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First Lutheran Church makes a difference in Decorah with free social services

Date 10/2/2003 12:00 AM | Topic: News

Free clinic proves to be a success for the Decorah community

Rachel Kibler-Melby
News Reporter

Imagine, if you will, a few years down the line--you come home from a long day of work and find your son limping around the house. His foot isn't swollen much, but it is visibly painful for him. You know he needs a doctor, but you have no health insurance. What do you do?

If you're in Decorah, you can take advantage of the free clinic at First Lutheran Church on Thursday nights between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Volunteers, including various Luther faculty and area doctors and nurses, staff the clinic which provides Decorah-area citizens without insurance an alternative to large medical bills.

The clinic began out of the Decorah Area Faith Coalition, which is a number of churches and other members who saw the needs of the community and outlined four separate areas on which to concentrate. These include youth ministry, jail ministry, a domestic abuse shelter, and medical care for the uninsured. After a year and a half of planning, the clinic opened and is now supported solely by donations and volunteers. On any one Thursday evening, the clinic treats 12-16 people using the skills of a doctor and either a licensed nurse practitioner or a physician's assistant.

Jayme Nelson, assistant professor of nursing, volunteers her time as a licensed nurse practitioner about three times a month.

Volunteers without medical training are utilized at the clinic by moving beds and chairs and checking patients in for the evening.

Also, Natalia Sucre, assistant professor of Spanish, organizes translators for the clinic, of which at least two are needed each week.

If you'd like to volunteer your time, contact Andy Eastwood, assistant professor of social work, or Karen Tjossem at First Lutheran Church.

If you want to make a difference in the Decorah community, the free clinic at First Lutheran Church is a great way to do it.

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First Lutheran invites people to trick-or-treat for food bank

Christy Patchin
News Reporter

This Halloween, be a kid again: roam the neighborhood, and may all of your trick-or-treating skills shine forth. But here's the catch: ask for food items, not candy. (No, it's not to accommodate your rapidly disappearing Dining Dollars account but to fill others' empty stomachs.)

As fun as it is to complain about caf grub, there are those in the Decorah community who would be incredibly grateful for the reliability of that colorful "For-the-Crowd Casserole."

Since its inception in 1996, the Food Pantry at First Lutheran Church has been helping low income families in Decorah. The pantry has grown from a couple of First Lutheran volunteers buying groceries to an organized, ecumenical effort of many churches in the area.

"There is a tax-supported food pantry at the courthouse, but those who wish to utilize it have to prove their need, so to speak. The ecumenical pantry, meanwhile, asks no questions," said Carolyn Flaskrud, facilitator of the food pantry.

To provide for those in need, the pantry is open every Monday through Friday afternoon from 1:30-3:30, and Thursday evenings from 6:30-8:30.

"A variety of people need the aid," Flaskrud said, "such as the working poor, the unemployed, single mothers, and sometimes the elderly."

For the past three years, the Food Pantry has kept quarterly reports of the number of people who utilize the service, and statistics show that there has been a significant increase in usage. In 2000, the average number of usages per month was 39; in 2001, the average was 60; in 2002, 148. For the past eight months of 2003, there has been an average of 136 usages per month.

"August especially is a crucial month because of financial struggles parents face as they prepare for another school year," Flaskrud said. During this past August alone, there were 200 usages. "For many people, they have to make a choice between certain basic needs. In winter, some have to choose between paying for heat or paying for food. The elderly often have to choose between eating and medication."

How can you help? Some Luther students with Spanish skills go to the pantry on Thursday nights to help out as translators for Hispanic families. There have been collection boxes and cash-challenges in various dorms in past years.

If you'd like to volunteer, you can call the First Lutheran Church's office at 382-2638, or you can call Carolyn Flaskrud at 382-4417.

Give it a shot. Or when October 31st rolls around, convert your sheets into a Roman-worthy toga, and hit the streets for a good cause.

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