Yesterday as I was happily putting up my vegetable harvest, I heard Glenn Beck in the background announcing that he soon would be talking to the leader of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) about their efforts to care for arriving Afghan evacuees (most are NOT refugees).
Beck can be a doofus at times. He was just that as he effusively thanked KRISH O’MARA VIGNARAJAH CEO of LIRS for helping the poor souls (mostly Muslims of course) that Biden loaded on planes in Afghanistan last week to make it look like he was the king of humanitarians.
I’m too lazy to search for a transcript of the interview, but Beck seemed most interested in whether they were helping Afghans assimilate to American life and to learn English.
Oh, yes, they do help them learn English Vignarajah assured him.
She said they needed donations and volunteers to help them with that and their other good deeds.
But, neither she or Beck SAID A WORD ABOUT THE FACT THAT LIRS IS ALMOST COMPLETELY FUNDED BY TAXPAYERS—INVOLUTARILY BY YOU!
Now is Beck so ill prepared that he didn’t know that or did he not want to inform his listeners of that little fact? To the uninformed the message was that wow! look at this Christian organization doing their Christian good works!
Let’s get our facts straight!
I have done this many time over the years, but just so you know.
I repeat….
The Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service is funded by the federal government!
Heck, I won’t be able to retire unless the media (and even people like Beck who fancies himself a great investigator) make that fact known!
On page 9 we see that $52 million of their $60 million or so income came from the US government. They are a federal contractor!
And here, have a look at the salaries of Mrs. O’Maraand a few of her other co-workers. Although she does not make the salary her predecessor Linda Hartke made before leaving under questionable circumstances, a quarter of a million a year isn’t chump change.
Note that she makes more than a US Senator or Member of Congress. If LIRS was truly a private organization funded out of the charity of individuals, their salaries would be none of our business, but they are not!
And, now looking forward from 2019 here is some data from USA Spending. Looks like they are sucking up even more federal tax dollars!
I hate to think that a lot of uniformed Americans are sending their hard earned bucks to LIRS because of Beck’s plug yesterday when they are already contributing via the US Treasury.
Because this story is so important, I’m posting it instead of aweekly round-up of refugee news.
And, besides, the US Refugee Admissions Program has been stalled for some mysterious reason by the Biden gang so there isn’t a lot new since last week.
I can only guess the hold-up is because they have created such a crisis at our wide open border with their fake refugee invasion that they aren’t beginning the large movement they promised the Left of Africans, Asians and Middle Easterners into the country fearing more anger from their 80 million voters! (Only 24% of all Americans support Biden border policies.)
That isn’t making the nine contractors***, who are paid by you and me to place them, happy.
However, two of the nine contractors are busy collecting millions to ostensibly take care of the women and kids, including some “not so nice women,” arriving at the border in historically high numbers.
Those two are the US Conference of Catholic Bishops and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.
Sister Norma Pimentel, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, and Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago greet asylum seekers at the Humanitarian Respite Center at Sacred Heart Church in McAllen, Texas, in 2017, the location of the viral video from Infowars last week.
First, to get a feel for the magnitude of the crisis, see theNew York Timesstory headlined:
Young Migrants Crowd Shelters, Posing Test for Biden
The administration is under intensifying pressure to expand its capacity to care for as many as 35,000 unaccompanied minors, part of a wave of people crossing the border.
More than 20,000 children and teenagers are in the custody of a government system that is already at “103 percent of capacity,” including nearly 17,000 in shelters run by the health department, according to briefing materials from Operation Artemis, a response to the border crisis led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Government projections obtained by The New York Times show there could be more than 35,000 migrant children to be cared for by June — a prospect that one former senior health and human services official called “terrifying.”
The NYT story does not mention the role Catholic agencies are playing, but does mention Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. Of course you are led to believe that they are doing their work of moving migrants to the interior US out of the goodness of their Christian hearts.
Viral Video
Now,, see the controversial film in front of a Catholic agency in McAllen, Texas from Infowarsthis week if you aren’t one of the million or so who have already seen it.
Needless to say, Catholic Charities has blasted Jones’ video saying at Catholic World Report:
Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley on Thursday said a viral video of their work with migrant children on the U.S.-Mexico border is “inaccurate and unauthorized.”
We have been doing our humanitarian work for years, said Pimental director of Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley.
One of those on the scene for the confrontation in front of McAllen’s Catholic Charities facility is Tim Enlowand it is worth an hour of your time to see and hear him explain to patriot interviewer Delora O’Brien what exactly went down that day.
One of the most shocking revelations in the interview is that Enlow describes the arrival at the scene of a white man identifying himself as wealthy and from Philadelphia who claims he was told by a nun! that he could come down to McAllen and pick up a couple of van loads of single women he could care for and provide work for!
