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Show Local Lutheran congregation to get its charter Sunday f On Sunday it will be official: Park City will have its own independent Lutheran congregation. That annuoncement may come as a surprise to those who have seen the sign near ParkWest announcing the site of the future Shepherd of the Mountains Lutheran church. Hasn't that sign been around for a while? And don't you need a congregation before you start planning buildings? The Lutheran pastor, Rev. David Krueger, said he has worked to cultivate an impression of stability and permanence during his three years in Park City, even though the local congregation had existed only as a branch of Salt Lake's Zion Lutheran Church. When he arrived here, he said, it was known as the Park City Lutheran Mission. "One of the first things we did was change the name to Shepherd of the Mountains." Although the Park City congregation congrega-tion has been largely self-supporting for some time, the national organization organiza-tion until recently did not see it as large enough to warrant its own charter, he said. So it continued to operate under the wing of the Salt Lake church. "What is now happening is the national church body in New York City has said, 'You have moved to a position where you can be organized as a branch of the Lutheran Church In America." Since the Lutherans still do not have their own building, they have been sharing quarters with St. Mary's Catholic Church on Park Avenue. That's where Sunday's ceremony will take place. On hand will be Bishop Stan Olson from the Pacific Southwest Synod in Los Angeles. The 10:30 a.m. service Sunday's ceremony is the culmination of a three-year dream for Rev. David Krueger. is scheduled to be followed by a pot-luck luncheon afterwards. Krueger said the congregation's new status should not have any visible effect locally. He anticipates no changes financially. And the building at ParkWest is still a couple of years away, he said. Plans are also being discussed to put another structure on the 3.5-acre ParkWest site. "We would see it as a retreat center and conference center that would be used by all churches and other non-profit organizations." He said questionnaires were sent out to about 500 area non-profit groups. Of those who responded, 60 percent said they would use such a facility. |