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| About Us | |
| Our Staff | Our Faith | Our Story | |
We Are . . .Called - To be Gods childrenWe have been CALLED by God to new life through faith in Jesus Christ. Our calling includes following Christ in service, witness and mission. All of this flows out a life of worship in groups and personal quiet times. Together with other believers, we are used by the Holy Spirit to call others to new life in Christ.Community - No Christianity without itThere is no such thing as Christianity without COMMUNITY. We need each other and seek to incubate relationships that are healthy, growing and dialed in to the mission God has given us. We also take seriously our role as an energy for positive change in the towns we live in, and stay involved in community activities of all kinds, both as individuals and as a church.Sent - To serve as Christ servedWe have been given various gifts by the Holy Spirit, and then SENT to use those gifts to build up believers and to welcome others in compassion and friendship. We are also SENT to reach the broken, hungry and lost people in the world and in our own back yard.We think you'll find what you're looking for at
An Opportunity | |
Meet our StaffThe staff of Valley Covenant Church use their gifts as full time, part time, or volunteer servants of Christ through these ministries. They have the awesome privilege of encouraging, equipping and sending fellow Christ followers into ministry in the church and the community. | |
 Rev. Don Holmertz Pastor |
Pastor Don Holmertz has served as the Pastor of Valley Covenant Church since 1991. He came here from California, where he was the pastor of a new church and a youth pastor. However, his roots are here in Illinois. He was born and raised in Rockford, and received a bachelor's degree from North Park College in Chicago. He attended graduate school in Pasadena, California at Fuller Theological Seminary, and finished his master's degree at North Park Seminary in Chicago in 1983. |
| He loves to
travel and meet people and pastors and talk about their
churches and what God is doing there. While here in
Stillman Valley, he spent part of his time traveling
around the US doing seminars and conferences about the "50
Day Spiritual Adventure," a church wide program of
accelerated spiritual growth. His background in music and
drama often shows up in creative twists in worship and
preaching. Pastor Don's personal vision for ministry is to multiply disciples of Christ by nurturing healthy relationships and deploy people in ministry. He has a passion for helping people discover new life in Christ and helping them get connected to the church and find a place to use their gifts. Here in Stillman Valley, he has been a chaplain for the Stillman Fire Protection District, the chair of the Troop Committee for BSA Troop 315 and volunteer for lots of school and community activities. Golf and skiing are among his favorite pastimes, although these are often put on hold because of landscaping and home improvement projects. Pastor Don has been married to Deanne since 1979, and they have two children, Beth and Brian. In 2004, Beth will graduate from North Park University in Chicago. Brian will graduate from Stillman Valley High School in the same year. | |
 Chris Ravn Youth Pastor |
Chris Ravn (sounds like Raun, rhymes with town.) has been working as the Youth Pastor at Valley Evangelical Covenant Church since March 2003. He is originally from Cedar Falls, IA. Chris is a graduate of the University of Northern Iowa where he earned a BA degree in Communications. He has also completed a six week youth ministry training course through Tentmakers, based in Minneapolis, MN. Chris is assisted in this ministry by his wife, Paula, and many other volunteers on the youth ministry team. He enjoys playing basketball, golf, fishing and spending time with Paula. |
 Karen Carlson Office Secretary |
Karen has been producing bulletins and newsletters for Valley Covenant for 37 years and working in the office for over 13 years. She works from 9 am to 3 pm Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On Mondays and Tuesdays she takes care of a couple of children in her home. She's been doing that over the last 17 years with 12 different children over the years. Karen is married to Russell and they have 4 grown children, 3 are married, and one grandson. |
| Karen grew up in an Evangelical Covenant Church in Lyndhurst, Ohio, so she felt right at home when she moved here to Stillman Valley after getting married to Russell. She says, "It's like having extended family to visit Covenant churches, camps or colleges in different places." Karen is always glad to help in anyway she can. If you call and she isn't there, please leave her a voice mail message and she'd be glad to get back with you! | |
 Jill Huber Preschool Director |
Jill Huber has been Preschool Director of Valley Covenant Preschool since the fall of 1990. Jill is a native of Stillman Valley, she graduated from Stillman Valley High School in 1979. She has a BA in Elementary Education from Illinois Wesleyan University, class of 1983. Before coming to Valley Covenant Preschool, Jill taught Kindergarten for 5 years. Jill has been a member of Valley Evangelical Covenant Church since 1989 where she volunteers as the camp booster coordinator for Harbor Point Ministries. She also volunteers as a youth leader for Jr. and Sr. High students. |
| Jill is married to Bill and they have five children between them. Jill has a daughter, and twin sons; Bill has a daughter, a son and 2 granddaughters. Jill is on the Blackhawk Jr. Tackle Football Board as secretary and also the Meridian Youth Basketball Board as secretary. She keeps very busy attending her children's activities. | |
| Karin Ropp, Lois Flowers & Paula Ravn Worship Coordinators | |
| Yvonne Raymond & Paula Ravn Cross Fire (youth worship team) Coordinators | |
| Pictures taken by Photos and Frames of Byron, IL Back to Top | Our Staff | Our Faith | Our Story | |