Watch it before Youtube removes it! Hat tip: Robin.
O’Brien and Enlow charge that the government, our US government, is sponsoring child smuggling!
Your tax dollars at work!
They are more right than they know since both Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) are raking in millions from the US Treasury to ‘care for’ Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC).
If you are a long-time reader of RRW, this news is not new!
I bet for others, you had no idea that YOUR TAX DOLLARS were paying these ‘religious’ charities for their work!
Data for the Bishops from USA Spending where all federal grants and contracts are catalogued.
Here we learn that the USCCB has pulled in $17.9 million in just the last 12 months for their UAC ‘care.’
The UACs represent the biggest chunk of the Bishops payola right now.
Below you can see a year-to-year comparison.
They have lost some serious money since Obama, but they are picking up steam again. See for FY21, which we are in right now, they anticipate more millions this fiscal year as represented by the yellow line.
LIRS doesn’t need to be bringing in refugees from around the world, they are doing very well taking care of the illegal alien children. The $55 million is their take (of your money) for the children! over the last twelve months.
By the way, LIRS is over 90% taxpayer funded. There is no passing the plate at Sunday services for them!
Longtime readers know thatLIRS was mired in controversya few years ago, but notice how much the Trump Administration was shelling out to them. More than any Obama year! Pity that Trump never put anyone into key positions who knew where the bodies were buried.
***In case you are new to RRW, here are all of the contractors.
They worked to ‘elect’ Biden/Harris and lobby for open borders. As taxpayers you pay them millions annually to change America by changing the people.
The point you should take away from this story is that in addition to new refugees being illegally housed (newly arriving refugees are required to be placed in their own apartments or homes upon arrival, not placed in hotel rooms) is that the Michigan Lutheran refugee resettlement agency was working with the Muslim hotel owner who the city says was already in violation of fire and other safety codes.
For newcomers to RRW, there are nine federal resettlement agencies largely funded by you, the taxpayers, who work for the US State Department.
Each of those has many subcontractors. Your money flows through the nine down to hundreds of smaller organizations (like this Michigan subcontractor) making it very confusing for concerned citizens to know who it is that is changing their communities and it makes it almost impossible to follow the money.
Sterling Heights hotel in dispute with city alleges anti-Muslim, anti-refugee bias
The owner of a Sterling Heights hotel who is Muslim and of Pakistani descent alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday that city officials targeted and drove him out of business because of his faith and ethnicity and because he had housed about 200 Syrian refugees.
But on the same day, a Macomb County judge ruled against the hotel in a separate lawsuit that had been filed by city against the hotel, agreeing with the city that the hotel had failed to meet safety regulations.
Asad Malik, the owner of Wyndham Garden on 15 Mile and Van Dyke and president of the Pakistani Association of America, says in a lawsuit filed Monday in federal court in Detroit that after he started housing Syrian refugees in 2016, the city started to slap him with citations for violations of fire codes that he said other hotels with similar problems were not receiving. The hotel closed in September.
Malik purchased the hotel in 2014. He is an active member of the Muslim community in metro Detroit as a leader with the Islamic Association of Greater Detroit in Rochester Hills and meets with elected officials who have visited the mosque over the years.
The hotel was “opening her arms to refugees escaping from their war torn country,” his attorney Shereef Akeel, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Sterling Hotels, told the Free Press. “The last thing you would think is then one of our own cites shutting the door on them. And now, my client has had to pay dearly for their act of generosity.”
The hotel started taking in Syrian refugees in November 2016 [during the big Obama flood of refugees—ed] working with Samaritas, formerly known as Lutheran Social Services of Michigan, which helps resettle refugees.
Malik said he then received an email from the Sterling Heights city manager asking him: “Are there any Syrian refugees being housed at the Wyndham? A resident is alleging such at our council meeting.”
The targeted harassment started after that….
Keep readingto learn more about the complaint. The fallback position for a certain group of people is to cry DISCRIMINATION!
So where else is LIRS working to change America by changing the people?
This is something I need to do every time I write about a resettlement agency funded by you, in this case Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (the mothership) that passes its case loads to subcontractors like Samaritis.
Hereis where you can find out if a refugee agency in your city is affiliated with LIRS.
Below is a screenshot ofthe full list of subcontractors. Note how some have dropped the word “Lutheran” from their names.
“Tragically, in the last four years, we have seen this program become politically divisive and a lightning rod for no good reason, except for scoring political points.”
(Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of LIRS)
And, one of their planned new (?) tactics is to tell more refugee stories for media consumption! Hire more communications personnel! Tell more stories!
When I began writing this blog in 2007, that was one of the things that fired me up!
