Veteran's
Ministry
Coming Home
Collaborative
The Coming Home
Collaborative is an open and growing volunteer
association of people who are concerned with the
psychological and spiritual healing of veterans,
especially those currently re-integrating with their
families and communities. In July of 2005,
Amy Blumenshine, MSW, convened a group of helping
professionals affiliated with Walk-In Counseling Center
and Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in Minneapolis.
How can your church can
reach out to newly returning veterans and their
families? Here are some resources available:
If you have questions or
comments about our synod's Veteran's Ministry, please
contact:
Coming Home Collaborative
2315 Chicago Ave S
Minneapolis MN 55404
612-871-2967
ListenToVets@comcast.net
Free veterans ministry resources
Order your free copy of
Welcome Them Home: Help Them Heal
book
A guide for pastors on the ministry of
support to our most recent veterans
Rev.
John Sippola of Elim Lutheran Church, near Duluth, is
writing a guide filled with invaluable information and
quick tips that help churches provide creative spiritual
care for returning soldiers and their families.
Your
church can order a free copy by e-mailing
welcmelim@aol.com with your church name, shipping
address, contact name, telephone number and email
address.
Rev.
Sippola is a retired Family Assistance Chaplain in the
MN National Guard and has worked extensively with
deployed soldiers and their families. Wheat Ridge
Ministries provided funding for the guide.
Our initial report of the
problem – “Soldiers Ongoing Sacrifices: the Challenge of
Coming Home”
This report was used in support of ELCA
resolutions in both the Minneapolis and Saint Paul Areas Synods.
Efforts to address the issue are spreading within the ELCA and other faith communities. We welcome your
participation.
(The report can be downloaded at
www.caringconnectionsonline.org, click on the Fall
'07 edition, and then click on “Soldiers Ongoing
Sacrifices: the Challenge of Coming Home” in the Table
of Contents. This report needs to be downloaded
separately from the journal itself.)
Other articles
In addition, note
the many other articles on pastoral care for returning
veterans in the downloadable Fall '07 issue of
Caring Connections: Inter-Lutheran Journal for
Practitioners and Teachers of Pastoral Care and
Counseling, including an article by Rev. Neil
Hering, retired Minneapolis Veteran's Home chaplain.
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