Volunteer Opportunities

Trade Skills

If you have skills in carpentry, construction, electrical, HVAC, painting, plumbing, or roofing, we could utilize your skills. The Board of Buildings and Grounds and the Maintenance Director have three congregation-owned homes and an extensive physical church-school facility to maintain and the ongoing upkeep that goes with such ownership.

Technology Skills

We are constantly upgrading computers in the church and school. We also videotape services to provide God's Word to our shut-in members and the general public. We are always looking for volunteers and will train. Contact the secretary for information.

Art & Design Skills

Are good with arts and crafts, graphic design, or photography? Members have created the stained glass in the sanctuary, maintained the photo boards of members and collegians, designed themes for services, taken photos for our website, and more. Put your artistic talents to use, contact a pastor today!

Lawn & Landscaping Skills

If you like to see our grounds outside the facilities look well-kept, there is room for you to help with lawn care, Biblical garden care, landscaping, or snow-shoveling. Watch for sign-up sheets.

Music Skills

If you can play the piano or organ or any other instrument or if you like to sing, there are many opportunities for you to utilize those skills. At various times, St. Mark has had a Bell Choir, Summer Chimes, a Chamber Choir, a Kids' Choir and a Collegiate/High School Choir. Depending upon the talents of individual members, any of these could be reactivated. If you are interested in sharing your musical talents, contact the pastors today.

Worship Choir: Open to all confirmed members of the congregation and college students, the choir sings for both services once a month in addition to church festivals. Rehearsals are held Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. September through May in the sanctuary.

Instrumentalists: Members and college students who have musical talents on other instruments are often used in pre-service, offertory, and post-service playing. We welcome incorporating God-given abilities for our worship services in a variety of ways other than organ and piano.

Brass Group: Members and college students who have skills on trumpet, trombone, tuba, and French horn are encouraged to participate. The group plays several times per year. Any talents in this area may be directed to the pastors. If you play other instruments (woodwind, string, etc.), there is room for you to serve too!

Organist/Pianist: Please consider using your gifts as an organist to help serve God in the public worship service. If you are a pianist, we frequently use the piano for pre-service, offertory, and post-service. We also need pianists to help with Sunday School music and Worship Choir. St. Mark does compensate the organists a small amount for each service. St. Mark does not compensate any other instrumentalist.

Empathy Skills

If you have a special concern for the souls and physical well-being of others, you could serve by visiting shut-ins or joining one of the following committees.

Evangelism Committee: This group operates under the auspices of the Board of Elders and is made up of any male or female members interested in outreach to visitors and other membership prospects.

Committee for Called Workers (CCCW): The Board of Elders with the pastors have oversight of this committee of males and females who function to monitor the spiritual, physical, social and mental well-being of all St Mark called workers. The mission is to support called workers and their families, encourage them in their ministry and enhance the quality of their lives. The committee conducts visits periodically with the workers to receive input from the workers and offer support, through recommendations to council and obtaining other assistance when needed.

Teaching Skills

If you have some teaching background as well as a solid Scriptural foundation, you may be able to serve as a Sunday School teacher, a Bible study leader, or an LES tutor or mentor. Teachers are needed to teach classes for all children from 3 years old through 8th grade. Many classes are team taught. A Sunday School superintendent works with a pastor to manage this group.

Youth Leadership Skills

If you feel you can provide leadership and direction to the youth of the congregation, you could serve as an athletic team coach or ACTs, KICK, Angel Wings or Lion's PRIDE leader. Contact the Athletic Director in regard to coaching and a pastor relative to youth group leadership.

Helping Hands

If you don't feel you have specific skills or highly refined skills but are willing to work with some direction or supervision, there are opportunities for you to serve your Lord.

Guest Book: Members monitor the guest book to alert pastors to potential members or send thank you notes to visitors.

Food Pantry: Volunteers are utilized to take food pantry collections to the local food pantry monthly.

Meal Prep: Volunteers prepare meals for needy families, bereavement, sickness/illness.

Altar Guild: Female members arrange for orderly and beautiful worship services under direction of the pastors and Board of Elders. Members are assigned on a monthly basis along with a Chairperson. Service includes preparation of communion, placing plants on stands and caring for live plants, trimming top edges of candles when necessary for easier lighting, and changing banners according to the season of the church year.

Festival Decorating: Volunteers decorate the sanctuary and entrance for various festivals. These plans are shared with the pastors. Sign-up sheets are posted in the church entrance and notices are published in the bulletin.

Babysitting Skills (College Students)

Our Wisconsin Synod students at UW-Eau Claire volunteer to be placed on a list. This list is available through the pastors and includes the names of students willing to be babysitters.

General Member Responsibilities

Church Cleaning

As St. Mark members, we actively come to God's house to worship. As an act of worship, we all pitch in to keep God's house clean. Family units are called upon about once every 18 months to clean a portion of the church facility. The monthly church calendar lists the families that are assigned together on a weekend. Families receive a cleaning schedule plus a list of duties in their mailbox in advance of their assigned weekend.

All members are also invited three Saturdays a year (spring, summer, and fall) to clean and beautify God's house both inside and out. The dates will be announced in our bulletin and a list of items needing attention will be provided.

Ushering

One of the responsibilities asked of men is to lead the congregation in ushering. All confirmed male members will be asked what Sunday service they will typically attend. Members are assigned to a team on a rotating basis according to the service they attend. Teams average six men with four needed for orderly conduct of a service. Of 200 worship opportunities in a year, each man might usher between four and eight times. A permanent captain heads each usher group for early and late service. Each one is given a letter or number and that is used to identify which crew is assigned to each service every week and those letters/numbers are posted in the ministry page of the bulletin.

Serving Groups

To organize the serving needs when we gather to eat for potlucks, special events, funerals, etc, the congregation is divided into the serving groups listed in the WINGS (Women In God's Service) booklet. The groups are used on a rotating basis. Our history indicates that each group serves once or twice a year. The group organizes the whole event: setup, serving and cleanup. Each group has two assigned chairpersons who do the planning and then ask for help from those within their serving group.

Student Pickup

Since Eau Claire is a college town, we as a congregation offer our WELS students a ride to and from Sunday morning church services as well as Advent and Lenten services. There is a pickup point on the university's upper campus in front of Karlgaard Towers Dorm. Car door magnets are located near the information counter by the church office to identify St. Mark members for the collegians.

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