Taco Dinner for El Salvador

You are invited to a fun-filled night of food, fellowship, and some fundraising on Saturday, May 18, at 5 p.m. For $12 a person / $40 a family, you will receive a taco dinner, appetizers, dessert, beer or wine, and other beverages. Taco options will include ground beef, chicken birria, and carnitas, with rice and beans and salad. Tickets will be available Sunday mornings in May.

We have a wide variety of fantastic auction items but it’s not too late to donate items! We are also looking for volunteers to donate appetizers and desserts. Following the dinner, we will wrap up the evening with some bingo and trivia. Sign-up online to donate to the auc tion or to volunteer. 

All proceeds will benefit the mission trip to El Salvador taking place at the end of July. We have a twelve-member delegation traveling to visit the ministries of San Jorge and Usulután Lutheran churches.

Quesadillas and Baked Goods in El Salvador

When Ascension hosted Together in Mission at the beginning of February, we wanted to be able to show hospitality to our guests in a way that showed our visitors who we are. With the synod’s connection to El Salvador and our Latino Ministries, it was a natural fit to offer some food from El Salvador. We had pupusas, plantains, frijoles, and Salvadoran quesadilla. Salvadoran quesadilla is a very different food from Mexican quesadilla. It looks similar to cornbread, and is sweet/savory cake to be enjoyed with coffee. Several people asked Pastor Edwin for the recipe. He had to tell everyone that the only person in his family that knows how to make a traditional Salvadoran quesadilla is his very non-Salvadoran wife. 

Pastor Edwin’s family isn’t unusual. Most people cook either on something resembling a camp stove using propane, or the cheapest option — using firewood. Cooking over the open flames has caused Salvadoran women to suffer disproportionately from respiratory issues since these fires tend to be indoors so cooking can happen regardless of the weather. The World Health Organization is educating the women of El Salvador on the dangers of cooking over firewood, so little by little, tortillas are no longer being made at home, but being purchased from people that have saved up money to buy a propane griddle to make small businesses selling tortillas from their homes.

In El Salvador, owning an oven is a luxury. For the few that own an oven, it is even more unusual to be able to afford to use the oven part for baking. Nearly everyone that owns an oven uses the oven part as a storage cabinet and only cooks on the stove top. When people need baked goods, they need to purchase them since no one has the means to bake at home. This is why the bakery ministry at San Jorge church is a blessing in so many ways. Thank you to everyone that supported the San Jorge Bakery and other ministries during Love Your Church, Love Your World.

If you are interested in trying your hand at making Salvadoran Quesadilla, our favorite recipe can be found at https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/255919/quesadilla-salvadorena/.

Serve With Ascension

November updates include Pastor Julio’s visit, NAMI, a new minsitry, Christmas parade, Christmas Clearing Council, Habitat for Humanity Gingerbread House and Thank You’s.

Pastor Julio Visits Ascension

After many years of brotherhood with the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church of Usulután in El Salvador, their pastor was finally able to visit and worship together with our community. Pastor Julio had the opportunity to attend one of the Bible studies on Grace that Pastor Tony is conducting. He helped lead JOLT and was part of all of the fun. He toured the Hope Center facilities to learn about this ministry project. In the absence of both Pastor Chris and Pastor Tony for Sunday worship, Pastor Julio was able to accompany Pastor Edwin in the English service and in the bilingual service. He even had the chance to enjoy an early Thanksgiving dinner.

Pastor Julio is surprised with all the great work Ascension is doing. He believes that many of these things can be implemented in El Salvador, for example work with children and young people. With adults he hopes to implement bible study sessions using the same Max Lucado book, Grace, that Ascension is currently using. Ascension gave him the book in Spanish so that he and Pastora Blanca could read it and decide if they would like to do a Bible study. If they do the Bible study, Ascension will purchase the books in Spanish and send them to them so that the Bible study is a success.

The intention of Ascension is to share with our brotherhood part of the resources that are available. These types of resources are sadly not available to the pastors and leadership of the Salvadoran Lutheran Church. Ascension will continue to be illuminated by the guidance of the Holy Spirit on our journey of sharing his love with another. Thank you to everyone who made Pastor Julio feel welcome during his time here.

