At Cheshire Lutheran Church (CLC), we are centered by Worship, Fellowship, Witness, and Service:
- We encourage and welcome new members to CLC while we nurture our current members.
- We provide enriching worship services and lifelong Christian education to promote a better understanding of the Word and to encourage greater participation.
- We promote Christian education through Sunday School, Bible study, adult education, Little Cherubs Christian Preschool, and Vacation Bible School.
- We work together to ascertain and meet the needs of our diverse congregation of men, women, families, couples, singles, seniors, children, and young adults.
- We provide a positive outlet for our youth through activities and fellowship in our youth ministry.
- We have a strong program of social welfare ministry inside and outside of CLC.
- We enjoy a fellowship ministry that provides different and assorted fellowship opportunities for our varied membership.
- We educate and encourage our members to give generously and joyfully of their time, talent, and treasure to CLC, to our local community, and to our world.
We look forward to welcoming you to Worship one Sunday very soon!
Feel free to contact us by phone, fax, or email with any questions your may have as we are here to serve you. Get directions to visit us in person.
Our Mission Statement
Cheshire Evangelical Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, called by Jesus Christ to go to all peoples everywhere and make them disciples, is a community that proclaims the Gospel as it reaches out to the people. Empowered by the grace received through the Word and Sacraments offered in our worship life, we are committed to nurturing the faith and service of our members. In our life together, we are encouraged and strengthened as witnesses to our Lord; therefore we share our finest gifts and welcome others into the fellowship around the Gospel.
Our Outstanding Pastor and Administration Team
Pastor:
Rev. Dr. David Rowold
Office Administrator:
Brenna Steczkowski
Music/Choir Director:
Martha Medford
Director of Little Cherubs Christian
Preschool: Joann Holstein
Contact us by phone, fax, or email with any questions that arise.
Our Church Council and Governing Body
Voters Assembly
The Voters Assembly is the principal governing body of CLC. It administers the congregation’s spiritual and temporal affairs. Voting membership is open to all CLC members who are at least 18 years of age. The Voters meet on several occasions throughout the year.
Church Council
The Church Council is responsible for coordinating and administering the decisions of the Voters’ Assembly, as well as acting in the event of an emergency. The Council is also a planning body that develops plans and recommendations for the advancement and benefit of CLC’s daily work, objectives, and mission. The Council is made up of the Officers and the Deacons (Committee chairs) of the congregation and meets on several occasions throughout the year. The current Council membership, as of January 2024, is:
Officers
- President – Jeff Mann
- Vice President – Bill Soulier
- Recording Secretary – Vicki DePaolo
- Financial Secretary – Alan Santoro
- Treasurer – Bill Sherman
Deacons
- Christian Growth Fund – David Schrumm
- Education – Kelley Collins-Pardee
- Evangelism – Erica Bencivenga
- Fellowship – Pam Clark
- House and Grounds – Todd Plantier
- Social Welfare – Nancy Engelhardt
- Stewardship – Rob DeLaubell
- Worship – April Slauson
- Youth – Andy Clark
Our Church History
On December 9, 1956, a handful of people met at the Cheshire Grange Hall for the first service of published worship of the Cheshire Lutheran Church. Within ten months, our visionary charter members had obligated themselves to pay for the land on which our church now stands. Construction began in the spring of 1960, and the newly-built church was dedicated on January 29, 1961.
In 1978, we expanded the church facilities by adding classrooms, new church offices, and a large fellowship hall. Not quite thirty years later, CLC members again embarked on an expansion and renovation project—the cornerstone of which is a new wing that provides a home for our Little Cherubs Christian Preschool.
During its nearly fifty years, CLC has been known to members and visitors alike as a friendly and welcoming church. We are also a church that reaches out to the local community in service through participation in Cheshire Interfaith Housing, the town-wide food drive, Cheshire Community Food Pantry, the Baskets of Love program, and the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, etc. Our “Worldwide Ministry” is firmly established as a dedicated part of our financial work plan from which we donate tens of thousands of dollars nationwide and worldwide each year.
Possibly our greatest outreach is our Little Cherubs Christian Preschool. There, three- and four-year-olds attend classes grounded in a sound Christian curriculum. Those quality learning opportunities assist parents in the nurturing of their child’s spiritual, intellectual, social, physical, and emotional growth and development.
