Shepherd Lutheran to celebrate Golden Anniversary
By CHUCK BALLARO
Anything in this area that lasts for 50 years is worthy of celebration, especially when it’s in a House of the Lord.
On Sunday, March 15, members of the Shepherd Lutheran Church & School at 4770 Orange Grove Blvd. will celebrate the its 50th anniversary with a special service at 10 a.m. and dinner afterward at the Elk’s Lodge.
Jerry Lawson, the church’s pastor, said for any organization to make it 50 years is an accomplishment.
“You see things coming and going, so it’s an achievement for something to last so long,” Lawson said. “There are core beliefs of the church and school and what they hear each Sunday. We have a dedicated core.”
According to the church’s website, mission work began in North Fort Myers by St. Michael’s Lutheran Church of Fort Myers in August 1963.
In January 1965 the Rev. Paul Esala was commissioned to serve here and Good Shepherd Lutheran Church was organized two months later.
On Nov. 27, 1966 the original church sanctuary and parish hall were dedicated, and the following year, Good Shepherd Lutheran School was started.
Under the Rev. Martin Renner, the school continued to grow in the ’80s and ’90s. A new church, with a 200-seat sanctuary and fellowship room was built, and the school campus was expanded to 24 classrooms that goes from K-8 and has day care for children as young as two.
The original building which housed the church was repurposed into classrooms when the new sanctuary was built. The original back wall of the church can be seen today in a room reserved for a local Cub Scout Troop.
Renner retired in 1998 and the church has had three pastors since, with Lawson having run the church since 2009.
Today, the church has a core membership of about 120, which grows to about 170 during season, Lawson said, with many of those members being over 50.
The school, including daycare, has about 200 students.
Lawson said many of those members are likely members for life, such as what you would see in Catholicism.
Lawson said 50 years is a great milestone, but it is equally important to look ahead to the future.
“Thank God, we’re here. But it’s a step forward. We’re looking for growth, staying to what we’re called to do and that’s to reach out into the community with Christ,” Lawson said.
For more information, call the church at 995-7711.