Mental Health in Families of Faith

NAMI Mental Health in Families of Faith will be Nov. 14 2 p.m. at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 631 N 19th St., Milwaukee. Come to hear Meg Kissinger and Kathleen Geuder-Martin bravely share their personal and moving stories of growing up in families with mental illness and how their faith helped them. They will be sharing from their newly-released memoirs. All are welcome.

Mustard Seed Ministry

On October, 5 Ascension members attended the annual SOPHIA Community Prayer Breakfast. What a wonderful day it was to be inspired by people of faith who see that by working together we can accomplish so much more than as individual congregations or even denominations. We were reminded of the great needs in our community for a reformed immigration system and ways to assist immigrants and refugees in adapting to life in this country. Affordable housing is becoming a crisis in the entire county not just for the very poor but increasingly for the younger and the older ends of the age spectrum as new construction tends to meet the needs of the middle. Affordable housing has many barriers that can be overcome. These are just two of many areas of justice and opportunity that SOPHIA is working to resolve. We were challenged by a Moravian pastor to stand and take a step forward and follow Jesus’ parable of planting a mustard seed of faith. When we love and nurture our seed, a giant plant will grow. Would you like to meet to discuss Mustard Seed Ministry? We think Thanksgiving time is a great time to be thankful for the harvest already completed through the work of SOPHIA and now we can take that leap of faith and plant some new seeds that can help grow a field of Ministry Mustard plants that can make a difference in our community. Each small step can lead to a big result. The prayer breakfast closed by a reminder from a Catholic priest that “Whatever we do for the least of these, we do unto Christ Himself.” This just happens to be the motivating force behind all that our Mission Outreach Team is doing. Join us between services on Nov. 19 to discuss the planting strategy for Ascension. “And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”( Micah 6:8)

Waukesha Christmas Parade, Dec. 3

One of our goals has been to make the community more aware of Ascension’s unique ministries and how we are bringing the good news of God’s love for all into the community. The Christmas parade provides us with this opportunity. We need your help. We need people to help with the final preparations before the parade. We need candy donations for handing out on the parade route. We need people to hand out candy and keep the candy bins full. We need costumed characters to walk in the parade and we need other people of all ages to walk with the procession as we portray Mary and Joseph looking for a place to stay in Bethlehem. It will be a moving Posada! We will be handing out a special invitation with details in English and Spanish about all the worship activities and special events at Ascension during December. See the Signup Genius to volunteer. We need your help to make this community event a success in telling how we share God’s love at Ascension.

Christmas Angel Tree

This year, the Angel Tree will be set up in the narthex from Nov. 2 through Dec 7. The Thursday Afternoon Women’s Nurture Group is coordinating this activity to benefit the Christmas Clearing Council. They are requesting Target and Walmart gift cards of $25 for children and teens over 12. Angel ornaments can be taken from the tree with Target or Walmart on them and placed in the marked box in the office with your gift card. The group will deliver the gift cards to the Christmas Clearing Council in time for them to be delivered to families in need. If you have any questions, contact Linda Hansen, lindahansen@wi.rr.com.

Habitat for Humanity News

Join Habitat for their tiniest, tastiest build of the year! Showcase your sweet skills for a great cause by building a Gingerbread House. All proceeds go towards funding their mission. Build, vote for, or buy one of the gingerbread houses and support affordable housing in Waukesha County! The Gingerbread Build is Dec. 9, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Corners of Brookfield. Register online, habitatwaukesha.org/gingerbreadbuild.

Getting a new car for Christmas? Did you know by donating your vehicle to Habitat you can help build and repair affordable homes while also helping the environment? Since launching the national vehicle donation program, Cars for Homes, in 2005, Habitat has accepted over 120,000 vehicles for reselling or recycling, raising funds for Habitat to partner with local families to build stability and security that a safe affordable home allows. Cars, trucks, RV’s, vans, SUV’s, boats and motorcycles are accepted whether they are running or not. Towing is free! Donate now.

