The third annual Chicken Cattiatore Dinner will be from 4:30-7:30pm Saturday, February 18th. Menu includes homemade chicken cattiatore (chicken breast in an Italian style tomato sauce) over pasta, salad, bread, dessert and drink. Suggested donation is $6.50 per adult for tickets purchased on or before February 13, and $8.50 after February 13. Tickets for children ages 4-12 are $4, and children 3 years and under are admitted free. Funds will be used to pay softball league fees. Tickets are available in the church office, before and after worship, or from any softball team member.

Join us from 5:30-8pm on Tuesday, February 21 as the high school youth serve dinner New Orleans style. We will have great food, cake walks, a raffle for the King Cake and an “UnTalent” Show. All ages welcome. All proceeds will go toward the New Orleans Youth Gathering this summer.

Bring a friend to Sunday School and church on February 19th. After church, we will go to White Pines and roller skate from 2-4 p.m.

The Prayer Shawl Ministry invites you to take advantage of the prayerful craftsmanship of our knitters. The ministry is currently working on a project to send prayer shawls to the 60 ELCA military chaplains currently serving with our armed forces. There are shawls available in the display located in the East Room for distribution to those in need.  Please feel free to take one, our only request is that you fill out the information requested on the form located next to the cabinet so that we can keep track of the numbers of shawls and who receives them. If you have any questions with regard to this program, please contact Bess Over or Sandy Wolfe.

The Social Ministry Team is pleased to announce the winter collection of items for the Mitten Tree that includes gloves, mittens, hats, & scarves, and can be placed on the Mitten Tree through December 4th.

The Children’s Christmas Program, “Follow the Star,” is set for 2 p.m. Sunday, December 18. Rehearsals are happening during Sunday School time, as well as at from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, December 17. On December 18, lunch will be served to the children immediately following the 10:45 service; we will then rehearse the program and perform at 2 p.m. Please e-mail Music Minister Janel Stahr at janel@stjohnsonthird or Youth Director Karen Wolfe at karen@stjohnsonthird.org if you have questions or to find out how you can help with rehearsals or the program.

Our Christmas Eve Barn Service will be at 3 p.m. at the Howard and Kay Janssen Farm, 11659 County Line Road, Rock Falls. Dress warm and come to hear the story of Jesus’ birth through Word and song in this barn setting. Our candlelight Christmas Eve Services follow at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. in the Sanctuary at St. John’s.

Fall yard clean up will be here before we know it. A sign-up sheet will be available in the East Room for those in need of yard work. The youth going to New Orleans in 2012 will clean up yards as a fundraiser. If you know of anyone who will need help, please sign up with a phone number so we can set a date & time.

LSSI Facilitated Caregiver Group at St. John’s

LSSI will be facilitating a Caregiver Group at St. John’s Lutheran Church. The group is open to anyone caring for a loved one. A light lunch will be served at noon each time the group meets. The group will meet the second and fourth Thursday of each month. For those interested in fellowship

with other caregivers and resources to support caregivers, please attend or call Emily Taylor at Lutheran Social Services of Illinois at (815) 626-7333, ext. 317. We look forward to the partnership with the church community.

Heritage Day is set for Sept. 11th. Our theme this year is “Sharing our Past ~ Growing our Future.” Ministry groups will be sharing what they done in years past and what they are doing today through displays, booths and hands-on activities for the entire congregation between services and after second service. Breakfast, a lunch cookout, hayrack rides and other activities are planned. And be sure to register for Sunday School!

Sunday September 18th, Healing Service for all and Barb Otten will be returning to St. John’s to share her earliest experiences at Seminary, to include how to survive a crash course in Greek as well as her coming schedule. She will also deliver the message that day and be the guest  of honor during coffee hour between services. In honor of our sister, Barb, we will be collecting non-perishable food items from September 1st thru September 18th with the goal of providing these items to the Warburg Seminary Food Bank in Barb’s name. Items can be dropped off in the bins in the East Room or at the church office. Let’s make it so that Barb can’t just load her car but that we require a truck for the delivery!