Mona Lutheran Church

OUTDOOR DRIVE-IN SERVICE 2008

 

A partial listing is now posted

for Sunday Evenings - 7:00 pm -

One Mile South of Lyle, MN on Highway 218 to Mona Drive

or

9 miles north of St. Ansgar, IA

Please join us for a family-oriented time of heartwarming, spirit-lifting music and light humor. Admission is free. All are welcome. A freewill offering will be received, and a fellowship lunch will be served following each of the services.

 

The Foundation Quartet of Apple Valley

"For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ." - I Corinthians 3:11 - This quartet sings a variety of old Gospel favorites and enjoys reconnecting with the Mona crowd that has gotten to know them so well over the several years that they have been a part of our summer drive-in event.

The Foundation Quartet enjoys making harmonious gospel music together. Like most gospel music, their songs talk about the foundations of faith: the forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ, the joy of new life in Him, and the hope of eternal life with Him in Heaven. Their travels have brought them before groups all around the Midwest: Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Illinois. They even have a winter "tour" in the Phoenix area.

Introducing The Foundation Quartet: Bob Fallt, the group's tenor, is from Burnsville. He is the manager and booking contact person for the FOUNDATION QUARTET of Apple Valley, Minnesota. Bob is a retired Evangelical Free pastor and has been singing with the Foundation Quartet for six years. His wife, Margaret, claims he is "refired," not retired as he has served as an interim pastor at several churches since his retirement. David Seibel sings lead. He and his wife, Candy, live in Lakeville where he works as a mechanical engineer. His years of experience have prepared him well to plug in the wires on the sound system at our concerts! David is married and has three daughters. He was recently elected secretary of the Foundation Quartet. Neil Rengel, baritone, lives in Arden Hills with his wife, Doris, and is a retired engineer from Honeywell. He has been singing with the group for four years. Neil is the Foundation treasurer and is also in charge of the humor. Dale Tornell sings bass. He and his wife, Jan, are retired schoolteachers. They enjoy playing on their hobby farm in Webster, as well as traveling with the quartet for the past two years. Glen Bruins and wife, Arlene, live in St. Anthony Village. Glen spends much of his free time playing trumpet in two concert bands. He is the sound technician, who plans to retire from Honeywell in the next couple of years after 34 years of service.

Treasure Ransom of Austin, MN

Spokesmen Quartet of Lake Crystal, MN

The Spokesmen Quartet was formed in the late summer of 1988 and has traveled extensively throughout Minnesota and the surrounding states. The group consists of six people of varied professions and occupations from the Southern Minnesota area. There are four vocalists, accompanied by a keyboard art and a sound technician. "There is a special story for each person being called by God to the group. We had to learn the Southern Gospel Male Quartet style of singing, and decide whether we were going to preach or witness. We believe our genuine and sincere love for Jesus rather than our musical expertise would be the measure of our acceptance by our audiences. We decided to practice what we preach --that we would trust God for our financial support through free will offerings. We didn't want anyone to miss hearing the gospel because they didn't have money for a ticket. God has blessed us with many concerts since that time. We've never missed a concert date because of sickness or personnel turnover. We've had many opportunities to witness to people by example and personal experience. We never leave our concerts without challenging those in attendance to examine their own personal relationship with Jesus." thespokesmen@juno.com

Praise Him of Glenville, MN

"Worship the Lord with joy; come before Him with happy songs!" - Psalm 100:2

"Dear Friends in Christ, Thank you for inviting Praise Him to join you in worship! We are looking forward to sharing God's message through scripture, word, and songs. Please pray for us as we seek the Lord regarding these things. It is a privilege to worship together, to gather without fear, and to anticipate that God will reveal to each of us as we diligently meet him in prayer. As Psalm 73:26 assures us, We will surely rejoice and be glad! My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. May God's blessings come to pass as His strength is made evident in your church and in your homes! Love and peace - Praise Him."