So Many Thank You’s

  • To all those who walked, ran, rode, volunteered or donated to Outreach for Hope
  • To all those who participated in the NAMI Walks to help raise awareness for mental health
  • To all those who donated to the Tend a Teacher Program for Hawthorne School
  • To all those who donated to feed the children at the schools of our parishes in Tanzania
  • To all of those who donated food locally to the Food Pantry or our Blessing Box

What a joy and blessing it is to experience the generosity of a congregation that lives out their faith in big and small ways to accomplish great things! Praise be to God for the gifts and service to Him through the gifts and service to others in need.

¡Gracias! from Hawthorne

Dear Ascension Church,

On behalf of the entire Hawthorne Community, I want to express our sincere gratitude for your unwavering commitment to supporting our school and families. Your generosity and partnership have made a real difference in the lives of our students and families.

From providing financial assistance to supporting our teaching, you have consistently gone above and beyond to create a vibrant and supportive learning environment. You dedication to our school is truly inspiring.

We are particularly grateful for your support in granting our teacher wish lists. Your funding has helped prepare our teachers prepare their classrooms with new items!

We are so fortunate to have you as a partner. Your support helps us to create a school where all students can thrive. Thank you for believing in our scholars and our school.

Sincerely,

Taheréh DeLeón, Principal

El Salvador & Tanzania News

Pastor Julio Visiting from El Salvador

Pastor Julio will be at Ascension the first week of October. On Sunday, Oct. 8, you are invited to join us for a potluck lunch following late service to share Wisconsin hospitality with him and to hear more news from our brothers and sister in Usulután.

There is also interest in El Salvador in hosting a Bible study based on the book Grace by Max Lucado. Pastor Tony and Pastor Edwin have both been leading book studies on this book at Ascension. The Spanish-language versions of the book are $12 each. If you are interested in sponsoring a book that Pastor Julio can take back with him, you can connect with Pastor Edwin.

School Lunches for Tanzania

We hope to collect enough money in the month of October to provide all 1100 children and teachers with lunch for the 195-day school year. Because of the drought and world-wide high food prices, we need to raise $18,576. For $100, all of students and teachers in our three partner schools will have a day and a half of lunch. It is only $16.84 to feed a child for the year. Give on Sundays, but it is even easier to give online now.

El Salvador & Tanzania Partnership Committee

Ascension has long been an over-achiever when it comes to our partnerships, but we took things to a whole new level this summer when we hosted a delegation from El Salvador back-to-back with a large group going to Tanzania. These visits helped revitalize our partnerships after years of not seeing each other due to the pandemic. With renewed energy, stronger friendships, and an abundance of new information, our partnership committee is looking forward to resuming in-person meetings. The first one will be at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 8.

Who:

  • Anyone planning to travel to El Salvador or Tanzania in the future
  • Anyone who has previously traveled as part of a delegation
  • Anyone who has a heart for our brothers and sisters in El Salvador and Tanzania; no travel required!

What:

  • Reflect on this summer’s visits
  • Plan for the future and goal-setting
  • Beginning a deeper look at education in El Salvador and Tanzania
  • Talking about our trip to El Salvador, approximately July 29 – August 5, 2024

Please note that as our partnerships deepen, our leadership and the pastors have made it a goal for future partnership visits to El Salvador and Tanzania that all travelers will have at least a year of regular (at least 75%) participation in our partnership committee prior to travel. If you are interested in traveling in the future or interested in joining the committee, but unable to attend the August 8 meeting, please contact Sarah Aparicio.

Tanzania and El Salvador Trips

Tanzania and El Salvador two folded flags together

The Tanzania/El Salvador Dinner & Auction was a success! Thank you to the many volunteers and donors who contributed to the fun-filled evening!

As we get closer to the delegation visits (both from El Savador and to Tanzania), there are a couple of things we could use.

  • A twin bed (including mattress) that is not overly difficult to move that could be used as a bed for one of our Salvadoran guests for just over a week. It will be in a smoke-free/ pet-free house. (Edwin and Sarah’s house)
  • Donations for Welcome Kits for the El Salvador delegates.