Every time you turned around there were emotional tear-jerking stories in local and national media about how a struggling refugee came to be in America and how great life was now that he/she lived in some American multi-culti slum!
I called the stories, ‘refugees see first snow’ stories when what I wanted was real reporting on the pros and cons of placing refugees in unsuspecting communities.
My refugee alerts these days are filled with articles like this one from Sojourners(a ‘religious’ Left publication):
UNDER A NEW ADMINISTRATION, CAN REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT BE DE-POLITICIZED?
On Nov. 12, at a virtual event celebrating the 40th anniversary of Jesuit Refugee Service, President-elect Joe Biden doubled down on his promise to increase presidential determination for annual refugee admissions to 125,000. That pledge marks a big increase from the record low of 15,000 refugee admissions President Donald Trump had set for the 2021 fiscal year.
[….]
Forty years later [Refugee Act signed into law in 1980 by Jimmy Carter.—ed], the all-time low numbers of refugees resettled in the United States is concerning. But, according to refugee resettlement experts, that number is a symptom of a larger, more alarming problem: Refugee resettlement has become a partisan issue.
You know why it has only in recent years become a hot potato issue? For 30 of the last 40 years no one had any understanding of what the hell these contractors had been doing. I like to think I helped educate the public about the refugee industry!
“Tragically, in the last four years, we have seen this program become politically divisive and a lightning rod for no good reason, except for scoring political points,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS). “… My hope is that we can have a serious discussion that could help insulate the program from the political whims of a future executive branch that would once again seek to use refugees as a political cudgel.”
Watch for it! This is what they want—a refugee floor—so that no future President could dramatically reduce the number of refugees because those refugees represent the contractors’ income. Fewer refugees means less money for their coffers.
“Part of the discussion we need to have in the coming months and years ahead is how do we create a more predictable and bipartisan system that potentially sets a refugee floor, in addition to allowing the president to establish a ceiling,” said Vignarajah, who came to the U.S. with her family as a refugee in the late ’70s.
[….]
LIRS CEO Krish O’Mara Vignarajah previously worked for Michelle Obama, so can we really expect “depolitizing” of the refugee issue?
Along with the eight other organizations that contract with the State Department to resettle refugees in communities across the country, LIRS is taking steps to make bipartisan support of refugee resettlement a reality, in part, by doubling its communications staff in an effort to dispel myths around resettlement.
Think about this! Your tax dollars pay for big salaries so they can tell their “stories” to the media!
“We’re in the business of storytelling so people understand who a refugee is, and why they pick up with the limited belongings they have and come halfway across the world,” Vignarajah said. “In this kind of environment, we need to do a better job of communicating who we are and what we do and who refugees are.”
According to Naomi Steinberg, vice president of policy and advocacy at Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), the conversation around refugee resettlement has become “toxified” over the past four years.
[….]
Among their requests of the incoming Biden administration:
Inform Congress of their intent to welcome 125,000 refugees and deliver a report to Congress that makes a case for increased appropriations for refugee resettlement.
Set the presidential determination with slots allocated according to regional needs, which allows the resettlement effort greater flexibility in meeting refugees’ needs.
Invite experts at the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security into the larger discussion on refugees.
Appoint a senior-level White House coordinator for refugee resettlement.
Immediately signal to the United Nations the intent to resume United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees referrals domestically and internationally so that they can devise a process quickly and efficiently.
It’s been awhile since I checked the income and salaries of the story tellers at LIRS.
Here is a page from the most recent Form 990 I could find (2018). Under Trump they are 87% federally funded (down about $10 million in federal grants since a top Obama year).
To listen to them whine you would think Trump made them find PRIVATE charitable money.
And here is the same page for 2015 (under Obama they were 95% federally funded):
Now have a look at the salaries.
But, first here is a headline of apost I wrote in February 2018. There has never been any adequate explanation for Hartke’s sudden departure.
Lutherans announce departure of CEO Hartke amid claims of financial irregularities, poor management
Former CEO Hartke
You will see here (below) when comparing the salaries reported to the IRS for 2015 and then 2018, that Hartke did exceptionally well in her last year at LIRS.
We do not yet have any record of the salary the new CEO—Krish O’Mara Vignarajah—is getting, but must assume it is in the same pay range as the salary of Ms. Hartke.
Here are the salaries for top execs at LIRS in 2015:
Here are the salaries for those who survived the inner turmoil that shook LIRS in 2017/2018. See that Hartke’s salary jumped about $100,000 in just three years as she walked out the door!
And, on your taxpayer dime!!!
Doing well by doing good! Tell your kids to grow up to be charitable execs at ‘religious’ non-profits funded by the US taxpayer!
I know this is just another ho-hum letter to the Administration (for the media’s consumption) from the ‘religious’ Left insisting that the President admit 95,000 refugees to America beginning on Thursday—yes, this coming Thursday October first.
Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president & CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service formerly worked for Michelle Obama
However, I am posting it just to be sure my archives are complete for this year’s Presidential determination lobbying campaign.
See my tag FY2021 for background and all of my archived stories on the subject.
This time it is Lutherans writing to the President as just one more publicity stunt on the part of the refugee contractors who fear the President might set this next year’s admission level at zero.
Here is the letter, but most importantly below are the 243 signatories (who signed on to the letter from Krish).
I thought you might like to have a look at who in your community is working to change America by changing the people. Lutherans especially might want to take note.
Dear Mr. President and Secretary Pompeo:
As bishops and ministers of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a denomination of 3.5 million people of faith, and as the CEOs of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and Lutheran Services in America, we write to express our support for welcoming refugees and urge you to commit to resettling at least 95,000 refugees in fiscal year 2021.
Sincerely, Krish etc….
1. Rev. Jason Adams, Reformation Lutheran Church, Las Vegas, NV
2. Rev. Nancy Amacher, Northwest Synod of Wisconsin ELCA, Withee, WI
3. Rev. Michael D. Anderson, Member of University Lutheran Ch, East Lansing, MI
4. Bishop Jon Anderson, Southwestern Minnesota Synod ELCA, Redwood Falls, MN
5. Rev. Kirk Anderson, Grand Canyon Synod, Dewey, AZ
6. Rev. Annette Andrews-Lux, Peace Lutheran Church, Silvana, WA
7. Bishop Jim Arends, La Crosse Area Synod ELCA, La Crosse, WI
8. Rev. Joshua Auchenbach, Tanque Verde Lutheran Church, Tucson, AZ
9. Mr. Hilton Austin Jr., St John’s Lutheran Atlanta, Decatur, GA
10. Co-Executive Director Mark Back Holden Village Chelan WA
11. Rev. Kevin Baker, First Lutheran Church, Lone Rock & St. Paul Ev. Lutheran Church, Wauzeka, WI
12. Rev. Jayne Baker, Retired, Phoenix, AZ
13. Rev. Lindean Barnett Christenson, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Bozeman, MT
14. Bishop Tracie Bartholomew, New Jersey Synod, ELCA, Hamilton Square, NJ
15. Rev. Scott Bartlett, Southwest CA / Bethel Los Angeles, CA
16. Rev. Paul Bauman, Greater Milwaukee Synod, West Bend, WI
17. The Rev. Glenn Beard Jr, Lower Susquehanna Synod ELCA, Lititz, PA
18. Bishop Daniel Beaudoin, Northwestern Ohio Synod, Findlay, OH
19. Pr. Min. Andrew Beers, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
20. The Rev. Dr. Chris Bellefeuille, St. Paul Area Synod ELCA, Stillwater, MN
21. Rev. Barbara Bengtson, Retired Clergy, Peoria, AZ
22. Rev. Paul Benz, Northwest Washington Synod, Everett, WA
23. Rev. Matthew Best, St. Stephen Lutheran Church, New Kingstown, PA
24. Rev. Elizabeth Bier, ONE in Christ Lutheran Parish, Greenwood, WI
25. Rev. John Biggs, Saved By Grace Lutheran Church, Pahrump, NV
26. Rev. Paul Birkedal, North Carolina Synod, Hickory, NC
27. Rev. Dr. John Bjorge, NW Washington Synod/First Lutheran Church of Richmond Beach,
Shoreline, WA
28. Rev. Paul Block New Song Church, Henderson, NV
29. Rev. Rebecca Boardman, Lutheran Campus Ministry at University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
30. The Rev. James Boline, St. Paul Lutheran Church of Santa Monica, Santa Monica, CA
31. Rev. Ronald Bonner, SES, Atlanta, GA
32. Rev. Judy Brennan, Cross of Christ Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
33. The Rev. Steven Broome, Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, McMurray, PA
34. Rev. Dr. Robin Brown, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Chicago, IL
35. The Rev. Allan Bruck, Northwest Washington Synod/Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church/Retired,
Bellevue, WA
36. Bishop Shelley Bryan Wee, Northwest Washington Synod ELCA, Seattle, WA
37. Rev. Abigail Byrd, Casa de la Luz Hospice, Tucson, AZ
38. Co-Executive Director Kathie Caemmerer-Bach, Holden Village, Chelan, WA
