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Grace Lutheran History
At the time of the original merger that created Grace Lutheran Church in August 1951, the new congregation continued to worship in the previous Immanuel Lutheran Church until the present church facility was completed in 1956. During this time, Sunday School classes were held at the Our Savior’s Lutheran building, which was just two blocks away.
The newly-merged Grace congregation would need a much larger building than the two previous separate congregations had. Plans for building the new church began immediately after the merger. The Rev. S.T. Nelson, who had been called as the first pastor, was installed on August 26, 1951. Plans for the purchase of the church site and for raising funds for the new building were begun in 1951. At a congregational meeting on March 20, 1953, the site on North Kniss Avenue between Crawford and Bishop streets was approved and purchased for $19,000. At that time, Luverne’s first fast food drive-in was located there.
Groundbreaking ceremonies were held on Palm Sunday, April 3, 1955 and excavation was started the next day. On August 14th of that year, the cornerstone was laid. Construction continued without interruption until the summer of 1956 when the church was completed.
Members of the building committee were Rudolph Juhl, Ray Frick, Carl Husen, Albert Christensen, and Dave Stephenson. Edna Wolf, Marge Christensen, Edith Remme, and Blanche Sherman were members of a ladies auxiliary which worked with the building committee.
The two committees spent two years planning the new church, during which time they visited many church buildings in the area. Contract cost for the church and furnishings was $273,230. Final payment on the construction loan was made in January 1971, culminating with a traditional mortgage burning ceremony on January 21, 1971.
The first pipe organ used was a small Wickes organ that had been used in Immanuel Church for many years before it was moved to the new Grace Church. It was replaced by a new Moeller pipe organ, the same organ currently in use, which was installed at a cost of $30,000 and dedicated on April 24, 1964. The organ was expanded with the pipes currently visible behind the chancel in 2012.
In 1968, the congregation purchased the properties between the church and the alley for a parking lot after the state expanded Highway 75 to four lanes a few years earlier and parking was no longer permitted on the west side of the church. The larger parking lot across the alley was built in 1998 after the congregation purchased the entire southeast quarter of the block.
The art stained glass windows were installed in 1969 at a cost of $11,300. The air conditioning system, costing about $27,000, was installed in 1989.
A Saturday evening worship service in the Chapel was added in the mid-1990s. Alternative worship liturgies led by worship teams were also introduced on select Sundays in the late 1990s.
In 1993, the church council appointed a fifteen member 21st Century Task Force to develop a plan to renovate and make improvements to the structure of the church building that would help Grace Lutheran continue its mission and ministry into the 21st century. After more than two years of work, the task force gave its final report and recommendations at the annual meeting in January of 1996.
A Building Committee was elected by the congregation and began its work in May of 1996. Members of the committee included Jim Harner, Chair; Kim Schmidt, Vice Chair; Caroline Thorson, Secretary; Florence Aanenson, Red Ahrent, Lowell Binford, Art Ehde, Adam Hansen, Lona Klosterbuer, Don Odland, Jan Rud, and Gladys Siebenahler. The building committee met almost weekly and worked with Station 19 Architects to develop a building project proposal that was approved by the congregation at the annual meeting on January 26, 1997.
Construction on the addition and renovation project began on May 1, 1997 and continued through the winter of 1997-98. Because of construction, the congregation worshiped in the Little Theater at Luverne High School from December through March, including Christmas Eve 1997 when the traditional candles, which were not allowed at the school, were replaced by a disco ball that created a starry night during the singing of Silent Night.
The congregation returned to its renovated and expanded church in March. A dedication service was held between worship services on Sunday, March 29, 1998 with a community open house in the afternoon.
The project included a three story addition on the east side of the church that included a new entrance, offices, classrooms, wide stairways, restrooms, and a large elevator. Extensive modernization of the Sanctuary, a large new parking lot, a relocated kitchen and updated fellowship hall, and many other remodeling projects throughout the building were also included.
In 2001, Grace Lutheran celebrated its 50th Anniversary with the theme of “Living in Christ, Growing in Grace”. The year included special events and guest preachers, the writing of a history book and a special hymn, “We’ve Got Hope for the Harvest” by Dolly Talbert and Pastor Dell Sanderson.
Grace continued to grow in ministry and staffing in the 2000s. Lay staff included office manager, children and youth ministry coordinators, custodian, and more. The one constant was organist Lorraine Olson, who served for 63 years. She was the organist when Grace formed in 1951 and continued leading our music in worship until 2014. In all, Lorraine played for more than 10,000 worship services over 3,200 Sundays and more than 1,000 weddings and funerals each.
In 2012, Grace completed another significant building enhancement project to maintain the church facility and improve our ability to reach out and grow our ministries. The capital campaign to fund the projects was titled “A Strong Heritage or a Stronger Tomorrow”.
The 2012 project included a significant expansion of the 1963 organ (including new exposed pipes above the choir loft), new screens, projection and sound systems in the Sanctuary, a new sign with a digital message board, a new carillon bell system, new windows and exterior doors throughout the church (except for the stained glass windows), a new roof over the Sanctuary, new boilers, new exterior lighting, and more.
In March 15, 2020, Grace Lutheran held its final Sunday worship service before the Covid-19 pandemic closed all churches and most public buildings for a period of time. Grace staff and volunteers quickly pivoted to prepare online-only worship services that continued for three months, including Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday 2020. Each week, one of the pastors, the organist, and the media coordinator were the only people in the Sanctuary as the service was recorded for radio and online broadcasts.
In mid-June, limited in-person worship returned with pre-registration and masks required, reduced capacity for social distancing (seating was in every other pew), no singing, and Communion offered in individual kits. Drive-up Communion was also offered on Communion Sundays. This style of worship continued for a number of months, including Christmas Eve 2020.
Since the pandemic, Grace has seen a season of growth and renewal. In 2022, our worship began to be more intentionally blended, designed to include both traditional and modern music and language within the familiar outline of Lutheran worship. Expanded staffing and programming, and a focus on outreach, welcoming, and connecting, has led to more energy and involvement in the ministry and mission of Grace Lutheran.