Our 50th Anniversary
We celebrated our 50th year as a congregation! It was on December 9, 1956 that the charter members of our congregation came together at the Cheshire Grange Hall for worship for the first time. Throughout 2006 we observed and celebrated fifty years of Christian worship, witness, fellowship, and service in a series of special congregational events. We gave special thanks to God for the past half century of our life together as God’s redeemed people. We invited all former members to join our celebrations.
Some interesting historical information:
A 69 year history of Congregational Presidents:
(† = Deceased)
- † Harry Rohde (1958 – 1962)
- † Leonard Andersen (1963 – 1964)
- † Roy Walls (1965 – 1969)
- † Robert Snyder (1970 – 1971)
- † George Carson (1972 – 1974)
- † Richard Hagstrom (1975 – 1978)
- Fred Neuffer (1979 – 1980)
- † James Clark (1981 – 1984)
- Robert Neidermyer (1985 – 1990)
- Bruce Terkelsen (1991 – 1994)
- † Richard Hagstrom (1995 – 1996)
- † Hilton Roth (1997 – 2002)
- Priscilla Mulvaney (2003 – 2005)
- Walter Gancarz (2006 – 2009)
- Craig Wilson (2010 – 2012)
- Bill Sherman (2013 – 2015)
- Jeff Mann (2016 – 2017)
- Bill Sherman (2018)
- Steve Feero (2019 – 2021)
- Jeff Mann (2022 – 2024)
“A Time Line Celebrating 50 Years of God’s Grace and Blessing.” This timeline lists many of the good things that have happened at CLC in Christ’s name since 1956. We hope it will bring back memories of the time you have been with us here in our Christian company and that it will inform you about what was going on here before you became a member.
Our Church Hymn
On Cheshire Lutheran Church’s 50th anniversary occasion, to the glory of God our congregation adopted a special hymn for the church named “Gods Redeemed Beloved and Holy”, set to the tune of Rustington. It was written for us by Pastor Steve Starke (St. John-Amelith Lutheran Church and School, Bay City, Michigan) as a way to celebrate our life together at CLC as God’s redeemed family.
The first four stanzas speak of our life together at Cheshire Lutheran, while the fifth stanza points the congregation forward to its ongoing task of walking together in love until each of us leaves the Church Militant and joins the Church Triumphant.
Click here to learn more about it, download the sheet music, listen to the audio, and see the full explanation of the meaning by its author.
Building, Renovation, and Expansion History
On December 9, 1956, our Charter members met at the Cheshire Grange Hall for the first service of published worship of the Cheshire Lutheran Church. Within ten months, those visionary members had obligated themselves to pay for the land on which our church now stands. Construction began in the spring of 1960, and the newly-built church was dedicated on January 29, 1961.
In 1978, needing more space for our mission and ministry, the members embarked on a building project that added classrooms, church offices, and our large fellowship hall. Over the years, routine and not-so-routine maintenance were performed in the church and the parish hall.
In 2001, a Facilities Planning Committee was formed to examine renovation and expansion needs at CLC. Committee members interviewed the various constituencies at CLC and developed a report that concluded that CLC, indeed, needed renovation and expansion–especially for our Little Cherubs Christian Preschool.
The Voters formed a Building Committee that consulted with the Council, the Voters, and the congregation to develop recommendations for an expansion and renovation project. Those recommendations were considered, and the project was approved, at a congregational meeting on February 13, 2005.
Three years later, a groundbreaking ceremony was held on June 3, 2007 and construction continued at a rapid pace over the summer. At the ceremony we gathered to praise and to thank God and to dedicate our newly expanded and renovated church home that includes:
- A reconstructed upper parking lot.
- New exterior siding.
- New parish hall windows.
- New tile floors and carpeting in the newly painted parish that now has acoustic ceiling tiles.
- A more efficient heating and cooling system in classrooms and the office.
- New storage and display areas.
- New parish hall folding partition doors.
- A completely renovated kitchen.
- Expanded church offices and a new office for our Director of Christian Education.
- Expanded Altar Guild storage room (sacristy).
- A new Youth Room.
- A new church library and meeting room.
- A permanent home for our Little Cherubs Christian Preschool.
- Air-conditioning in the sanctuary.
We are a congregation that is truly “Graced by the Past . . . Called for the Future.”
Construction Photo Montages
Click here to check out the photo slideshow montages that show the development of our year long construction project!