Bold Women’s Day, observed on the fourth Sunday in February by Women of the ELCA, celebrates Lutheran women who are boldly living their faith in Jesus Christ.
Members of All Saints Lutheran Church, Port Orange, Fla., have celebrated this day for four years but last year kicked it up a notch. In addition to an installation service for the new Women of the ELCA officers, the congregation’s fourth- through eighth-graders created a “Bold Women Wall.”
Youth at All Saints Lutheran, Port Orange, Fla., last year honored women in the congregation by creating a “Bold Women Wall” of posters in celebration of Women of the ELCA’s Bold Women’s Day.
The six youth sought out “bold women” they know at All Saints, interviewed them and took their photos. Kellie Lehr, youth group leader, turned the information and photos into letter-sized posters to be displayed on the bulletin board at All Saints. Each featured woman received a postcard version of her poster as a keepsake for participating.
“I wanted our youth to know more about the women of our church and how close they are to women who use their lives to proclaim Jesus,” Lehr said.
The 18 women featured play various roles at All Saints. “These bold women are all around us at church,” Lehr said. “These women aren’t read about in the newspaper, seen on the news or written about in a book, but they are on the front lines of helping our church and our community. They are women following where God is leading them.”
One of last year’s posters read: “I am grateful to know [woman’s name] because she is so loving and kind, and she believes and stands for what God wants in her life.” Another read: “[Name] is bold because she believes in God and does what is right for those who need a voice. I am grateful to know her because she is a joy in my life.”
While the project helped the youth learn more about the women, the wall had an added bonus of creating excitement and a renewed sense of community among the women in the church.