39. The Rev. Lauren Carlson, Calvary Lutheran Church ELCA, Morganton, NC
40. Rev. Ross Carmichael, St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Pittsburgh, PA
41. Rev. Joseph Castañeda Carrera, ADORE LA, Southwest California Synod, Los Angeles,CA
42. Pastor Mateo Chavez, Grand Canyon Synod – Iglesia Luterana San Juan Bautista, Tucson, AZ
43. Pastor Tim Christensen, Intentional Interim Ministry, Anchorage, AK
44. Rev. Carla Christopher Wilson, Lower Susquehanna Synod/Lutheran Church of the Good
Shepherd, Lancaster, PA
45. Rev. Dr. Sandra Chrostowski, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Pewaukee , WI
46. Rev. Barbara Condon, Northwest Intermountain Synod, Garden City, ID
47. Rev. Craig Corbin, Grand Canyon/ My. Olive Lutheran/Pastor, Lake Havasu City, AZ
48. Rev. Caleb Crainer, St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Los Angeles, CA
49. Rev. Gary Dalenius, Northwest Washington Synod, Faith Lutheran Church, Redmond, WA
50. Pastor Kristy Daniels, Northwest Washington Synod, Church of Steadfast Love, Seattle, WA
51. Bishop Suzanne Darcy Dillahunt, Southern Ohio Synod, Westerville, OH
52. The Rev. Amanda Diller Guida, Southeastern Iowa Synod/St. James Lutheran, Bettendorf, IA
53. Reverend Thomas Dunham, Streams in the Desert Lutheran Church, ELCA, Tucson, AZ
54. The Rev. Paul Eldred, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
55. Rev. Joseph Ellwanger, Hephatha Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, WI
56. Pastor Joanne Elise Engquist, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, ELCA, Seattle, WA
57. Bishop Paul Erickson, Greater Milwaukee Synod, ELCA, Milwaukee, WI
58. Pastor James Erlandson, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, St. Paul, MN
59. Rev. Tim Feiertag, Trinity Lutheran Church, Everett, WA
60. The Reverend Ali Ferin, St. Michael’s Lutheran Church, Roseville, MN
61. The Rev . Alan Field, Grand Canyon Synod, ELCA, Phoenix, AZ
62. Bishop Murray D. Finck, Southwest California Synod-ELCA, Santa Ana, CA
63. Rev. Jan Olav Flaaten, Retired Executive Director of Arizona Ecumenical Council, Phoenix, AZ
64. Rev. Dr. William Flippin, Jr., Director of Evangelical Mission, Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod,
Philadelphia, PA
65. The Rev. Dr. Susie Folks, SEPA, Pottstown, PA
66. Rev. Lara Forbes, Saint Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
67. Rev. Rock Fremont Jr., Shepherd of the Hills UCC, Phoenix, AZ
68. Bishop William Gafkjen, Indiana-Kentucky Synod, ELCA, Indianapolis, IN
69. Rev. Martin Galbraith, New Hope Lutheran Church, Freedom, PA
70. The Rev. Dr. Margarethe Galbraith-Cordes, Emmanuel and St John Lutheran Churches, Freedom,
PA
71. Rev. Dr. Jeffery Gallen, Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, Goodyear, AZ
72. Rev. Douglas Gebhard, Trinity, Sewickley, PA
73. Bishop Michael Girlinghouse, Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod , Tulsa, OK
74. Bishop James Gonia, Rocky Mountain Synod – ELCA, Denver, CO
75. Rev. Melissa Gonzalez, Minneapolis Area Synod/Tapestry, Richfield, MN
76. Bishop Erik Gronberg, Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod, ELCA, Dallas, TX
77. Ms. Ann Hafften, Messiah Lutheran Church, Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod, ELCA,
Weatherford, TX
78. Rev. Susan Halvor, Hospital Chaplain, Alaska Synod, ELCA, Anchorage, AK
79. The Rev. Linda Hanus, Mount Cross Lutheran Church/Grand Canyon Synod/ELCA, Payson, AZ
80. The Rev. Meredith Harber, Christ Lutheran Church-Alaska Synod, Soldotna, AK
81. Ms. Ruth Harris, Holy Family Lutheran Church, Chicago, IL
82. Rev. Laura Harris-Ferree, Luther Memorial Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA
83. Bishop Regina Hassanally, Southeastern MN Synod, ELCA, Rochester, MN
84. Rev. Phil Hausknecht, Ph.D., Retired – Grand Canyon Synod, Henderson, NV
85. The Reverend Katherine Hawks, Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA
86. Bishop James Hazelwood, New England Synod ELCA Lutheran, Worcester, MA
87. Rev. Anja Helmon, NWWA Synod/Northlake Lutheran Church, Kenmore, WA
