Mom said I could share with you the story behind what happened at St. Paul’s Lutheran School. At the time, the synod was planning to close both the junior college and the high school.
We had just finished a Bible study that met in the space above our clinic. As we were talking about what our next study might be, Mom spoke up and said, “Why don’t we start a Save Our School—SOS—campaign to save St. Paul’s?” Mom indicated that many people would be upset if made aware of synod's plans and would have wanted to know what to do about it. Mom wanted to make certain that people were made aware of the impending closure. We all agreed it was the right thing to do, though we had no idea where to begin.
Our first thought was to hold a small planning meeting in the studio above the clinic. But once we contacted the local newspaper, everything changed. Radio and television stations reached out, asking us to do public service announcements. Before long, requests for information were coming in from all over the country.
We briefly considered meeting at City Hall, but it quickly became clear that it wouldn’t be large enough. Eventually, we settled on the Concordia Farmers Mutual building as the proper venue—the largest venue available in the area at that time. It was standing room only. Local Lutheran churches asked us to come speak, and many of them joined in the effort. (Apparently, many of them contacted synod to express their concerns.)
A Lutheran pastor stood with us to present the case for saving both the high school and the junior college. We were informed that synod was inundated with letters, phone calls, etc. We’ll probably never know exactly what happened behind the scenes at synod, but after that gathering, we received word that synod reversed course, and the high school would remain open. Sadly, the junior college was closed.
It’s hard to imagine what Concordia would have become if both schools had been lost. Think of the thousands of lives touched for Christ through that school—pastors, administrators, laypeople, and so many others.
I thank God for Mom’s courage in lighting that candle, and I am so deeply proud of her. I hope you are too.
