POCATELLO — Grace Lutheran Church will mark a century of ministry this fall with a three-day celebration from Sept. 18-20, alongside the congregation's new senior pastor, Jim Von Busch.
The weekend opens Sept. 18 with an invitation-only gathering for Pocatello community leaders before moving into the church's annual Oktoberfest the next day, which will be framed around the church's centennial.
"There have been so many people and so much service and giving and generosity and faithfulness through the centuries," Von Busch said. "We're looking forward to another 100 years of God's favor and grace and opportunities to serve in this community that we love so dearly."
Oktoberfest runs from 4 to 7 p.m. Sept. 19 and is open to the public. The event will feature handmade bratwurst and hot dogs along with raffles and games for children and adults. Raffle tickets cost $1 each, with prizes that include gift baskets and a handmade quilt, among other items. Winning tickets will be drawn at the end of the event.
All proceeds from the food and raffles will go into the pastor's discretionary fund, which Von Busch said is used to help individuals and families in the community facing financial need.
The weekend concludes Sept. 20 with a 10 a.m. worship service featuring a past president of the Northwest District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod as its primary guest speaker. Von Busch said the service will continue the weekend's theme of gratitude for the church's history.
Von Busch said the congregation welcomes newcomers to any part of the anniversary weekend, including those simply curious about the church.
More information about Grace Lutheran's 100th anniversary events is available at glc.gracepocatello.org.
Von Busch, who returned to Grace Lutheran this year to lead the congregation, is no stranger to the church. He spent about eight years there as an associate pastor before moving to Trinity Lutheran Church in Rupert, where he served for five and a half years. When the congregation asked him to come back as senior pastor, Von Busch accepted.
His path to ministry began around 2013, after he completed an alternate route into pastoral ministry available to those trained outside a Lutheran seminary. At the time, Von Busch was teaching as a faculty member at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he instructed clinicians entering the substance abuse treatment field.
Von Busch has also worked as a licensed professional counselor in Idaho since 1993, after graduating from Idaho State University's counseling program. Von Busch said that combination of teaching, counseling and ministry reflects a passion that has guided him since he finished high school in the Chicago area.
When asked by the Idaho State Journal what he hopes to bring to Grace Lutheran, Von Busch emphasized discipleship — efforts to mentor and build into the lives of others.
"It's not just me bringing people into that life-changing relationship with Jesus," Von Busch said. "Every one of us is being mentored and poured into by others, and therefore we also have the opportunity to mentor and pour into the lives of others. We're all in our own discipleship moment. I think that with the gifts I've been given, the talents I have, the approach I have, my role is to really support that and help it flourish."