East Dundee's Immanuel Lutheran Church celebrates building milestone

Immanuel Lutheran Church in East Dundee recently hosted a weekend-long mortgage burning celebration.

Under the watchful eye of LCMS' Northern Illinois District President Allan Buss, Immanuel Lutheran Church in East Dundee burned its 20-year mortgage on a building addition in a weekend long celebration. The church addition was first dedicated in 2003 and added a number of ministry spaces including the Luther Hall meeting room, preschool rooms, offices, the Jeremy Faga music room and The Vine coffee and fellowship area.

Recessing out of the sanctuary into the adjacent parking lot during all three services on the weekend of May 20, Immanuel's members witnessed the burning of the paid-off mortgage.

During the burning, the congregation was accompanied by trumpets and sang "Jesus Loves Me" and the doxology while the 161-year-old church bells also rang out.

Pastor Bill Yonker, Immanuel's Senior Pastor said, "God is ever faithful. 161 years ago, He provided us with this great church and we have added on a number of different gathering and ministry spaces. Now, only by God's doing, it is fully paid for. We hope to continue to proclaim Jesus' saving grace, teach His word and administer the Sacraments here for at least another 161 years."

For more information about Immanuel, visit www.immanuel-ed.org or call the main office at (847) 428-4477.

Immanuel Lutheran Church is an active congregation of 2,200 members with an average weekly worship attendance of 750 people. Immanuel has a rich 161-year history in East Dundee and its mission is to draw people closer to the person of Jesus Christ and assure them of His gifts namely, the abundance of life on earth and the endless life of heaven. A significant part of the congregation's ministry is through the Immanuel Lutheran School, which offers a private education program, attracting around 300 students and their families from the Upper Fox Valley region.