Our FaithWhat's an Evangelical Covenant Church?Valley Evangelical Covenant Church is a part of the Evangelical Covenant Church, a 130 year old denomination warmed with the spirit of new birth, centered on the authority of the bible, and bold in the desire to bring healing and hope around the world. The Evangelical Covenant Church consists of about 600 churches in North America with around 90,000 members. This association is the primary way that we support mission work and church planting here in North America as well as around the globe in nine world mission fields.What does "Evangelical" Mean?Evangelical means that we believe in the necessity of each person to receive Christ's offer of forgiveness by faith; and trust in Him and follow Him as Lord. We call this "New Life in Christ," also known as being "Born Again."What's a "Covenant?"Covenant is a pact or promise made between two persons or between a person and God. "Covenant" is in our name because the bond that holds us together is our personal relationship to Christ, who established a "New" Covenant between God and us through His death and resurrection.What we Believe...1. There is one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who created and sustains the world.2. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ, God's Son, conquered sin and death, and invites every individual to receive forgiveness and abundant life through Him. 3. The Old and New Testaments of the Bible are the inspired Word of God and the final authority for faith and life. 4. The Holy Spirit dwells in every Christian, and empowers all Christians to fulfill God's will for their own lives and the world. Beyond these beliefs, which are common to most Protestant, Evangelical churches today, we embrace our freedom in Christ. This freedom means that our walk with God, our responsibility to one another, and our service and witness in the world is more important than agreeing on every detail of biblical interpretation or doctrine. Because of our emphasis on this biblical type of freedom, many people from diverse church backgrounds or without a church background have made Valley Evangelical Covenant Church their church home. For more information about the Covenant Church visit their website: http://www.covchurch.org | |
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Our StoryCompiled & adapted from writings by Esther Carlson (1959), Charlotte Carlson (1997) & Pauline Theander (2002) Here's our story about who we are and how we got here. In the 1880s a group of Swedish & Norwegian people came here to Stillman Valley, IL. They loved the Lord and recognized a need to assemble together to strengthen their faith, as well as reach out to those who needed to make a commitment to Christ. These people met in homes for Bible study and prayer. Later itinerant pastors and evangelists came to Stillman Valley to hold services. Some of these services were held in homes or in the open air. As their numbers increased, they felt a need for a church home. The first church was organized in 1885 under the name of Scandinavian Brothers and Sisters Society. This church building was located 1 block south of our present location. In 1889 the first Free Church was developed and organized and called the Swedish Free Mission Church and they were located at 320 E. Roosevelt Road. In 1892 the Scandinavian Brothers and Sisters Society reorganized, affiliated with the Mission Church and changed their name to Christian Swedish Mission Church. From that year until 1899 ministers from Rockford and Belvidere supplied the pulpit. In 1902, when the Battleground Memorial was erected, our church was asked to put a copy of the church history in the cornerstone with the names of the church officers which were as follows: Charles Hamberg, chairman; Oscar Westberg, secretary; John Alex, treasurer; Andrew Solberg and August Swanson, deacons; Frank Quist, and Charles Holm, trustees. As new families kept moving in, this little church was becoming too small, so a new building had to be considered. For weeks the trustees drove with horse and buggy calling on members and friends for contributions. It was very successful. In 1907 construction began for a new building for the Christian Swedish Mission Church at our present location, 103 S. Maple St. The original part of our building consisted of the sanctuary, with basement rooms below and was dedicated in 1908. On completion the church cost $3,493.99. Swedish was used exclusively from the pulpit on Sunday mornings and mid-week services until 1935. In 1927 Sunday School classes in English started for the children. English hymnals for the Sunday School were purchased in 1930. In 1935 one Sunday a month was to be held in English at the request of the young people. In 1937 the church constitution was translated into English. Many people still refer to our church as the "Swedish church" because of this rich heritage. Rev. E.O. Carlson was called to be the first pastor in our new church in 1908. There were many firsts which took place in the church during Rev. Carlson's ministry. The first wedding, the first string band, the first choir, the first confirmation class, and the Dorcas Society began. The Mission Church and the Free Church each grew in numbers for many years. But gradually many members from both churches moved to Rockford to secure employment. So in 1914 Rev. Eric Brolund proposed that the two churches unite their work. Committees were appointed by each church to contact their members to see if a united church should be worked out. It took a lot of patience, understanding and prayer. In 1919 the Mission Church and the Free Church merged into a new congregation called United Christian Church. They agreed to alternate between the Mission Church and the Free Church when new pastors were called. In 1953 we joined the Covenant denomination exclusively, thus severing ties with the Free Church denomination. In 1961 we broke ground for a new addition on Sunday after church. This addition consisted of an annex to our sanctuary, a library, a pastor's study, a nursery, Sunday School rooms, enclosed front entry and remodeled kitchen. A second addition was constructed in 1979. This addition consisted of a new Fellowship Room which doubles as preschool classroom and Sunday school rooms, other Sunday school rooms, first floor rest rooms, an enlarged basement mainly for Sunday school rooms, and a new ground level entrance to our church. In 1972 our church changed its name again, this time to Valley Evangelical Covenant Church of Stillman Valley. We've had 30 pastors in this church from 1885 until now. Rev. Don Holmertz came to us in 1990. Also in 1990, Jill Detig (now Jill Huber) started as Preschool Director and Karen Carlson became part-time secretary. In 1996, we started "Joint Youth Ministries" program with the Congregational Christian Church of Stillman Valley. Kristie Hook was the first director. Mike Lang was the director of JYM from 1998 - 2000. Chris Ravn joined staff in March 2003 as Youth Pastor of Valley Evangelical Covenant Church. | |
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103 S. Maple Street · PO Box 250 · Stillman Valley, IL 61084 Church (815) 645-8872 · Preschool (815) 645-8882 Fax (815) 645-8814 |
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| Pastor - Rev. Don Holmertz | Youth Pastor - Chris Ravn |
| Preschool Director - Jill Huber | Secretary - Karen Carlson |