Lutheran Social Services Merge in Idaho, Oregon and Washington

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Social Services of Washington & Idaho and Lutheran Family Services of Oregon & Southwest Washington merged July 1 to create a new, tri-state social ministry agency -- Lutheran Community Services Northwest (LCSNW).  LCSNW serves Washington, Oregon and Idaho communities through 25 offices and dozens of other service sites throughout the region.
     The combined operation serves more than 300,000 individuals annually.  The new agency has an annual budget of about $25 million and employs more than 800 staff.
     Advocacy, alcohol and drug treatment and prevention, community development and congregational services, crisis intervention, individual and family counseling, foster care and community education services, in-home services, parenting and family support, prevention and "wellness" programs, refugee resettlement, services to the developmentally disabled, transitional housing, violence intervention and victim services, and volunteer opportunities for seniors are among the services LCSNW continues to provide.
     Lutheran congregations in Oregon and Southwestern Washington established Lutheran Family Service in 1926.  It has grown to support one of the largest refugee resettlement programs in the United States with offices in Portland, Ore., and Seattle and Vancouver, Wash., also offering immigration counseling in conjunction with these services.
     Lutheran Social Services of Washington and Idaho was formed in January 1979 from the merger of three agencies: Lutheran Family and Child Service, the Community Service Center of Lutheran Community Services and the Seattle Seaman's Center.  Those agencies provided services to Lutherans and the general public for a combined total of 157 years.
     LCSNW executive and fiscal offices are located in SeaTac, Wash., while  program operations are based in Portland, Ore.  The boards of the two previous organizations form the governing board of the new agency.
     Roberta Nestaas, CEO and president of Lutheran Social Services of Washington & Idaho, serves as chief executive officer of LCSNW.  Bruce Strade, executive director of Lutheran Family Services of Oregon & Southwest Washington, is the chief operating officer of LCSNW.
     "Our new name and mission reflect a history of serving communities according to their self-identified needs.  Locally programs will continue 'as usual' and any changes in our organizational structure are designed to support our commitment to the highest quality of services," said Nestaas.
     "We individually have a tremendous amount of professional talent and program strength which, when combined, will make it possible for us to become a premier agency in the Northwest," said Strade.
     LCSNW is owned by four synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Northwest District of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS).  The ELCA is organized into 65 synods, including the Eastern Washington-Idaho Synod, Northwest Washington Synod, Oregon Synod and Southwestern Washington Synod.
     The financial support of donors and congregations will continue to support local services in areas the previous organizations served. Funding from the ELCA and LCMS, government contracts, client fees, private grants and the United Way also continue.
     LCSNW is a member of Lutheran Services in America (LSA).  LSA's 296 social ministry organizations, in alliance with the ELCA and LCMS, form a national network of social service and long-term care programs, providing more than $3 billion in services in 3,000 communities each year.  There are 18 other LSA member agencies based in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. -- -- -- Information about the merger and LCSNW services is available at http://www.lcsnw.org/ on the Web. Lutheran Services in America maintains a site at http://www.lutheranservices.org/ on the Web.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html