Lakeside Lutheran Legacy 2023 issue 1

First year in the books

Myfirst year as Development Director is coming to a close. What a fantastic year! Our school saw amazing things happen because Lakeside is blessed with talented students, teachers, teams, directors and coaches.

Academically, we had a student who scored a perfect ACT. One of our students was a National Merit Scholar Finalist. Two other students were Commended National Merit Scholars. The academic Top Ten (really, the entire class of 2023) were extremely competitive (see p. 9). Co-curricularly, our forensics, robotics, FFA, band, choir, and theatre excelled in their respective areas. Athletically, an excellent year was started off by our boys cross country earning state runner-up, followed by boys basketball making a second-ever trip to state, and was capped off by the boys track team winning its first-ever WIAA Division 2 State Championship. They also broke seven school records along the way!

From a Development Office perspective, we were blessed with such an incredible response to Grandparents Day that we needed to pivot and come up with a new plan. Thanks to a willing faculty and staff, we were able to successfully implement the new plan of welcoming 200+ grandparents twice this year! In April, Grand Event XII, with a theme of “Worthy of Praise” was a great success, thanks to fantastic donors like you who gave to new heights (see right).

All glory and praise to God for blessing our supporters who, in the true spirit of Christian giving, continue to bless our ministry. Thank you for sharing your blessings with us. With a start like this—and an exciting building project in the works—I’m sure looking forward to year two!

In His service,

Bruce F. Davis III

The Legacy is published twice yearly by the Development Office of Lakeside Lutheran High School; content is intended for Annual Giving Society members. Correspondence and address changes may be sent to The Legacy, 231 Woodland Beach Rd., Lake Mills, Wis. 53551, or e-mailed to development@llhs.org

Editor: Bari Vredeveld | Layout: Kimara Winters | Development Director: Bruce Davis

Photos: Cover, Laura Punzel, mom of class of 2023 Natalie Punzel (pic left) with fellow grad Eyppro Jimenez; p. 3 Chopp Photography; p. 5 & 7 grad pics Austin Schultz Photography. All others: LLHS pub staff or contributed.

Grand Event 2023

Our 12th annual GRAND day came and went, and we are once again humbled by the love and support that showed up to help shout the message that He is indeed Worthy of Praise. We give all glory to God for another year of blessing this night of fellowship and fun.

Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.

Psalm 103

We are thrilled to share that we have been gifted over $143,000 for our mission as well as “fund-a need”s that included theatre lighting, a marimba, and OpGo. These opportunities are already blessed beyond measure because of your heart for Lakeside and Christian education!

The video made specially for the Event that features family testimonials is worth a watch to remind ourselves why we give.

llhs.org/apps/video/watch.jsp?v=354132 or scan the QR>

Teens are always a welcome sight for event attendees! More than 50 Warriors volunteered at this year’s Grand Event in everything from check-in to entertainment to table service and more—even making and donating cakes for the Dessert Dash!

Fellowship

Members of the Chi Fellowship, through the fruit of the Holy Spirit, have provided a single gift of less than $1,000 during the last year to Lakeside Lutheran High School. With the Greek letter Chi so evident in our churches and schools, your association with this fellowship is a reminder of God’s love, and every gift is significant to Lakeside.

As a thank you for your gift we offer you a subscription to The Legacy and invite you to attend a fellowship event.

To remain a member of this Chi Fellowship we encourage you to renew your annual support each year, or prayerfully consider joining the Rho or Kentro Fellowship.

Chi Fellowship Giving (443 Members)

Total Gifts $22,706 December 1, 2022 through May 31, 2023 (does not include $143K+ for Grand Event)

*Other may include Athletics, Band, Choir, FFA, OpGo, STEM, Tech Ed, Theatre, Video

This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit. John 15:8

Chi “ ”

Manuel Iglesias

Some things about Lakeside that I really appreciated were all the different sports and clubs offered to students. Trying different sports or clubs during freshman year helped create opportunities to meet and befriend other students that I am still really close to now. Not knowing many people at the start of high school can be anxious. I have participated in wrestling, golf, and soccer throughout my high school years. I enjoyed time spent with teammates and coaches. I was in FFA and Band as well, learning and memory-making.

This past year I was honored to be a charter leader for Lakeside’s new Cultural Awareness Club. It was really fun to show and experience different cultures throughout the year. Last October I was able to share my family’s Hispanic culture at the first public event— it was a great new opportunity for many students and a good number of parents and other adults that joined us in the cafeteria that night.

Among many memorable teachers, Mr. Doering with Government, Mr. Pufahl with Band, and Mrs. Tetzlaff with Art made school fun for me because I was able to connect with them and enjoy their classes. It was very beneficial for me considering my future goals.

Manny will join his older sister at Martin Luther College in the fall to study Elementary Education, with plans to become a grade school teacher. He and his family are members at St. Mark, Watertown.

Rho

Fellowship

Members of the Rho Fellowship, with the Lord’s guidance, have provided multiple gifts totaling less than $1,000 within the last year to Lakeside Lutheran High School. The Greek letters Rho and Chi form the symbol for Christ. This symbol, displayed in the center of our school seal, serves as a reminder that Christ is the center of our faith at Lakeside. Through this faith we return our blessings to continue His work.

As a thank you for your gifts we offer you membership in the Rho Fellowship, a subscription to The Legacy and also invite you to attend the fellowship events that have been planned for you.

To remain a member of the Rho Fellowship we encourage you to renew your support each year, or prayerfully consider joining our Kentro Fellowship.

