February 2023

Monthly Messenger
Saron Lutheran Church

From the Pastor’ Desk Events in February

“Is not this the fast that I choose: 4 Women's Breakfast
to loose the bonds of injustice, 5 Young Families Gathering
to undo the thongs of the yoke, 8 Prayer Meeting
to let the oppressed go free, 11 Craft Fun
and to break every yoke?“ Isaiah 58:6 12 Bible Study
16 Council Meeting
I have found myself reflecting on the ways in which we 20 Office Closed (Presidents Day)
are called to live out our lives of faith. So often the 22 Ash Wednesday
Christian life can feel like it gets reduced to a list of “do 26 Book Club
this” and “don’t do that.” While there are certainly plenty
of things that we “should” do as Christians, I can’t help
but feel a resistance build up in me as ponder adding more
things to my to-do list. What does righteousness look like Mark your Calendar
when I have dishes to wash, sermons to write, and a 3/4 Welcome Dinner
teething baby to rock back to sleep in the middle of the 3/25 Spaghetti & Bingo
night? 4/9 Easter Sunday
While God certainly tells us to pursue righteousness, Jesus
continually points to the absurdity of thinking that we are
able to be wholly righteous on our own. We cannot by our Join us for Worship!
own merits earn our place in the kingdom, that is a gift Sundays at 9:30 am
that is given to us by God through Christ’s incredible love In the Sanctuary or
for us. on the “Saron Lutheran Church”
This brings new life to our acts of love and service toward
Facebook page
our neighbor. We can share love, avoid selfish tendencies, Bulletins are sent via email every
practice kindness, and work towards justice because it is a week.
joy to us, a privilege to participate in, not because we are
worried about somehow failing if we don’t! In this “month Saron Staff
of love” we can reflect on the incredible love that we
receive from God that gives us to the power to love others.
Let us come together in worship and service and receive Rev. Callie Torres, Pastor
the love of God! Louise Spurgeon, Secretary

In Love and Peace, Office Hours

Pastor Callie Torres
Monday through Friday
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Saron Lutheran Church
1742 North Street, Escalon CA95320
saronlutheranescalon.org
209-838-7695 | saronlutheran@att.net
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President’s Message Birth Announcement
Upon reflection on this past year, I must say that I Leia Louise-Marie Smith was born to Tyler and
am very pleased with Saron’s ever forward Katie (Spears) Smith on January 5th, 2023. 7 lbs. 8
progression towards our Mission; a mission that is oz., 18 ½ inches.
never completed but that is a continual work in (Leia with her older brother Leon, age 4)
progress. We HAVE shared the love of God within
our congregation and within our community. We
HAVE used our gifts joyfully to worship and serve.
We HAVE adhered to our Core Values and have
kept our Vision in the forefront of our daily lives.

Our congregation has ministered and shared love in

many ways. There were many prayers, phone calls,
texts, hand-written cards, meals, kind words, advise,
listening ears, hugs, rides, gifts, donations,
etc….made, sent and given...not only by our Pastor
and our faithful Service and Support Committee but
from our members to our members and beyond. We
are truly a church family who cares for each other
and for our community. Love is shared freely at
Saron which is a joy and a blessing.
Welcome to the world Leia! We are so excited to
John 15:12 says, “My command is this: Love each meet you!
other as I have loved you.” Saron’s Mission reflects
this command, and we live our Mission. Of all we
have accomplished in this past year, it is this that I Ash Wednesday Service
am most proud of.
February 22nd at 7:00 pm
“...God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God
“Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall
and God in them.” - 1 John 4:16. God certainly lives
return.”
in Saron.
An Ash Wednesday Service will be held at Saron
Lisa Alessi, Council President on February 22nd at 7:00 pm. We will gather to be
reminded of our mortality, reconcile with God, and
begin the journey through the season of Lent.

If you are unable to make it to the service and are

interested in receiving ashes please feel free to stop
by the church office anytime between 9:00 am and
3:00 pm to receive ashes on your forehead and a
prayer to bless your Lenten season.

Thank you Lisa! Women’s Breakfast

A huge thank you to Lisa who served as Saron’s
council president this past year. She ran the
meetings, wrote beautiful reflections, and kept
Saron moving forward in mission and ministry
together!
As of the annual meeting, and the election of new
council members, her time on the council has ended
(for now). New council officers will be elected at
the February council meeting.
February 4th at 8:30 am
Mark your calendar for the next Women’s Breakfast
on Saturday, February 4th at 8:30 am at Velvet
Creamery on McHenry Avenue. Please call Dorene
to RSVP at 209-605-0951, as we will need to let the
restaurant know how many to expect.

