 700 Barrington Road, Streamwood. Tickets cost $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 3-10. Tickets will be sold in the church office from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday- Friday until April 22, and in the church's Fellowship Hall from 9-11 a.m. April 13 and 20. No tickets will be sold after April 22.

Child care for children 3 to 10 years of age will be provided at The Seville, at no charge, but parents must notify of need for child care at the time of ticket purchase. A movie and a craft project are planned for the children. For information, call the church at 847-885-7010.

Schaumburg Church
Pre-School Celebrates 40 Years
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church (ELCA) is proud to announce the 40th anniversary of its pre-school program. The milestone will be celebrated April 6 at 9:45 a.m. with a reception to follow. The church is located at 930 W. Higgins Road, Schaumburg. All are welcome.

Special Saturday Evening Prayer Service
Remembrance of NIU Tragedy
Saturday, March 1 at the 5:30 p.m. worship service, the victims of the NIU tragedy will be remembered along with students and parents everywhere who face unknowns they never realized they would have to face when they send their children off to college.

Service will be held at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church and Preschool (ELCA) in Schaumburg, Il . All are welcome to come. Anyone in need of healing and comfort during these difficult times, join us in prayer to ask for God's grace and peace. For more information contact Pastor Karen Omalia at 847-885-7010.

Schaumburg Church Announces Lent Schedule
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church (ELCA) will host five weeks of Lenten Services starting Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 6 p.m., and continuing for the next four Wednesdays. The theme this year will be "Re-Painting Your Faith - A Work in Progress. There will also be a Maundy Thursday event on Thursday, March 20, at the church. Each evening will begin with a meal, followed by activities and a worship service from 7:40 p.m. - 8 p.m. The church is located at 930 W. Higgins Road, Schaumburg. All are welcome. Free will donations will be accepted to help cover meal costs and craft supplies.

Abraham Salons

Three faith communities explore one forefather in groundbreaking programs.

Northwest Suburbs of Chicago – In an effort to seek common ground and greater understanding between neighbors of different faiths, a series of interfaith dialogues have been planned at three distinct houses of worship.

Patterned after “Abraham Salons” suggested by author Bruce Feiler in his book, Abraham , each community will jointly stage three different discussions focusing on each of the faiths. The presentations will emphasize the common heritage that began with Abraham, whose story inspires all three of the faiths.

Rabbi Max Weiss of Beth Tikvah Congregation, Pastor Don Myrom of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church and Dr. Khalid Sami of the Islamic Society of Northwest Suburbs have announced that their congregations will each participate in the events. Each leader will speak on their own faith at another’s house of worship.

The series will kick off at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 8 at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 930 W. Higgins Road, Schaumburg, with a presentation by Rabbi Max Weiss. The second event will be held at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 27 at Beth Tikvah Congregation, 300 Hillcrest Blvd., Hoffman Estates, with a presentation by Dr. Khalid Sami on Islam. The third event will take place at 5 p.m., Saturday, April 12 at the Islamic Society of Northwest Suburbs Mosque, 3950 Industrial Drive, Rolling Meadows, with a presentation by Pastor Don Myrom. View Abraham Salon brochure.

Each meeting will start with a 20 minute presentation by the featured speaker on their faith, followed by comments from the two other faith leaders. There will also be time for questions from the audience. A short dessert fellowship will conclude each evening.

These meeting formats have been arranged to provide opportunities for individual interfaith discussions in an effort to clear up misunderstanding and facilitate dialogue.

This is one of several joint events planed by Beth Tikvah and Prince of Peace as they celebrate their 50 years of providing worship opportunities to the Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg area.

A joint statement by Dr. Sami, Rabbi Weiss and Pastor Myrom said, “At a time when religion is under assault from within and without, the Abraham Salon concept will encourage mutual acceptance through a better understanding of one another’s faiths.”

According to author Feiler in his book Where God was Born, “Religion also breeds overconfidence, and one challenge for today’s believers is to rediscover in the fire of faith the source of warmth that can overpower the flames of destruction. This change can be achieved only by fellow believers, I think. The first conviction I took from by journey is that the only force strong enough to take on religious extremism is religious moderation. Religion can be saved only by religion.”

All of the events are offered free of charge, and all are welcome.