88. Rev. Steve, Herder, Ascension Lutheran Church, Thousand Oaks, CA
89. Rev. John Hierlinger, ELCA, St. Paul Area Synod, Saint Paul, MN
90. Rev. Lester Hoffmann, Grand Canyon Synod, Scottsdale, AZ
91. Rev. Mark Holman, Grand Canyon Synod – ELCA, Mesa, AZ
92. Bishop Mark Holmerud, Sierra Pacific Synod, ELCA, Sacramento, CA
93. Rev. Carolann Hopcke, Zion Lutheran Church, Albion, NE
94. Rev. Libby Howe, La Crosse Area Synod, La Crosse, WI
95. Bishop Deborah Hutterer, Grand Canyon Synod-ELCA, Phoenix, AZ
96. Rev. Dr. Rodney Hutton, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
97. Rev. Keith Ingle, Retired, Tucson , AZ
98. Rev. Sarah Isakson, Faith La Fe Evangelical Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
99. Bishop Richard Jaech, Southwestern Washington Synod, Tacoma, WA
100. Sister Annette Janka, Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church, Anchorage, AK
101. The Rev. Lisa Jester, Emmaus Road Lutheran Church, Levittown, PA
102. Rev. Joshua Johnson, Faith Lutheran – Little Rock, AR
103. Pastor Michael Johnson, Christ the Lord Lutheran Church, Carefree, AZ
104. Rev. Jocelyn Johnston, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Pittsburgh, PA
105. Pastor Hans Jorgensen, St Timothy Lutheran Church, St Paul, MN
106. Mrs. LaDonna Jurgensen, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Littleton, CO
107. The Rev. John Kautz, Grand Canyon Synod, ELCA , Tucson, AZ
108. The Rev. Dr. Marjorie Keiter, Slovak Zion, Nesquehoning, PA
109. Ms. Vernita Kennen, Lutheran Advocacy-Minnesota, Roseville, MN
110. The Rev. Erik Kindem Northest Washington/Peace Lutheran, Seattle, WA
111. Co-Executive Director Stacy D. Kitahata, Holden Village, Chelan, WA
112. Rev. Joseph Klinger, Redemption Lutheran Church, Philadelphia, PA
113. The Rev . Patsy Koeneke, Grand Canyon Synod ELCA, Tucson, AZ
114. Ms. Kathryn Koob, Zion Lutheran Church, Waterloo, IA
115. Rev. Diane Krauszer, Trinity Lutheran Church Palmer, AK Alaska Synod ELCA, Palmer, AK
116. Rev. Marissa Krey, Mission Funding Director, ELCA, Durham, NC
117. Bishop Kristen Kuempel, Northwest Intermountain Synod, Spokane, WA
118. Bishop Kurt Kusserow, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA, Pittsburgh, PA
119. Rev. Peter Lai, Grand Canyon Synod, Las Vegas, NV
120. Rev. Chad Langdon, Christ Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
121. The Rev. Henry Langknecht, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Great Falls, VA
122. Rev. Dr. Mari Larson, Reformation Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
123. Rev. Dr. Duane Larson, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Houston, TX
124. Rev. Dustin Lenz, Alaska, Christ Lutheran Church ,Fairbanks, AK
125. Rev. Dr. F. Lichner, N.E. PA. Synod, Macungie, PA
126. Pastor Keith Lingwall, Abounding Grace Lutheran Church, Tucson, AZ
127. Rev. Kathleen Lotz, Community of Grace Lutheran Church, Peoria, AZ
128. Rev. Elizabeth Lowry, Lutheran Church of Hope, Anchorage, AK
129. Rev. Barbara Lundblad, Grace University Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN
130. Rev. Jonathan Lynn, Emmanuel English Evangelical Lutheran Church of Etna, PA
131. Pastor Deb Mach, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, NWWA Synod ELCA, Lake Stevens, WA
132. Pastor Carl Mangold, Retired, Scottsdale, AZ
133. Rev. Gregory Mannel, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
134. Deacon Cathy Mannel, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
135. Bishop Gerald Mansholt, East Central Synod of Wisconsin, ELCA, Appleton, WI
136. Rev. Christian Marien, Ascension Lutheran Church, Waukesha, WI
137. Rev. Brenda Martin, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Greenville, PA
138. Rev. Tim Maybee, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Saint Paul Area Synod, Circle Pines, MN
139. Pastor Gary McCluskey, University Lutheran Church/Lutheran Campus Ministry, Tempe,
AZ
140. Rev. Jenny McLellan, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Atlanta, GA
141. Rev. Corey Meier, Grand Canyon, Mesa, AZ
142. The Rev. Kevin Meyer, Grand Canyon Synod/Covenant Lutheran Church, Buckeye, AZ
