About Us
Lord of the Lakes
A Brief History of God’s Blessings!

About 1975: About 30 years ago, two local brothers, George and Tom Kontos, began thinking about a new congregation in this area.  As active businessmen, they kept the land on which our building stands today ready for use whenever a congregation could begin!   George and his wife, Merle, were charter members of this congregation.  Tom has passed away but his widow, Bonnie, is also a charter member.

1995-2000: A dedicated group of a dozen volunteers from Grace Lutheran in Winchester agreed to serve as a cadre to get our congregation started.  They conducted door-by-door contacts to determine the need for a mission congregation and line up prospective members.  We are deeply indebted to them for their missionary spirit and hard work!

Fall, 2000:  We were again blessed when Pastor Gorden Estenson, his wife, Rikka, and their family arrived in Winneconne.  He agreed to become our “mission developer” and worked long and hard to assemble our group.  His wife was a talented musician who became our worship leader and choir director.  She also served as his administrative assistant for several years. They were very ably advised and assisted by the marvelous cadre of committed Christians who came from Grace Lutheran Church in Winchester.  These faithful few were the solid core of our congregation for the first few years. 

March, 2001:  Our first service was held at the Middle School in Winneconne.  For several years, we arrived very early every Sunday morning and set up the stage in the school’s auditorium, arranged tables for our Faith Family Time classes in the lunch room and used the school’s kitchen to prepare refreshments for the fellowship hour after service. Then we put it all away again after each service!    Attendance at Sunday services averaged about 75, but we had peaks of well over 100 at Christmas and Easter and other special occasions.     

February, 2003: We had just begun to plan to build our own church when Pastor Gorden was activated for duty in Iraq with his Army Reserve unit, a Combat Support Hospital.  He and the unit finally ended up in Afghanistan for about a year’s duty.  Yet we couldn’t (and didn’t!) wait for his return to keep our building plans on schedule.  We formed a building committee to help design the church while a finance committee began soliciting funds and pledges to pay for it!   Actual construction began in the spring of 2004, shortly after Pastor Gorden finally returned to us!  And he very happily presided over our first service in our brand new church in December, 2004!

Summer 2005:  By this time, our average Sunday attendance had increased to about 150 people.  Our annual budget is now over $200,000 and we give 15% (about $30,000 a year!) of it to benevolence.  In fact, we now help support a brand new mission congregation in Waupaca, Wisconsin; passing on the blessings God has provided us! 

Fall, 2005: Pastor Gorden left us to answer another pastoral call at a congregation in Minnesota which is located much closer to many members of his family.  As much as we regretted their leaving, we hope and pray God continues to bless their good works with their new congregation.  Yet Gorden and Rikka left us with a total membership of 134 family groups (singles, couples, families) and over 300 members!  And visitors, transfers and newcomers keep joining us constantly!  We are a congregation in the right place at the right time, serving God, our community and the world!

Fall, 2006: We completed a 10-month search process for a new pastor.  During that period, our supply pastor was Ralph Hanusa, a retired pastor who did a fine job for us.  The president of our church council is ably assisted by over two dozen team leaders who work with many more volunteers to keep everything going.  Our part-time office secretary is Jill Templin.  She is assisted by several volunteers throughout the week. 

God has blessed us greatly during the eight plus years of our existence.  And He continued to guide and care for us when Pastor Phil Bogen and his wife, Sharon Fox-Bogen (and their sons, Aaron and Adam) joined us!  Pastor Phil had been serving as an Associate Pastor at a congregation in Shawano, Wisconsin.  Both Pastor Phil and Sharon have blessed us greatly when they joined us in October 2006.   We were glad to have them as our spiritual leaders!  In September, 2009, they answered another call in the Wausau area.

We continue to welcome anyone who seeks the guidance, comfort and strength that God provides to all the members of Lord of the Lakes.  We encourage you to visit us often and participate in some of our special activities.  If you would like to talk about joining our congregation, we would be glad to visit with you personally at a time and place of your convenience.  Just give us a call at 582-2622.  We have a warm welcome to any new faces and families in our midst!  God’s blessings to you and yours, now and forever!