That time again!  It’s so exciting that people have been asking me about this year’s ride, and YES, I am doing it again!  I’ll be part of a team raising money to help end hunger, which is a passion of mine. 

Last year I asked for donations as a way of celebrating my 70th birthday.  My fund raising goal was $7000 and I exceeded that goal because of the generosity of family and friends like you!

This year - and this is a SURPRISE - my goal is again $7000 but this time in honor of Peter's 70th birthday, which comes in January.  He doesn’t want a party (though he may not have a choice about that), and he doesn’t need/want gifts.  But I know he will be very grateful if we can top the goal of $7000 and surprise him with an announcement of the grand total given to honor him when this campaign ends.
He's not on Facebook, where I will advertise this heavily.  Hopefully, he will not see this letter, which I will send to folks by email and regular mail – so this surprise SHOULD work if you all remember not to tell him we are raising money to honor him by helping to ensure that people have enough food every day in every part of our world.

Peter also celebrates 43 years of ordained ministry this month.  During this time he has served congregations in Berwyn, IL; Bemidji, MN; and West Fargo, ND.  His passion for justice for all God's people far and wide has been demonstrated by his love of being a foster parent; by working with refugees since the 1970s; advocating for the rights of gays and lesbians; working on reducing gun violence; and learning from those who are materially poor but spiritually rich in our sister parish in Guatemala.  His life has unselfishly centered on caring for the "least of these", the most vulnerable in our midst. 

I hope you will agree with me that making a donation to the ELCA Hunger Program will honor his life and his work.

Have fun with this celebration by making your donation with the numbers seven and zero, such as $7.70, $427.70, $970 – you get the idea.  I have made the first donation of $1700 to this team effort, so I challenge you to match this and go beyond by making a contribution to end hunger.
  

Here are three ways you can contribute:

1. Online donations - right here on this web site:
www.elca.org/teamelca
Scroll down the page to Top Teams
Click on Change Makers Bike Ride 2016
Click on Vicki Schmidt
Click on Donate Now (and then fill out the requested information).  Please leave a good wish/greeting for Peter, and I will be sure he reads them once we get to our goal.  It will mean a great deal to him.

2. Send a check:

Make it out to EaND Synod
Put BIKE RIDE in memo line
Mail to Vicki Schmidt, 908 Dolores Drive, West Fargo, ND 58078

3. Pray for an end to world hunger; pray that more people will be raised up to work for justice for all God’s people; and pray for the health and safety of our team as we bike.

Our group of bikers will begin in Devils Lake, ND, and our first stop is Dacotah O'yate Lutheran Church in Tokio, ND, on the Spirit Lake Reservation.  We will be there to share lunch and then the rest of the day we will tour the reservation, have cultural presentations, and share what the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) has been doing to support the work at Dacotah O'yate.  From there we will travel to Sheyenne and New Rockford, and our last stop is in Grace City.  (Note:  I will be doing some additional biking in later June and July as part of this fund raiser…)

Honor Peter Schmidt’s 70th birthday with a contribution to the ELCA World Hunger program.  You – and so many others – will be blessed.  You can count on that.

With a grateful heart for Peter and his ministry, for the work being done for the sake of the world, and for each of you,

Vicki Schmidt

 701.361.4517

About ELCA World Hunger

As a long-standing presence in communities in nearly 60 countries, including the United States, ELCA World Hunger is deeply relational and rooted in listening. We steer clear of “one-size-fits-all” answers and have enormous respect for local context, local expertise and local ingenuity. Your gifts support tailored solutions – in areas like health, water, income, education, food security, and more – that can put an end to hunger for the long term.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States with more than 3.8 million members in 10,000 congregations across the nation and the Caribbean.