Activities to Welcome El Salvador Delegates

We’d love to have you join us as you are able!

  • Welcome Brunch: You’re invited to a potluck brunch at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 20, to welcome the El Salvador delegation to Ascension!
  • Potluck Picnic: June 24, 5 p.m. at Ascension. Let’s share our Wisconsin hospitality!
  • Worship at Ascension, Sunday, June 25 8:30 & 10am

Meet the Delegates from El Salvador

We are looking forward to hosting a group from our sister parishes in El Salvador at the end of June. We hope you are able to join us in some of the activities while they are here. Watch for more details as we get closer!

San Jorge Church / Iglesia Milagro de Dios (God’s Miracle Church)

  • Mayra Criselda Campos de Quintanilla: Mayra is the secretary of the church council for San Jorge Church. She works as a kindergarten teacher.
  • Claudia María Flores Menjívar: This is Claudia’s second visit to Ascension. She is the facilitator of San Jorge’s church council. Claudia is a school principal.

Usulután Church / Mi Buen Pastor (Good Shepherd Church)

  • Julio Cesar Chávez Aguilar: Pastor Julio is the pastor at Usulután Church, Llano El Coyol, and Puerta Parada Churches. Pastor Julio is the brother of Pastora Blanca from San Jorge church.
  • Pastor Rafael Menjivar on behalf of Bishop Gomez, who is too ill to travel.
  • Victoriano Amilcar Torres Ramirez: Amilcar is the president of the Usulután church council. He buys old homes and cars, repairs them and then resells them.

Meet the Delegates to Tanzania

  • Pastor Tony Acompanado: I have served here since 2014 first as the Director of Faith Formation and then, after completing seminary, I was ordained and called to serve here as one of the pastors. I preach and teach and love to stay involved with our youth. I especially enjoy using my gifts in pastoral care to help people find peace and joy in God while experiencing difficult times. I’ve traveled internationally for mission trips many times but this will be my first time going to Tanzania.
  • Jackie Bosanac: I am a lifelong member of Ascension. I was involved with the baby ministry, knitting afghans for baptisms but took a hiatus from it when my husband got sick. I want to start up again knitting soon. I work two days a week for my sister at her daycare in Mukwonago. I have two adult children whom blessed me with five grandchildren.
  • Dianne Frowein: Dianne has been a member of Ascension Lutheran Church for almost 20 years. She is married to Rick Frowein. Dianne and Rick have three grown children and two grandchildren. She has been a substitute teacher in the Waukesha School District for 20 years. Dianne moved to Waukesha, Wisconsin, 40 years ago from the Chicago area where she worked for the Bank of America. She is a member of the Waukesha Service Club where she has been a buyer in the Gift Shop at Waukesha Memorial Hospital for 11 years. She enjoys reading, golfing, boating and sewing.
  • Rick Frowein: Rick retired six years ago from GE Healthcare after working there for over 38 years. He has been married to his wife Dianne for 41 years. Rick enjoys traveling, home improvement projects, and outdoor activities (boating, golfing, and skiing). He has been a long time Board member of the local YMCA and currently serves as its Foundation Board president. He is also a Vice President on the Mt. Meru Coffee Project Board responsible for its weekly operations.
  • The Ward Family: Bob Ward was baptized and confirmed at Ascension. Additionally, Bob and Kim were married in 2003 and went on a honeymoon with complete strangers to Honduras on their first mission trip with Ascension. Bob has been an electrician for 28 years and currently works at Preferred Electric. He’s been known to volunteer his time with projects around church. He has three beautiful children, two of whom are going on this trip. In his limited free time, Bob enjoys working on home improvement projects, traveling, hiking, and cheering on the Packers, Bucks, Brewers, and his kids’ sports teams.
  • Kim Bingen-Ward has been a member at Ascension since approximately 2003. She fell in love with the contemporary service and enjoys listening to the Praise Band. The trip to Honduras was life-changing, and she still thinks of one of the girls that she instantly bonded with. Kim has been working with children with autism for nearly 28 years. In 2010, Kim opened up Autism Treatment for Children, a small clinic that provides behavioral therapy, with her close friend and business partner. In Kim’s also limited free time, she enjoys traveling, hiking, cuddling with her cats Midge and Gilmore, and supporting her three children in all of their extracurricular activities.
  • Zack Ward was baptized and confirmed at Ascension. He is currently finishing his sophomore year at Mukwonago High School and fingers crossed will maintain his 4.0 GPA. Zack works part-time at Metro Market in Mukwonago and has played high school and club volleyball and high school tennis. Zack loves playing video games with his brother who undoubtedly is his best friend.
  • Alina Ward was baptized and will be confirmed in October at Ascension. Alina is finishing up her eighth-grade year at Parkview Middle School in Mukwonago. Currently, Alina is studying for her finals in Algebra and Spanish in which she will receive high school credit as a middle schooler. Alina is involved in dance and volleyball. Her aspirations are to be a doctor or veterinarian. In Alina’s free time, she likes to hang out with her friends and her guinea pigs, Smore and Pepper.
  • Jeremy Poling: Jeremy is a drummer in the Praise Band at the late service. He is also a former council president. Jeremy traveled to El Salvador with Ascension on our most recent trip.
  • Sarah Wehmeier Aparicio: Sarah is a life-long Ascension member and coordinates our sister parish relationships in El Salvador and Tanzania. Sarah is a music teacher, currently at Summit View Arts Magnet School. In addition, Sarah is a part-time administrator in the church office and is the music leader for Spanish worship. When not at work, Sarah and her husband Edwin can be found supporting their daughters Marta and Luisa in one of their many activities.

