Jerry Peterson provided today's "Member Minute". He graduated in engineering from the University of MN, then was drafted and in 1973 ended up stationed off the coast of Africa. Jerry has been a member of our club for 15 years and our Treasurer for much of that time. He enjoys the community involvement opportunities our club provides. Jerry worked in power generation before his retirement. He was married for 41 years before losing his wife to Huntington's Disease four years ago.
Next we heard from Lutheran Pastor Chris Smith who was a professional interim pastor before his recent retirement. Now he is focused on a partnership between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT). One key product of this partnership is the Friends of Huruma - a center for homeless kids in Iringa, Tanzania. Since its founding, the Huruma Centre has raised more than 900 children. Their charter allows the Center to house up to 60 children at a time from birth through age 17. The staff of the Huruma Center nurture, provide for basic needs, and care for the children. Typically, children become homeless and arrive at the Center when parents die and no other relative is immediately found to care for orphaned children, or if children are found to have been abused by family or other caregivers.