Worship nurtures and reinforces our relationship to God and to our church family of faith. The Worship Committee plans and prepares the details that go into the worship experience: special services, sound & lighting, nursery care, pulpit supply, Communion, ushering, music, greeting arriving worshipers, bulletins, flowers, decorations and arranging for the involvement of lay people in the service.

We work closely with the pastor and Director of Music to plan the celebration of holy days and seasons in the life of the church. Some of our special services in 2006 were: The Ash Wednesday soup & homemade bread supper and Communion in conjunction with the Fellowship Committee, the Maundy Thursday Communion and Tenebrae Service, an early and a regular Easter service with many beautiful flowers decorating the Sanctuary, and our spiritually moving Christmas Eve candlelight service.

Some of our new initiatives this year were taking over maintenance of the pianos and installing dehumidifiers on them, improving the sound quality in the sanctuary, and following new directions in decorations such as the huge translucent banners hanging from the ceiling beams for Easter and Pentecost, and the tartan plaid hangings and display of the old church pulpit for Reformation Sunday.

The committee members whose dedication and hard work accomplished these tasks this past year have been Sue Arndt, Lavonne Dorr, Kathy Gibbs, Jerry Gibbs, Marilyn Grandeffo, Jan Marquis, Sylvia O'Conner, and Pam Bidne, with Alice Barlass and Shirl Scharine as special consultants.

Jerry Gibbs and John Torpy took over as head ushers and developed a new scheduling system. Thanks to Dan Landherr who faithfully served as head usher for many years. Kerith Hintz was nursery coordinator and Charlie Scharine handled the sound system and attendance reporting. Brian Beecher contributed his many skills as Director of Music.

We are also grateful for the artistry of Diane Landherr, the Choir members, and Miriam Huber, who gave of their talents to fill the sanctuary with the gift of music! At the end of the year, a new permanent organist, Delight Antos, was hired. Welcome to our church family, Dee!

Thanks also go out to the many volunteers and draftees from our church family who stepped forward when there was extra work to be done or who participated in a Worship service. When we asked, you were there!

Our interim pastor, Rev. Dee Talley, has challenged us with new ideas for the worship space and his refreshing approaches to worship, and has worked closely with our committee. His gentle strength, wide range of experience, and deep understanding of the Scriptures have been a wonderful resource for us. Dee also taught us the "Audible". He will be missed.

It is our prayerful hope that worship at Rock Prairie will bring joy, clarity and inspiration to each one of you, as we seek to serve our Lord Jesus Christ.

Respectfully,
Dave Grandeffo, Committee Chair