For some, Black Friday is a fun time to shop with family and friends, making good memories. For our family it has a different meaning. On Black Friday 2009, our son-in-law, Matt, called to tell us that our daughter, Missy, had died. Missy and Alex, o…
A dark and unfamiliar chapel fills with candlelight and quiet music. One by one, confirmation students and sponsors file in and find a space to settle in for a time of peace and reflection. There’s fidgeting; that uncomfortable time when teens are tr…
A few winters ago I was driving in an evening snowstorm on a rural gravel road near my home. The ditches had already filled up with snow, and with great skill I managed to drive my truck right into one. In between gusts of snow, I could just make out…
Our daughter Emily was baptized in a manner that was very familiar – in our church by our pastor during worship service, with family and the congregation present. When her sister Alison was baptized three years later, it was in a hospital room. The s…
Vi Ramsey opens the door to her home and welcomes Jan Schmidt inside. Four times a year, Jan visits Vi, ready for lively conversation and recollections of a life well-lived. Vi shows Jan the hairdresser’s studio that she worked from before her retire…
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It’s when kids like Carver run into her arms and call her Onana. Or when Teddy smiles a big smile and backs up into her lap in the St. Paul Preschool office. Those are the moments that Joanna Roland cherishes the most. Joanna – known as Onana, JoJo,…
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Nestled into the northwest corner of our building here on Brady Street is a grand old house. While offices take up much of the house these days, the living room of that house continues to be called the living room. Various groups of people meet there…
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One of my favorite things about Thanksgiving (second only to canned cranberry sauce) is the chance to make hand-drawn turkeys by tracing around my fingers and thumb. It’s easy. It’s fun. And you can decorate your turkey with a theme of your choice. M…
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Editor’s note: Hannah Griggs is a senior at Augustana College. She recently presented at the college’s Symposium Day. This is an excerpt from her work. On the way home from a youth group trip during my sophomore year of high school, our St. Paul Luth…
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On the 500th anniversary of the reformation, the people of St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Davenport had an idea. The reformation was when Martin Luther posted his 95 theses, and a division in the Catholic church took place – very simply put…
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It’s getting colder, and quite a few snowflakes fell in the Quad Cities on Sunday. Christmas carols are beginning to play in homes and cars, shops and offices. We all know people who prefer to hear absolutely no Christmas music before Thanksgiving. S…
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“Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” This is what Jesus says in John 6, the day after he has fed the multitude, when a crowd comes after him looking for more to…