Synod Assembly

2026 NWLM Synod Assembly

Table of Contents

Schedule
Fees
Hotels
Nursery Information
Workshops
Offering
Resolutions and Memorials
Electing Voting Members
Nominations
Archives

Schedule

At a high level, the assembly will include the following:

**Rest assured, breaks will be sprinkled throughout the day during our business session, giving you time to stretch, refresh, and recharge!

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Fees

The NWLM Synod Council has approved the following fees and deadlines for the Synod Assembly:

• February 12, 2026: Registration begins for all voting members and visitors.
• March 20, 2026: “Early Bird” registration ENDS. Proposed Resolutions, Memorials and Nominations are DUE.
• March 27, 2026: Materials and reports for the Assembly Book DUE.
• April 24, 2026: Regular Registration ENDS.

Regular Registration: $75/day (from 03/21/2026 – 4/24/2026)

Display Tables: $25/day for each display table leader – Registration CLOSED

Registration for voting members, visitors and display tables leaders cover all activities and meals planned each day. While attendees are able to register for one or both days, there will be no partial day registrations.

Please plan ahead: All registrations must be completed in advance by the stated deadlines using the on-line registration from which will be available on the synod assembly website. There will be no walk-in registrations available at the event.

In the coming months, updates and resources will be posted HERE. All questions related to the 2026 Synod Assembly should be emailed to assembly@mittensynod.org.

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Hotels

Room blocks have been secured at THREE nearby hotels for those attending the upcoming Synod Assembly, with the most recent accommodation available at Homewood Suites by Hilton. Rooms are available at a discounted rate under the block name North/West Lower Michigan Synod or Synod of ELCA. Because the number of rooms in each block is limited, participants are encouraged to make reservations early. Links for online reservations are available below. If reserving via phone is more preferable, please follow the information below.

Phone: (269) 382-5808

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Nursery Information

Got little ones in tow? We’ve got you covered! Childcare will be available during our Saturday Synod Assembly gathering, offering a fun, safe space for kids while you take part in the day’s events. If you are planning on bringing your little one(s) with you, please RSVP to Shannan Boerema (assembly@mittensynod.org).

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Workshops

The NWLMS is pleased to announce that we will be offering two sessions of workshops this Synod Assembly. Both sessions will have three workshops for attendees to select from. Please note, each workshop will have an S1 (session one) or an S2 (session two) next to the title to designate when they will be offered. Please keep in mind which session you are signing up for.

S1 – Growing in Faith: Ministries form Sun to Soil

Join leaders from Prince of Peace, Portage, to learn about ministries that take place in and with the gifts of creation in this place, including our Jubilee Garden, solar array, bee keeping and future possibilities with native plants. Weather permitting, we will explore the grounds and consider how God is calling all of us to care for the corners of creation in which we find ourselves.

S1 – Website Tips and Trick

Come and learn ways to improve your congregation’s website, targeting that first look — what will a person see when they visit your website for the first time? Time is built into this session for questions on website-related topics. Presented by Rev. Alex Aivars.

S1 – Advocacy: Seeking Justice in Chaotic Times

Join us to remember our call to build the beloved community and reach out to lawmakers. Rev. Alice Fleming Townley coordinates an annual Advocacy Day for the Michigan Conference of the United Methodist Church which brings together hundreds of people from across the state to Lansing to work together towards the common good. Present by Rev. Alice Fleming Townley

S2 – Understanding Your Identity, Privilege and Oppression

The workshop is designed to engage the participant in reflection upon their individual identities and what each identity means to the participant. The workshop will also explore the dynamics of identity, privilege and oppression. The workshop’s focus is on providing the participants with definition, descriptions and examples of social identity, privilege and oppression. In addition, the workshop will present the participant with examples of how identity, privilege, oppression and power impact interactions with others as well as how to use these four elements to positively impact work and social interactions.

S2 – Introducing All Creation Sings

This workshop will explore the worship resource All Creation Sings (ACS), released in 2020 as a hymnal supplement to Evangelical Lutheran Worship. Because ACS debuted during the pandemic, there wasn’t an opportunity for celebration and education that would normally accompany such a release. We will discuss the motivation and underlying principles for the creation of this resource as well as the process of its development.

We will also look at (and sing through!) new settings of the liturgy, new hymns from different musical genres, and prayers that address needs not contemplated in previous Lutheran worship books. If you have a copy of All Creation Sings, we invite and encourage you to bring it along! Present by Rev. Jon Niketh

S2 – Safer Kids, Safer Churches: Prevention Education for Church Leaders

Keeping kids safe is a sacred responsibility. Join us to learn how to safeguard the children in your congregation by creating communities that are inhospitable to abuse. In the United States, 1 in 7 children will experience abuse before their 18th birthday.  At Small Talk Children’s Advocacy Center (Lansing, MI), we see firsthand the devastating impact abuse has on children, families and communities. But it doesn’t have to be this way; together, we can prevent child abuse!