Spaghetti Dinner & Auction 2023

You are invited to a fun-filled night of food, fellowship, and some fundraising on Saturday, May 20, at 5 p.m. to support a mission trip to Tanzania and visiting delegates from El Salvador. For $12 a person / $40 a family, you will receive a spaghetti dinner catered by Noah’s Pizza of Pewaukee, appetizers, dessert, beer or wine, and other beverages. Buy your tickets online.

We have a wide variety of fantastic auction items including a condo in Door County, spa baskets, food and beverage baskets, tickets to sporting events, artwork, Art’s baked goods and more. It’s not too late to donate items! Contact Sarah Aparicio with your ideas.

We still looking for volunteers to help with the auction, and for people to provide appetizers and desserts. Sign-up online.

All proceeds will benefit the mission trips from El Salvador and to Tanzania taking place this June.

How Is Your Epiphany Going?

The Magi have gone home. The Christmas decorations are all put away…well most of them. Our Nativity is still celebrating the birth of the newborn king, the visit of the shepherds, the gifts of the Wise men, and the humble beginnings of our Savior. During the season of Advent into Christmas, we often rearrange our living room and dining room to allow more space for the Christmas tree. When the tree disappears, the furniture often rearranges. Such is life.

It is no different here at Ascension. We have been on a journey of discovery over the past twelve months. How much can we do, exactly, without a functioning kitchen and the loss of two bathrooms? Well, the answer is ALMOST ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING. We have provided for the receptions for several celebrations of life. We have journeyed through Lent while gathering at long tables in the narthex/lobby for soup suppers. We have pushed countless people down the hall to the functioning bathrooms even through the great day of Easter with more than 700 in worship. More platters, bowls, pitchers, and coffee pots have been washed in the kitchenette in the Youth Room and the sink in the sacristy than anyone ever expected. What joy to do all those things with smiles on our faces most of the time. What joy to know we are so close to the end of this chapter of remodeling.

We have countertops ordered for the kitchen with early February as the target date for installation which allows the electrician to return to finish and then the painter returns to finish and then the city inspects and then…well, one can dream. We are so close to completion, and we are indebted to so many to bring these projects to a close and to countless more who have dragged dishes back and forth from the storage room/prayer room/meeting room/ new office space to West Hall and East Hall and back again. We also have several members who have monitored costs and adjusted plans and worked together with contractors and plumbers and painters and installers and appliance companies and HVAC companies. When someone said, “It takes a village.” It truly does. In our case: a community to craft the story to move us to completion.

