Concord, NC

Pastor Hahn's Thoughts...

My dear Calvary church family,

It was a 911 call, a cry for help in response to an emergency. It arrived at Calvary just a few days ago via the U.S. Mail in the form of a letter from Cooperative Christian Ministry (CCM), a local charity that provides food relief, financial assistance, and temporary housing to area residents in crisis. It was ringing the alarm bells big time!
It should surprise no one that CCM has been overwhelmed by requests for housing and food assistance. For example, CCM had to spend twice as much as anticipated on purchasing groceries to supplement food donations from area partners. (More details can be found in CCM's current newsletter HERE.) Our neighbors in crisis in Cabarrus County need our help. And Calvary is helping with its community outreach ministries. But more is needed. It's time to shift into a higher gear!

There is an easy way for you to help! Several of Calvary's members have already done so. Ken and Jan (pictured below) did so just a couple of days ago while they were in my office. (I also heard that Rosie did the same. And there may be more.) It took only a few minutes.



What did they do? Ken and Jan became Associate Members with Thrivent, a not-for-profit financial services company with deep Lutheran roots and a strong history of charitable activities. Through their Associate Memberships, Ken and Jan each have access to one $250 grant per year to be used for a charitable purpose at Calvary or in the community. (The membership fee is only $19.95, which makes their return on investment twelve-fold!)

If I remember correctly, one of them plans to use the grant to fill the "blessing box" at Winecoff Elementary for one month with groceries. The other wants to provide seeds and seedlings for a section of Calvary's vegetable garden. With only eleven more individuals signing up as Associate Members, the blessing box at Winecoff can stay filled year-round.

Just imagine how much good we could do to support CCM and our neighbors in crisis, if 20 or 30 or 50 individuals at Calvary signed up to become Associate Members with Thrivent and if Full Members actually use the two grants per year to which they are entitled.

The paperwork/computer work takes only a few minutes. I am ready to help you Sundays after worship and Wednesdays and Thursdays when I am in the office. I'll help you over the phone. Just reach out. This is so easy and so effective! The impact is great!

God's Peace,

Pastor Hahn
InterimPastor@CLConcord.org
On Sunday, August 4th, Pastor Hahn began serving Calvary as our interim pastor.

The Rev. Dr. Norbert Hahn—who likes to be called “Pastor Hahn”—brings an international perspective with him as he has been educated, lived, and served in both the United States and Germany.

He completed his graduate education at the University of Muenster in Germany (Master of Theological Studies), Harvard University (Master of Divinity), and Emory University (PhD in Theology and Psychology). In addition, he has been trained as a church coach, a church growth consultant, and an intentional interim pastor.

He has served as parish pastor in Georgia, North Carolina (including twelve years here in Concord), Pennsylvania and Northern Germany and as campus minister at three different universities in the U.S.

Pastor Hahn will be serving as Calvary’s interim pastor on a part-time basis while continuing to serve as part-time Lutheran campus minister at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC.
He enjoys walking, cooking, and gardening with his wife, Lyn, playing his guitar, reading, and, occasionally, binge-watching an interesting TV series.

He and Lyn serve as staff to their cat, Lulu.