Because churches hold a unique responsibility to protect the most vulnerable, it is especially important to uphold the highest standards of care, accountability and safety for children and young people. In this workshop, participants will be equipped to talk more openly about child abuse through a theological lens and will learn how to recognize signs of abuse, respond appropriately to disclosures, support survivors of all ages in their healing, and more.

Christin Gauceltt is a trained educator and an ordained minister in the ELCA, who brings her experience in parish ministry to inform and enrich church-based prevention efforts. Presented by Small Talk’s Prevention Specialist, Rev. Christin Fawcett

Content Warning: We will be discussing grooming tactics and situations involving child sexual abuse.

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Offering

As we prepare to gather for Synod Assembly, we’re inviting congregations across the synod to take part in a special Million Penny Offering!

The idea is simple: Find a one-gallon milk jug and start filling it with pennies. Invite members of your congregation to drop in their spare change and watch the jug slowly fill up. If your congregation fills more than one jug, even better! Our goal is to collect a million pennies across our synod!

Once your collection is complete, please count the total and bring the amount with you to Synod Assembly in the form of paper currency or a check.

We’d also love to celebrate the effort and creativity of your congregation. Before bringing your offering, take a photo with your milk jug(s) of pennies and bring the photo along to Synod Assembly or email your pictures to communication@mittensynod.org. Whether it’s your youth group, a Sunday morning crowd, or the whole congregation gathered around, we want to see YOU. We’ll display these photos on a bulletin board at Assembly so we can see how our synod came together for this shared offering.

It may start with just a single penny, but together those small gifts can add up in a big way. Thank you for joining in the fun and helping us make this special offering a sign of our shared ministry!

We are pleased to announce that this year’s Synod Assembly offering will be split equally and sent to two organizations: Lutheran Disaster Response Ukraine and Samaritas New Americans. For more information on these wonderful programs, please click the buttons below.

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Resolutions and Memorials:

To be considered for the 2026 Synod Assembly, ALL proposed resolutions and memorials must be submitted to the North/West Lower Michigan Synod Resolutions Committee in advance of the Assembly. We are now CLOSED to resolution and memorial submissions. If you have any questions, please reach out to Shannan Boerema (assembly@mittensynod.org).

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Electing Voting Members for the 2026 NWLM Synod Assembly

In preparation for the 2026 Synod Assembly, each congregation is responsible to elect voting members to serve as part of the Synod Assembly each year:

Voting members shall begin serving with the opening of a regular Synod Assembly and shall continue serving until the opening of the next regular Synod Assembly. For our synod, the regular Synod Assembly takes place in May of each year.

Rostered Voting Members: All Rostered Ministers under call within the synod (Pastors and Deacons) automatically serve as voting members within the Synod Assembly.

Lay Voting Members:

• The number of lay voting members allowed by each congregation is based on the most recent ELCA statistical report (see 6B – North/West Lower MI Synod Data).
• Lay voting members within the Synod Assembly shall, as nearly as possible, be equally divided between women and men.
• Congregations with less than 1,000 baptized members may elect up to TWO lay voting members.
• Congregations with 1,000-1,500 baptized members may elect up to THREE lay voting members.
• Congregations with 1,501-2,000 baptized members may elect up to FOUR lay voting members.

Additional Youth/Young Adult Voting Members:

• Congregations with less than 1,000 baptized members may elect ONE additional voting member who is a youth (14-18 years of age at the time of election) or young adult (18-30 years of age at the time of election).
• Congregations with more than 1,000 baptized members may elect TWO additional youth or young adult voting members (one woman and one man).

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Nominations:

Pr. Kari Fast (Trinity – Grand Rapids; kari.fast@tlcgr.org) is serving as chair of the 2026 Synod Assembly Nominating Committee.  The positions listed below will be on the 2026 Nomination Ballot.  Nominations are now CLOSED.  Any questions regarding nominations may be made to Pr. Kari or to assembly@mittensynod.org.

Synod Council – At-Large Positions

• Position A: Lay Leader – Male (3-year term through 8/31/29, elect one)

• Position B: Lay Leader – Female (3-year term through 8/31/29, elect one)

• Position C: Rostered Minister – Male (3-year term thru 8/31/29, elect one)

• Position D: Young Adult – Male (3-year term thru 8/31/29, elect one)

• Position E: Young Adult – Female (unexpired term thru 8/31/27 – ratify Synod Council appointment with no further nominations)

• Position F: Young Adult – Male or Female (3-yr term thru 8/31/28 – ratify Synod Council appointment with no further nominations)

Discipline Committee

• Position G: Lay Leader – Male (fill unexpired term through 8/31/31, elect one)

• Position H: Rostered Minister – Female (fill unexpired term through 8/31/29, elect one)

Link to NWLM Synod Discipline Committee Responsibilities

NWLM Synod Nomination Bio Form

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Archives

• 2025

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