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Lift high the cross, the love of Christ
proclaim. Till all the world adore His
sacred name.”
We begin each service with a procession led by the
crucifer “holding high” the cross. This is the story
of Saron’s processional cross…
The Rietveld family (Case, Mabel, and their 5 chil-
dren – Judy, Joann, Donna, Tim, and David) came
to Escalon in 1958 from New Hampton, a small
town in northeastern Iowa. They settled on a 20 acre
parcel off of Vine Street (a property that once
housed a small orphanage associated with Saron).
They raised apricots, peaches and walnuts. Their
sixth child, Lori, was the only one born in Escalon.
Case later took classes at MJC and began to work
for the city of Escalon, advancing to building in-
spector.
Case bought equipment from a cabinet maker and
set up a workshop in the basement of his Vine
Street home. He was basically self-taught. Case had
mathematical skill, patience, attention to detail and
a love of working with wood. All these skills ena-
bled him to become a master craftsman with wood.
When they later moved to Jordanolo Street Case set
up his workshop in part of his garage and used an
out-building for further storage. There he made
many more wonderful pieces, both great and small
and intricate.
Young Families Gathering
February 5th at 11:30 am
The next Young Families Gathering is on Sunday,
February 5th at 11:30 am. Little ones and their
adults are invited for a time of fun, fellowship, and
faith. This month we will be focusing on God’s
wonderful creation! A light lunch will be provided.
Prayer Meeting
February 8th at noon
Each month a group gathers to pray for our church,
the world, share individual prayer requests, and
support one another. The next prayer group meeting
will be on Wednesday, February 8th at noon in
Pastor Callie’s office at church. All are invited,
please join us!
For his family
 End tables for the living room
 Coffee table with a star in the center
 Wooden chain cut from a single 12 foot piece of
wood
 Filigree clocks for his family
th
 50 anniversary train and track – one with 3 lev-
els with a letter on each train car spelling out: “I
THINK I CAN, I THOUGHT I COULD, WE
DID IT!” This piece is now in the Escalon His-
torical Society museum.
 Case also made other trains for his family with
the letters spelling out “CASE AND MABEL”
each point was a different wood
For Saron
 Frame for the first church key in fellowship hall
 Shelves on the side walls by altar
 4 communion cup stands
 2 flower stands (first used at Carol Shipley’s
wedding)
 Photo display stand in fellowship hall for confir-
mation photos and early photos of Saron
 Cross above fireplace in library, using 3 differ-
ent woods filigree wood cross for Pastor Victor
to wear at services
 beautiful filigree Lord’s Prayer in fellowship
hall (and a couple others for his family!)
 FINALLY: the crucifer’s PROCESSIONAL
CROSS that we “hold high” at the beginning of
our services!!
Bible Study
February 12th after worship
The next Bible Study meeting will be on Sunday,
February 12th after worship. We will be beginning
a study of the 10 Commandments based on the
Bible Study in the Gather magazine from WELCA.
Let us explore together what it means to be a
“covenant” people.
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Calling all Crafters and
Non-crafters!!!
February 11th at 9:00 am
Please mark your calendar for Saturday February
11. We are planning to meet at Saron for a craft for
our next Kris Kringle Market. We will be making
an ornament that requires no talent beyond putting
glue on a surface. All materials will be provided.
Simple and cute- - no artistic skills required! Please
join us for fun, fellowship and snacks on Saturday,
February 11 at 9 am. in the social hall.
Pat Strand and Rosemary Scholz
Farewell to Suzanne
February 19th
After many years of being a part of the Saron
family, Suzanne is moving to Missouri in order to
be closer to her children and grandchildren. She was
the secretary for the church for many years, served
on the altar guild and the congregational council,
was the chair of stewardship, has helped to organize
the lay worship assistants, and much more! She
shared so much of herself with the congregation and
she will most certainly be missed. There will be a
basket to collect cards in the sanctuary as we send
her with our blessing and enjoy a delicious cake
after worship.
Book Club Meeting
February 26th after worship
Our next discussion of the book W aking Up W hite
will be on Sunday, February 26th. All are welcome
to reflect on our nation’s history of race, our own
upbringing, and the perspectives that have been
taught. Our discussion will focus on the third and
fourth sections (pgs. 61-111), but ideas and sharing
from the first two sections may come up as well. If
you need a copy of the book, please contact the
church office.
All are Welcome at the Table
In Luther’s Small Catechism, he writes of
Communion, “Here we receive Christ's body and
blood and God's gifts of forgiveness of sin, life, and
salvation to be received by faith for the
strengthening of faith.” Communion is one of two
sacraments that we celebrate as Lutherans and is a
gift to be enjoyed by all the baptized!
According to the ELCA document The Use and
Means of Grace which outlines the meaning and
practice of the sacraments, “customs vary on the
age and circumstances for admission to the Lord's
Supper…There is no command from our Lord
regarding the age at which people should be
baptized or first communed.” While some churches
have historically welcomed children to come to the
table after completing Confirmation, many churches
have welcomed children at a younger age.
After discussing it as a council, it was decided that
is up to families to decide when to start allowing
their children to participate in the sacrament. Pastor
Callie is organizing a First Communion Class for
any families who are interested in learning more
about the sacrament in an age-appropriate way,
prior to participating in Communion for the first
time. Please contact Pastor Callie if you are
interested in more information.
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Kris Kringle Market Update
I am happy to provide an update on Kris Kringle
Market of 2022. We had money coming in for
weeks prior to the event as well as after the event.
Therefore, it was difficult to provide a total.
However, now we have that information for our
congregation. KKM’s income was approximately
$7000. last year.
The Service and Support Committee decided to
donate $500. to our local CARE and the remaining
amount goes towards funds for upcoming major
repairs.
Again I would like to thank everyone that
participated in the event. It is not possible to do this
without help from the congregation.
I will ask that you begin thinking about KKM 2023.
If you have jam or jelly jars at home that you would
like to donate, please bring them to the office. We
are specifically in need of 4, 8 & 12 ounce jars for
jam and jelly.
Respectfully submitted,
Pat Strand for the Service and Support Committee
Fruit Salad Recipe
There were several requests for the recipe for
Delores fabulous fruit salad that she made for the
annual meeting!
 20ozl can pineapple chunks drained
 16oz. can peaches drained
 11 oz. mandarin oranges drained
 3 bananas sliced
 2 apples sliced
 1 small pk. vanilla instant pudding
 1 1/2 cup milk
 3 oz. frozen orange juice defrosted
 3/4 cup sour cream.
Mix milk, pudding & orange juice. Beat well add
sour cream. Mix and pour over fruit and combine
everything together. Chill before serving.
February C.A.R.E. Donations
The number of individuals needing assistance have
increased at C.A.R.E. This month we are asked to
bring pancake mix and syrup Please bring your
donations to the church by Sunday, February 26th
and it will be delivered to C.A.R.E. Monetary
donations are welcome as you are able.
Bingo, Spaghetti, and More!
March 25th at 5:00 pm
Join us for an old-fashioned spaghetti feed
including salad, garlic bread, and dessert.
Following dinner, we will be having a WHITE
ELEPHANT BINGO EXTRAVAGANZA!
We are combining a White Elephant Gift Exchange
with Bingo! All of us have a few items that we
have received as gifts, but cannot use. Wrap up a
couple and bring them to the bingo event!
(If you do not have a gift to bring, no
problem! Some of us will bring more than one.)
A winning bingo will get to choose a gift off of the
table…but don’t open it! The next bingo winner
can pick a gift off of the table OR steal your gift,
making you choose a new one. But be careful…
history shows that sometimes, good things come in
small packages! You never know…
Please plan on attending this event that will be full
of fun and laughs!

