What are the opening hours?

Monday 8:30am - 4:30pm Tuesday 8:30am - 4:30pm Wednesday 8:30am - 4:30pm Thursday 8:30am - 4:30pm Friday 8:30am - 4:30pm

The Deaconess Community

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The Deaconess Community

The Deaconess Community supports and develops skilled and committed Lutheran women to offer servant l

The Deaconess Community is a group of women who feel the call to diakonia or servant leadership. Deaconesses are called to be public leaders in/for the church. They work in a variety of fields in and out of congregations, as they strive to be the connection between the church and the world. Each sister uses her individual gifts and skills for being that bridge. Deaconesses also seek to empower and equip the service of other, both in the church and the world. Our sisters work in a wide range of vocations, including social work, pastoral care, education, congregational ministry, community organizing, pastoral support, outreach redevelopment, youth ministry, healthcare agencies, community non-profits and advocacy, and so many more!

10/08/2026

Compassion is something we practice.

Each day brings new opportunities to choose kindness over indifference, patience over irritation, and humility over the need to be right.

These are not signs of weakness. They shape how we encounter one another and help make God’s love visible in the ordinary moments of life: in how we listen, how we respond, and how we treat the people we meet along the way.

God of compassion, clothe us with kindness, humility, and patience. Help us meet one another with grace and make your love visible in the choices we make today. Amen.

10/07/2026

Where is Love needed now?

It may be closer than we think.

In someone who needs to be heard. In a neighbor who feels alone. In a community facing change. In a place where fear or division has made it difficult to see one another clearly.

We may not be able to solve every problem before us. But we can pay attention. We can listen. We can offer kindness. We can speak with compassion. We can show up for one another.

God of every time and place, open our eyes to where Love is needed today, and give us courage to respond with grace. Amen.

10/06/2026

William Tyndale, translator, martyr, died 1536

Today the church remembers William Tyndale, translator and martyr, who died in 1536.

Tyndale dreamed of a day when ordinary people could read Scripture in their own language. At a time when the Bible available to the church in England was largely in Latin, he translated Scripture into English directly from Greek and Hebrew and worked to place it in the hands of everyday people.

That work was dangerous.

Tyndale's translations and writings were intertwined with the growing Reformation and challenged the religious authorities of his day. Betrayed and arrested in 1535, he was imprisoned, condemned for heresy, and executed in 1536.

Yet the words he worked to make accessible endured. Much of Tyndale's language would shape later English Bibles and, through them, generations of Christian faith.

Today we give thanks for translators, teachers, scholars, and all who work so that Scripture may be heard and understood across languages, cultures, and generations.

God of the living Word, give us courage to seek understanding, wisdom to listen across differences, and grace to share your Word freely. Amen.

10/05/2026

This month, we hold in prayer all whose lives have been touched by breast cancer: those newly diagnosed, those undergoing treatment, survivors, caregivers, families, and those who carry the grief of someone they love.

Awareness also calls us to action. Learn about breast health. Keep up with recommended screenings. Encourage the people you love to care for themselves. Support organizations working to make screening, treatment, and compassionate care accessible to all.

God of healing and hope, surround all who face breast cancer with strength, comfort, skilled care, and people who will walk beside them. Amen.

10/04/2026

“Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on…”
-Philippians 3:12

Faith does not ask us to have everything figured out.

We carry what we have learned. We release what no longer serves. We trust that God is still at work, calling us forward into lives of love, service, and grace.

Some days, pressing on means taking a courageous step. Other days, it simply means taking the next one.

On this Sunday, may we trust the One who meets us where we are and continues to call us forward.

10/03/2026

October is Mental Health Awareness Month.

Mental health is part of our whole health. This month, may we help create communities where people can speak honestly, ask for help without shame, and receive compassion and care.

May we listen well, check in with one another, and remember that seeking professional support can be an important part of healing.

God of compassion, draw near to all who are struggling and help us become communities of grace, understanding, and hope. Amen.

10/02/2026

We do not serve to earn God’s love.
We serve because we are already held by it.

Grace frees us to participate in God’s work of healing and hope. Our gifts, experiences, relationships, and opportunities can all become places where love takes flesh in the world.

Gracious God, help us receive your grace freely and share it generously. Use what we have and who we are to bring healing, hope, and love to your world. Amen.

10/01/2026

As we step into October, may God restore what is weary, strengthen what is fragile, and renew us for the work of loving and serving our neighbors.

09/30/2026

What a joyful moment at Assembly!

Directing Deaconess Sr. Dottie Almoney celebrates with our newest Sisters, Sr. Molly Olmsted and Sr. Allison Lizdas, joined by Bishop Bill Gohl, liaison to the Deaconess Community from the ELCA Conference of Bishops.

During Monday’s Opening Eucharist, Sr. Molly and Sr. Allison were formally welcomed into the Deaconess Community through the Rite of Investiture. Sr. Allison was also consecrated as a Deaconess and minister of Word and Service.

The charge given to Sr. Allison speaks beautifully to the vocation shared across our Community:

“Cross every barrier that stands between the church and its ministry in the world. Seek out those places where the gospel of Jesus Christ meets the world’s need.”

Welcome, Sr. Molly and Sr. Allison! We give thanks to God for your calls, your gifts, and the ministry we now share.

Photo taken by Bishop Bill Gohl

09/29/2026

🧡 Tomorrow, wear orange.

September 30 is Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day, a day to honor residential school Survivors, remember the children who never returned home, and acknowledge the lasting impact of the residential school system on First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.

Orange Shirt Day reminds us that Every Child Matters.

Tomorrow, we invite you to wear orange as a visible sign of remembrance and solidarity. But reconciliation asks more of us than what we wear. It calls us to listen to Indigenous voices, learn the histories too often left untold, confront injustice, and work toward healing and right relationship.

🧡 Wear orange.
🧡 Listen and learn.
🧡 Remember.
🧡 Every Child Matters.

Photo: Vivian LaMoore, Inaajimowin staff

Address

8765 W Higgins Road
Chicago, IL
60631

Opening Hours

Monday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday	8:30am - 4:30pm
Friday	8:30am - 4:30pm

Website

http://deaconesscommunity.org/

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