Rho Fellowship Giving (189 Members)

Total Gifts $13,901 December 1, 2022 through May 31, 2023 (does not include $143K+ for Grand Event)

*Other may include Athletics, Band, Choir, FFA, OpGo, STEM, Tech Ed, Theatre, Video

Nina Litherland

Lakeside has a lot to offer. One of my favorite activities has been marching band. It’s a great way to make friends and memories, have fun, and use musical talents to glorify God in the most public way—marching in parades. I also enjoyed being a part of the musical in the pit band, but acting is also a great opportunity. I have been a part of FFA all four years at Lakeside and I think every student should consider joining even if they don’t live on a farm. Many teachers stand out for me too. Band Director Mr. Pufahl always had a positive attitude and was encouraging around me. I’ve had so much fun doing anything and everything band-related throughout the past four years. Art teacher, Mrs. Tetzlaff, is a really good teacher, but my favorite part about Mrs. T is how easy it is to talk to her. I always know if I need someone to talk to, she will be there. Pastor Toepel, my Spanish teacher, aka Señor, was also my homeroom teacher—I learned so much in his class while having fun. Mrs. Krauklis is a gym teacher and my former math teacher. I love Coach K’s personality and how she tries to make everything more fun. Her class made me enjoy math, and she encouraged me so much to become a teacher. Mr. Doering, History, Government, and Financial Literacy teacher, teaches my least favorite subjects, but he made them so interesting and fun that I looked forward to his classes every day. Lessons from his Financial Literacy class will be extremely helpful for the real world coming up for me. Now a counselor outside Lakeside, I loved Pastor Helwig’s religion class with “Question Day” and singing every Thursday. PH’s class was more than just a religion class—it was a personal class that taught things about real life that I think is awesome for juniors becoming young adults quicker than they might want to. Pastor Yahnke had a big place to fill when PH left, and I thought he did a really good job of that. I have gotten the most out of his senior religion classes than any other year. We really dive deep into hard topics and questions that need to be brought up for young adults. So many lifelong memories for me!

A 2023 LLHS grad, Nina will attend Martin Luther College this fall to major in education. She shares, “I would love to be a high school art teacher or upper grade school teacher.” She and her family are members at Zion in Columbus.

Kentro Fellowship

Members of the Kentro Fellowship have offered a gift or returned a commitment card to Lakeside Lutheran High School of $1,000 or more for the year. The Greek word, Kentro, meaning center, leads us to reflect on Christ as the center of our lives. Through Him we receive these blessings and are encouraged to offer them up to His glory.

As a thank you for these blessings you have shared, we offer you a subscription to The Legacy and invite you to join us at several fellowship events in your honor.

To remain a member of the Kentro Fellowship we encourage you to renew your gift annually through the enclosed commitment envelope.

Kentro Fellowship Giving (91 Members)

Total Gifts $136,802 December 1, 2022 through May 31, 2023 (does not include $143K+ for Grand Event)

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Philippians 4:4

*Other may include Athletics, Band, Choir, FFA, OpGo, STEM, Tech Ed, Theatre, Video

Lakeside Lutheran High School is blessed beyond measure for each and every year we are privileged to graduate another class of God-fearing young men and women. Since someone went to the length of compiling some amazing stats from the 2023 Academic Top 10, we thought our Giving Society members might appreciate the academic and other stewardship this year’s “batch” displayed:

Š By the close of their senior year, these 10 earned a cumulative 293 high school credits. 26 credits are needed to graduate from Lakeside; their credit counts ranged from 27.5 to 31 (each semester-long class is typically half a credit).

Š Through seven semesters, the Top Ten’s mean grade point average was 4.0098. As a group, their cumulative GPAs through those seven semesters ranged from 3.987 to 4.031, a difference of 44/1000ths of a grade point.

Š Through seven semesters, 3 of these students earned straight As for semester grades— not even a single A-. One earned straight As not only for semester grades, but for quarter grades as well.

Š Every one of the Top Ten took at least 2 Advanced Placement (AP) classes. Two took all four AP classes we currently offer. Four took additional AP courses offered online.

Š All of them took at least 2 years of a world language. Five took 4 years of Spanish.

Š However, these 10 represent more than outstanding academic achievement. They have participated in nearly every co-curricular activity that Lakeside offers. Athletic teams, the arts, forensics & math teams—all benefited from the leadership of these seniors.

Besides the Top Ten, this particular class as a whole was unusally gifted academically. There are 10 additional students who had >3.9 GPA (20% of class). The top third had GPAs >3.75 (High Honor roll). 50% of the class had a GPA over 3.5!

May God continue to bless ALL our students as they live to glorify Him and serve His kingdom.

Olivia Bartels Jenna Shadoski

My gift to support Christian education 2024 Annual Giving Society

Chi Fellowship

*one-time gift

Rho Fellowship

*two or more gifts

Kentro Fellowship

*gift of $1,000 or more

*Chi, Rho, and Kentro gifts exclude memorials/tributes. Distribute your gift(s) to any/all of the following areas:

Š General Operating

Š Financial Aid

Š Free2Act (caf & entry expansion)

Š Building Improvement Fund

Š Foundation

Š Other (you name it!)

Use the enclosed envelope visit llhs.org/giving or scan with your smartphone camera:

Leaves of Legacy

Located in

our Leaves of Legacy

is a symbol of deep roots bearing much fruit for the future, a recognition of support for quality Christ-centered education. Individual leaves are engraved with individual and family names and shine like the light these donors have provided for the future of our ministry here at Lakeside Lutheran.

We give thanks to God for those who share our vision and have left a legacy to Lakeside, recently including legacy gifts from Gloria Kneser and Lawrence Mohr.

Our prayer is for you to please consider sharing your legacy with us in the form of a deferred gift. For more info, contact Bruce Davis at 920.648.2321 x2217

the lobby of the east school entrance,

tree