143. Rev. Dr. Russell Meyer, Lutheran Urban Parish of Tampa , Tampa, FL
144. Pastor Stuart John Michles, Trinity Lutheran Church, Circleville, OH
145. Rev. Pamela Miles, Pointe of Grace Lutheran Church, Mukilteo, WA
146. Dr. Stephanie Mitchell, Emaus ELCA, Kenosha, WI
147. Rev. Donald Moeser, ACSW ELCA Southern Ohio Synod, Retired & Former Executive
Director LSS of NJ, Portsmouth, OH
148. Deacon Lauren Morse-Wendt, Edina Community Lutheran Church, Edin, MN
149. Pastor Fred Nelson, Grand Canyon Synod/New Spirit Lutheran, Tucson, AZ
150. Rev. Kelly Nieman Anderson, Greater Milwaukee Synod, Milwaukee, WI
151. Rev. Paul Ninnemann, Grand Canyon Synod, Rio Verde, AZ
152. Rev. Myron Nysether, Grand Canyon/Retired, Apache Junction, AZ
153. The Rev. Dr. Peggy Ogden-Howe, SWT TX, Georgetown, TX
154. Rev. Tim Oleson, Edmonds Lutheran Church, Edmonds, WA
155. Dr. Kenneth Olson, Metropolitan Chicago Synod Mission Interpreters, Schaumburg, IL
156. Pastor Abigail Orellano, Christ Lutheran Church, Libby, MT
157. Rev. Elizabeth Orling, Southwest Washington Synod, Port Ludlow, WA
158. Rev. Dr. Dennis Orsen, Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Eastmont, Pittsburgh, PA
159. Rev. William Ottum, Alaska Synod / River of Life Lutheran Church, Chugiak, AK
160. Rev. Kaitlin Pabo-Eulberg, Alaska Synod- Epiphany Lutheran-Episcopal Church, Valdez,AK
161. Rev. Sally Padgett, First English Lutheran Church, Columbus, OH
162. Rev. Dr. Duane Pederson, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Stamford, CT
163. Rev. Peter Perry, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Glendale, AZ
164. Rev. Dr. Eugene E. Perry, Grand Canyon Synod, Retired Minister, Scottsdale, AZ
165. Pastor Lucas Peters, Alaska Synod, Fairbanks, AK
166. Pastor Harold Peterson, Grand Canyon Synod, Sun City, AZ
167. Rev. Lee Ann Pomrenke, All Saints Lutheran Church, Eagan, MN
168. Rev. Lydia Posselt, Family of God Lutheran/ SEPA/ ELCA, Doylestown, PA
169. Rev. Scott Postlewait, Advent Lutheran Church, Mill Creek, WA
170. Rev. Jane Prestbye, Kent Lutheran Church, Kent, WA
171. Rev. Chon Pugh, Texas/Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod; Memorial/First, Texas City, TX
172. Pastor Ryan Pusch, Hebron and St Paul’s Highfield Lutheran Churches, Leechburg, PA
173. Rev. Elisabeth Pynn Himmelman, Campus Lutheran, Kearney, NE
174. Rev. Stephen Quill, ELCA Gulf Coast Synod, Missouri City, TX
175. Pastor Philip Ramstad, First Lutheran Church of Apollo, Apollo, PA
176. The Rev. Ray Ranker, Chaplain, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
177. Rev. Kimberly Rapczak, SWPA/Specialized Ministry, McKees Rocks, PA
178. The Rev. Barbara Rapp, Retired, GCS, Member, New Spirit Lutheran, Tucson, AZ
179. Rev. Dr. Gail Rautmann, Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Lynnwood, WA
180. The Rev. Michael L. Reed, Holy Angels Church, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA
Wilmerding, PA
181. Rev. Patricia Reimer Lowe, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Prescott Valley, Grand Canyon
Synod ELCA, Prescott Valley, AZ
182. The Rev. Amy Reumann, ELCA Advocacy, Washington, DC
183. Rev. Kristin Rice, All Saints Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
184. Rev. Sharon Richter, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Pasadena, CA
185. Reverend Elwood Rieke, Eastern North Dakota Synod/St. John Lutheran, Fargo, ND
186. Rev. David Rinas, Refugee Immigration Ministry, Pepperell, MA
187. Bishop Michael Rinehart, TX-LA Gulf Coast Synod, ELCA, Houston, TX
188. Rev. Rachel Ringlaben, ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission, Hattiesburg, MS
189. Bishop Peter Rogness, South-Central Synod of Wisconsin, ELCA, Madison, WI
190. Rev. Jennifer Rome, Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Saint Paul, MN
191. Rev. Sarah Rossing, St. James Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA
192. Rev. Sandra S. Rudd, Alaska Synod – Sitka Lutheran Church, Sitka, AK
193. Rev. Ron Rude, Grand Canyon Synod/Our Saviour’s Lutheran/Retired Pastor, Tucson, AZ
