BOLD (Bread of Life Deaf) Lutheran Church

Bread of Life Deaf (BOLD) Lutheran Church is a Deaf ASL (American Sign Language) Culture congregation in the ELCA.  In Deaf Culture, we use stories to understand our world, ourselves, and others. We love that about Jesus! At BOLD, we are committed to sharing this Good News: God loves Deaf people and their families. And we love Deaf people and their families too.

We have a 65 plus-year history that encourages us. We hope it encourages you too! Please take a few more minutes to learn more about BOLD Church!

In the past year, we have been through many changes at our small church. We had to get creative, aligning more with both online and in-person services and events; we have grown quite a bit in learning about these! We went the first five months of 2022 without a Pastor!! Our church office Communications Coordinator, our Deacon, and the members of the congregation worked hard to be sure our church stayed afloat and active in the community.

BOLD hired an interim pastor in May 2022 and since then, the congregation, the church council, and BOLD staff have been reflecting and doing some searching as to what God wants for BOLD at this time. Our mission is still focused on the Deaf community and focused on getting God's Word to the community.  But how exactly we put our mission into action makes an impact on you and our community. We strive to include ourselves in any events, at BOLD and outside of BOLD. This is where we ask if you will join us so that we can continue the mission of BOLD reaching out to the Deaf community and meeting their needs. This includes seniors, youth, families, and all in between. These outreach efforts take time, money, and energy. We need some support in the finances and energy area. Please consider joining, donating and being a part of our outreach! We have a fundraiser goal of $7,000 this year and we have matching donors who will match donations made!

Reflecting back on our history as well as the recent years, we asked our congregation what kind of impact BOLD has on their lives. Read below to learn about some of the ways BOLD has impacted our community, near and far. We would love your partnership in helping us continue to impact others' lives!

STORY 1: 

Growing up, my faith journey was always flexible and not strong. I attended hearing churches through my aunt or my mother’s guidance. Did I enjoy them? Sometimes. But, never the worship experiences since I couldn’t understand most of it. When I met my now-husband in high school and our relationship became serious, he brought me to BOLD. I got a taste of BOLD before graduation and came back after college when we were engaged. Because of the generosity and deaf culture of BOLD’s members and their welcoming environment along with the use of ASL, I felt pulled and connected to BOLD. BOLD has impacted me to grow in my faith journey. I continue to grow as a person individually as well as within the community. Without BOLD in the last twelve years, I am not so sure that my faith would be as developed as it is now.

STORY 2:

I have always known about BOLD over the years - I went to a couple of services back when I lived here in 2001-2002 and then moved away. I did see BOLD at Deaf Awareness Day, before COVID I think it was, and then forgot about it until I saw it on the Giving to the Max Day page last year and I was surprised to see it there (and a best kept secret!). I went and met the Pastor at the time at the worship service and then started attending.

STORY 3: 

I was living in Washington State and found BOLD via YouTube, and joined the BOLD Zoom bible study. Later, I moved to MN to be closer to family but also felt grateful to have a Deaf community place to start connecting with and finding support through during my personal journey. I was baptized as an adult at BOLD. I am still learning and want to be more involved at BOLD at a slower pace. BOLD is inspiring and comforting to me because BOLD is not as strict as the church experiences I have had in the past. I also enjoy and appreciate learning God’s Word in full ASL from BOLD. Seeing our Deacon dance, act out the stories or songs in ASL helps me learn and feel connected, I feel happy! It calms me from my anxiety and I learn so much.