Escalon Senior Fun Bunch News

The Senior Fun Bunch is fathering again on
February 15th from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm at the
Escalon Community Center. Prepare for having fun
and you are invited to wear something red or pink.

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 We are a congregation called to faithfully follow Jesus Christ by sharing the
inclusive love of God with our neighbor using our gifts joyfully in worship and
service.

Together we use our gifts to move into God’s future inviting all we encounter
with the hope of the Gospel

February Birthdays Saron Lutheran Church Council

2 Trinity Thomasser Krista Adametz
6 Johanne Ervin-Gade Lori Armstrong
9 Dave Strand Janet Casaus
18 Garrett Bomer Kathy Pendleton
19 Scott Armstrong Ann Shaddix
Mark Olson Louise Spurgeon
21 Nena Dahlin Gary Thomasser
Gary Thomasser Sylvia McGowan, Treasurer
24 Pastor Callie
28 Karen Bartolomei
March Messenger Deadline
If you have any news or announcements that you
would like included in next month’s messenger
please submit it to saronlutheran@att.net by
February 20th.

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Contact Pastor Callie

If you have any questions, suggestions, or prayer
concerns please feel free to contact Pastor Callie at Saron Lutheran Church is part of the
pastorcallie.saron@gmail.com or 209-425-3390 Evangelical Lutheran Church
(text/call). She is eager to hear from you! in America.