Back for the second year, Praise Him is a group of committed Christians whose mission is to glorify God and praise His Holy Name. They have traveled throughout southern Minnesota, as well as southern Wisconsin, Kansas and Iowa. Members are David and Carrie Paulson, Arlen and Coleen Brekke, Larry and Emily Otto, and Larry and Terry Jenson. www.smig.net/praisehi

Hayward/Trondhjem Quartet & Pr. Scott Meyer

The Hayward Trondhjem Quartet started singing as a quartet in 1996 after Pastor Scott Meyer was called to serve the Hayward Lutheran and Trondhjem Lutheran congregations. During the time that Pastor Scott served these congregations, the quartet included two retired farmers, Phil Tennis, a who sings baritone and Dan Johnson who sings bass; Kiven Lucas, tenor, who manages a hog operation, and Pastor Meyer. In 2001 Meyer accepted a call to Waseca as an associate pastor. Because the group enjoyed singing together and since Pastor Scott is a son of the Mona congregation, the drive-in committee was pleased to be able to include this quartet again for the 2008 season

The Forte Milers of LeRoy, MN

 

 

THE LORD'S PICTURE SHOW
By Jan Horgen of the Globe Gazette, Mason City, IA - August 8, 1998

The staccato blast of car horns fills the Sunday evening air. The blaring sound has nothing to do with frustration or anger. It is applause. Worshippers at the Mona Lutheran Church drive-in services have been honking their approval since 1972.

The unique, open-air church programs have drawn worshippers from North Iowa and southern Minnesota to this tiny border town. As vehicles pull off U.S. Highway 218 onto Mona Drive, gravel dust clouds the air. When the dust settles, cars, vans, trucks and even bicycles can be seen lining the grass-covered parking lot.

"Come as you are, sit in your car--and honk if you like the message," said Margaret Meyer, a lifelong member of this picturesque rural church.

Ushers greet people at the parking lot driveways, handing out bulletins and the summer's service schedule. Offering is collected in plastic ice cream buckets passed from car to car. The buckets are recycled--holdovers from the ice cream served at the conclusion of each service.

Programs are informal. Music, storytelling, heritage humor and sermonettes centerpiece the services held each Sunday at 7 p.m. from mid-June through August.

The Rev. Einar Unseth, now retired, began the open-air worship when he was minister of the congregation 26 years ago.

"He came up with the idea after watching two or three some search for something to do on a Sunday afternoon," said Meyer, who has not missed many services over the years. "Those first years we used to get over a100 cars every Sunday night."

Meyer said that many "very ordinary people with very special messages" have graced the stage since the program started.

As the services begin, eyes turn toward the stage--a refurbished chicken coop. A cross hangs from the top of the tiny, open-front building that was donated by a church member and is just big enough to house a piano, a couple of church pews and some sound equipment.

"It's about enjoying the evening and our programs are generally lighter and less formal than the more conventional morning services," said Rev. Russ Wangen. "Humor and laughter are good for the body and soul."

Wangen referred to the recent "Ole and Lena and Others" service that conveyed a good-natured message that played upon the Norwegian heritage claimed by many parishioners. He and a friend used a comedy act to convey their "down-to-earth" spiritual message.

A trio of gospel music groups, including The Spectrum from Riceville, have become popular drawing cards for the service. One guest minister, Scott Meyer, was baptized, confirmed and married at Mona.

"There is a lot of curiosity from the strangers who have happened in off the highway over the years," Wangen said. "I know of only one other drive-in worship service, in northern Minnesota."

"Even the threatening weather seems to hold off most Sundays until services are over," Wangen said. "We had rain the first week this summer and we moved inside, but that is a very rare occurrence."

Dogs attending the services have become commonplace, but last year worshippers were treated to a unique nature lesson for a good share of the 12-week program.

"We had a killdeer that nested right on the parking lot," Wangen said. "We put a fence around the nest and through the summer watched the eggs hatch."

"Our regular people went through the whole life cycle with the birds. We respected their right to existence and they got used to us. It was a good lesson."

Jim Sampson passing the ice cream bucket for offering at the Mona drive-in service