All that being said, I would also offer that for the month of February we are celebrating “Love Your Church, Love Your World” once again. It continues to be a blessing to offer opportunities for members and friends to tend items that support the ministry of our church while at the same time looking out beyond our walls to support ministry on a local, national, and global scale. The generosity of this community never ceases to amaze me as I am often surprised as many of you say yes again and again to sharing the love of Jesus in tangible ways.

This year, “Love Your Church, Love Your World” will focus on the necessities of day-to-day church ministry, tending the continued work of completing the kitchen, and the continued expansion of ministry through our sister churches in San Jorge and Usulután, El Salvador. The sanctuary windows will once again be filled with hearts to offer you opportunity to share in the work of ministry to the glory of God.

As we enter February, you are invited to join me in providing financial offset to the needs of our kitchen remodel. Certainly, there are those among us who can afford to purchase one of these appliances outright. Lord knows, I am not one of them. BUT, I can afford a portion. I wonder if you would consider a gift of a portion of an appliance. Below is a list of the new appliances for the kitchen and their cost.

  • Double Wall Oven – $2,700
  • Double Oven with Range – $1,800
  • Fire Suppression Hood – $8,900
  • Commercial Refrigerator – $3,800
  • Triple Bay Sink – $1,400
  • Coffee Machine – $1,600 (This has been purchased already – Praise the Lord!)
  • Chest Freezer – $600 (This has been purchased already.)

For our sister churches in El Salvador, we continue to work towards sustainability. Our continued support of the two hardware stores is essential to the partial funding of our sister church in Usulután where Pastor Julio leads the congregation of El Buen Pastor (Good Shepherd Lutheran Church). In San Jorge, we work with Pastora Blanca and the congregation of El Milagro de Dios (Miracle of God Lutheran Church) to support the education of young people and provide the community in San Jorge with a place of safety and strength in the ongoing work of the church among the residents of San Jorge. It is always a moment of amazement to be reminded that most households live on a monthly income of far less than $150. Imagine?! We are excited to begin to plan to send a delegation of Ascension members to El Salvador in 2024.

The windows will be filled with hearts. How will your heart be filled with joy in the month of February? I invite you to join me in tending the ministry and mission of God in the world through “Love Your Church, Love Your World” and everything else that will come as we listen to the call of our Lord Jesus and do our best to follow.

See you in church.
Pastor Chris

Global Partnerships

Tanzania Partnership: Travel Plans

As vice-president of the Meru Coffee Project, Ascension’s Rick Frowein is traveling to Tanzania with two other leaders from the coffee project. During his time in Tanzania, Rick will also spend time in Samaria parish visiting our partners there. We wish Rick safe travels and look forward to hearing about his trip.

If you like the idea of joining a delegation to Tanzania, we are planning a trip for summer 2023, tentatively June 30 – July 10. If you are interested in learning about the trip, we will have an informational meeting on Sunday, Nov. 13, between services.

Use this QR code to donate directly to the Tanzania hunger appeal or mail donations to: The Greater Milwaukee Synod, Meru Hunger Relief—Food Crisis, P.O. Box 341695, Milwaukee, WI  53234.

Drought Conditions: Pastor Makenge and others from Samaria parish ask for our prayers. They continue to suffer from excessive heat and a lack of water. Both people and livestock are suffering. Church attendance has decreased as farmers spend most of their time desperately searching for water for their animals.

School Lunches: The money that Ascension sent to Tanzania this summer was put to good use in purchasing food to provide all of the children at Samaria and Savana Primary schools with a simple lunch every day. For many children, this will be the only meal they receive all day. Thank you for your support!

El Salvador: Hurricane Julia

On October 10, Hurricane Julia hit the Central American region hard, leaving in its wake the death of at least 28 people.

Among them, ten people died in El Salvador, five of them were soldiers who were crushed to death by a retaining wall that collapsed where they sheltered from the heavy rains. In San Jorge, there was no significant damage or loss of life.

Our brothers and sisters in El Salvador have shared with us that this was the strongest storm they have ever experienced and it was a very frightening experience. Ascension is sending a small financial gift to support families with home repairs and lost crops from the storm.