A note from the Pastor

During this season of giving, your gift to the University Lutheran Center at South Dakota State University will positively impact the lives of God’s young adults like Rose through campus ministry.

During her senior year of high school, Rose visited the University Lutheran Center, prompted by a connection through the leader of the Southwest Minnesota Synod’s Lutheran Youth Organization, whose son was involved here. “Community is what resonates with people,” Rose shared, “I needed a community of faith, and I found that here.” Once she began her studies at South Dakota State University, she promptly began attending worship services, Bible studies, service opportunities, and fellowship gatherings that were offered. “At first it was a little scary,” Rose remembers, “but I quickly discovered these are my people.”

At the University Lutheran Center, Rose formed many friendships and was able to authentically be who God created her to be. “This community accepted me for who I am,” Rose says, “not the facade I put up.” After Rose navigated her first few years of college as a music education major, she discerned a call to serve in a full-time church vocation. She is in her second year serving as the Children, Youth, and Family Ministry Director at First Lutheran Church in Brookings. She is putting into practice many of the leadership skills she learned while serving as a Student Leader at the University Lutheran Center, as she helps create a sense of community, engages in intentional conversations, and strives to make a place for students to live authentically. Rose looks back with fondness and appreciation for her involvement in our community of faith among college students. “I don’t know what I would have done without the University Lutheran Center.”

Your generosity to the University Lutheran Center ensures that college students at South Dakota State University discover the same life-giving community of faith, rooted in the expansive love of God, where they can live authentically, just as Rose did. During this season of giving, we invite you to join us in giving a gift of $25, $250, $500, or even $1000 or more. Thank you for your support of our campus ministry!