194. Rev. Elaina Salmon, Bethany Lutheran Church, Lemont, IL
195. Ms. Janet Santiago, Emmanuel Lutheran, Prescott Valley, AZ
196. The Rev. Dr. Craig Alan Satterlee, Bishop of the North/West Lower Michigan Synod
ELCA, Lansing, MI
197. Reverend Frank Sayford, Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod/Family of God/Member-
Retired, Warrington, PA
198. Rev. Blake Scalet, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Summit, NJ
199. Rev. Marty Schaefer, Sierra Pacific/Christ Lutheran Church/Retired Clergy, El Cerrito, CA
200. Rev. Robert Schaefer, The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Monroeville, PA
201. Rev. Dr. Clint Schnekloth, Canopy NWA/Good Shepherd Lutheran, Fayetteville, AR
202. The Rev. Eric Shafer, Mt. Olive Lutheran Church, Santa Monica, CA
203. Rev. Amanda Simons, Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, St. Paul, MN
204. Rev. David Sivecz, Grand Canyon Synod, Celebration Lutheran Church, Peoria, AZ
205. Rev. Ruth Sorenson-Prokosch, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, ELCA, Roseville, MN
206. The Rev. John Spangler, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Parkville, MD
207. The Rev. Dr. Judith Spindt, Southwestern Texas Synod, New Braunfels, TX
208. Pastor Sarah Stadler, Grace Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
209. Rev. Glen Stadler, Grand Canyon Synod, Gilbert, AZ
210. Rev. Tari Stage-Harvey, Shepherd of the Valley, Juneau, AK
211. Rev. Paula Stecker, Christ the King Lutheran, Colorado Springs, CO
212. Rev. George Steele, St. Mark Lutheran, Hagerstown, MD
213. Rev. Stephanie Steele, Chaplain Diakon Lutheran Social Min Maryland, Hagerstown, MD
214. Rev. Arthur Stees, Trinity Lutheran Church, Freeport, IL
215. Rev. Wendy Steger, Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Apple Valley, MN
216. Rev. Fr. Randy Steinman, Redeemer Church (ELCA), Neptune, NJ
217. Rev. Kimberly Sternet, Lord of Life, Sun City Wedt, AZ
218. Rev. Melissa Stoller, Southwestern PA Synod, ELCA, Pittsburgh, PA
219. Bishop Kevin Strickland, Southeastern Synod, Decatur, GA
220. Pastor Rebecca Sullivan, Lakeview Lutheran Church, Maplewood , MN
221. Bishop Ann Svennungsen, Minneapolis Area Synod, Minneapolis, MN
222. Rev. Rachel Swenson, Grace Lutheran Church, Des Moines, WA
223. Rev. Cara Tanis, NWWA Synod, Emmaus Table, Seattle, WA
224. Rev. Dr. Andrew Taylor, Pacifica Synod, Santee, CA
225. Rev. Andrew Tengwall, Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul, MN
226. Rev. Linda Theophilus, Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Eastmont, Pittsburgh, PA
227. Reverend Erik Thone, South Canyon Lutheran Church, Rapid City, SD
228. Pastor Kris Tostengard Michel, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN
229. Rev. Erika Uthe, Southeastern Iowa Synod, Iowa City, IA
230. Reverend Daniel Valasakos, Grand Canyon Synod of the ELCA, Tucson, AZ
231. Pastor Vernon A. Victorson, Grand Canyon, Tucson, AZ
232. Rev. Kathryn Warn, Zion Lutheran Church, Manheim, PA
233. Bishop Shelley Wee, Northwest Washington Synod, ELCA, Seattle, WA
234. Bishop Shelley Wickstrom, Alaska Synod ELCA, Anchorage, AK
235. Mr. Brynn Wiessner, Rocky Mountain Synod, Denver, CO
236. Rev. Bonnie Wilcox, First Lutheran Church, Columbia Heights, MN
237. Rev. Michael Wilker, Lutheran Church of the Reformation, Washington, DC
238. Rev. Gregory Williams, Grace Lutheran Church, Hendersonville, NC
239. Interim Bishop Lawrence Wohlrabe, Eastern North Dakota Synod ELCA, Fargo, ND
240. Rev. Dr. Annette Woodman-Howe, Southwestern Pennsylvania, Retired, Perryopolis, PA
241. Rev. Ron Zielske, Sierra Pacific Synod, St. John’s Lutheran, Sacramento, CA
242. Deacon Dr. Janice Zimbelman, Grand Canyon Synod, Prescott, AZ
243. Rev. Krista Zimmerman, Mount Pleasant Lutheran Church, Racine, WI
Yesterday as I was happily putting up my vegetable harvest, I heard Glenn Beck in the background announcing that he soon would be talking to the leader of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) about their efforts to care for arriving Afghan evacuees (most are NOT refugees).
