"Lord you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." Psalm 90:1-2 (ESV)

How quickly time flies! Another school year is nearing completion. Graduation parties are (almost) over. Retirements have honored special servant leaders of the Lord. Plants will wither in the summer heat, leaves fall and blow away in autumn, trees stand bare against a winter sky.

Even more heartbreaking is to stand by a casket and stare at a lifeless body or to look in a mirror and see age steal youth and energy. Yet in spring the trees bud, flowers bloom, and grass turns green. The grave is empty on Easter morning! Jesus has risen! God has taken pity on us and given us new and everlasting life in Christ!

Lord God, you are the refuge for all generations. You are the One to go to for security. Lord, give us wisdom to number our days as Your servants, so we will look forward to dwelling with You from everlasting to everlasting. Now, dear Father in Heaven, give us opportunities for rest this summer. Renew us. Refresh us with your love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Congratulations to the following teachers, administrators, and staff members who have announced their retirement. Thank you for your faithful service in Lutheran education in the Pacific Southwest District, and your dedication to the students and families where you served. God’s blessings in your retirement, and we will always remain Connected in Christ. 

Heidi Cross – Grace, Lancaster, CA

Fred Friedrichs – St. Paul’s, San Diego, CA

Sharon Frydendall – St. John’s, Orange, CA

J Gynther – Grace, Lancaster, CA

Cathleen Meier - St. John’s, Orange, CA

Randy Krieger – Valley LHS, Phoenix, AZ

Dave Wittig – Lamb of God, Las Vegas, NV

Marsha Wittig – Lamb of God, Las Vegas, NV

Please let us know if someone on your staff is retiring and not on this list. We would love to recognize him/her. Thank you!

Administrators -

If anyone on your staff has accepted a Call to your school or to a different school, please keep our office informed. It is very important that the paperwork at the back of the Call document is mailed to the correct offices. Please review all Call documents and be sure you have sent each page to its correct location. We appreciate your assistance in confirming the paperwork has been completed with anyone on staff this applies to. Thank you for the attention to this detail!

Thank you to all our schools who have participated in our Hearts for Jesus Unified Mission Project to send comfort dogs to where they are most needed. Even with the school year coming to an end, we want to encourage you to take an offering for this worthwhile project if you haven’t already! Every $300 dollars received goes to directly support a comfort dog and handler to travel to a place where their ministry is most needed. To date we have collected $14,196.95, which is significantly below typical contributions this time of year. We will continue to collect contributions through the month of June. Thank you for your generosity towards this project!

HEARTS FOR JESUS REMITTANCE FORM

THANKOFFERING SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDENTS OF PSD ROSTERED CHURCH WORKERS

Application Deadline: June 4

Students who are children of Pacific Southwest District Rostered Church Workers and preparing for church work at a Concordia University may apply for ThankOffering Scholarships. These funds are from a special offering collected each year at the Lutheran Educators Conference. Use the link below to download the ThankOffering application. This grant is distributed while the student is attending school as an undergraduate.

ThankOffering Scholarships Application 

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CHURCH WORKER LOAN REPAYMENT GRANTS

Application Deadline: October 15

Each year, the Pacific Southwest District offers loan repayment grants for newly graduated called church workers in the first three years of their first call serving in the Pacific Southwest District. If you are a newly called pastor, teacher, DCE or other rostered church worker, consider applying for the grant. The application deadline each year is October 15. 

Grants are determined annually with recipients of prior grants needing to apply each year during their eligibility period. The funds for this grant are made possible because of the Workers for the Harvest Endowment and the Student Loan Repayment Grant Fund. Individuals and congregations that wish to support future church workers through this grant may donate to either fund through the district office. Please list the fund you are donating to in the memo line.

The application can be downloaded here. 

Registration is open for this year’s Administrators Leadership Conference on July 17-19, 2024, at the Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort in Indian Wells, CA. Don't miss this great opportunity!

REGISTRATION WEBSITE

We are excited to bring back the New Teachers Workshop August 1-2, 2024, location to be determined based on early-bird registration. This is for K-12 new teachers. A new teacher can be either a brand new teacher or a teacher that is new to your school. More information will be shared soon, but please calendar this event for all new teachers on your staff!

Registration is open for our first "Director's Launchpad: Empowering New Leaders Workshop" on July 31, 2024, at the District Office in Irvine. Are you a new EC director or new to our district within the last two years? Did you start as a director during COVID and feel like you could use a fresh start?

Don't miss this opportunity to kickstart your journey as a director and equip yourself with the tools for success! Join us from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM for a day of learning, networking, and growth.

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

We're excited to announce that new early childhood resources have been added to the PSD School Ministry website. This week, we've introduced a comprehensive folder on "Development Milestones." Inside, you'll find valuable materials from the CDC, the California Department of Education, Arizona First Things First, CHOC, and the LCMS faith development milestones. Additionally, there's an insightful publication from Chancy and Bruce titled "The Gift of Time," which focuses on early childhood milestones.

Join us for our next Director's Zoom on June 19 at 1:00 p.m., where Dr. Nicky Magnuson, executive director at Chancy and Bruce Educational Resources, will be our special guest. Don't miss this opportunity to gain further insights and ask questions.

The information on Foundations of Lutheran Teaching is up on the home page of the School Ministries website. Applications for the Fall 2024 cohort are open. The registration deadline is June 7. There are already nine PSD educators registered for this first cohort!

The PSD, along with the CNH District and Northwest District, have been working with Mission Training Center on a new program tailored for non-Lutheran teachers teaching in Lutheran schools. It is called Foundations of Lutheran Teaching and we plan to roll it out this fall. The five courses are:

• What Lutherans Believe and Why
• Jesus Throughout the Bible - An Overview of Scripture
• Teaching the Faith
• Faith Formation - Supporting the Spiritual Development of Students
• Spiritual Self-Care of the Teacher

The planning has begun and we are excited for our PSD All Workers Conference in November of 2024! It is time to determine if you have any Jubilarians on your staff that will be celebrated at November's conference. Jubilarians are those educators on your staff who have completed 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, or 60 years of service at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.

If you are an administrator, please identify those on your staff that will be Jubilarians, so that when the information is sent out to Jubilarians, they are able to respond by the June 15 deadline. Administrators can submit the names of faculty members who should be honored as Jubilarians OR educators who will be jubilarians can fill out the form themselves.

JUBILARIAN 2024 FORM

Click here for information on the Innovative Educator Conference taking place at the Cal State Fullerton Marriott Hotel July 29-31, 2024. This conference is put on by Beyond Technology Education, and PSD educators receive a 50% discount.

Click here to read the most recent CAPSO Midweek E-Mailer.

• We are thankful for the years of service of all of our educators retiring at the end of this school year. God's richest blessings to you!
• We pray for all of our schools as you have end of the year activities, graduations, and other celebrations this year.
• Congratulations to all of our graduates -- preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, 8th grade, and high school!
• Join us in praying for congregations, high schools, elementary schools, and early childhood centers searching for administrators, directors, teachers, and staff for the 2024-25 school year.

Each week, prayers of thanksgiving and prayers for teachers, administrators, support staff, pastors, students, and families of the Lutheran schools, early childhood centers, and churches of the Pacific Southwest District are listed. To include names on the list, please send information to anna.preus@psd-lcms.org by noon on Tuesdays.