May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.
—1 Thessalonians 3:12
Our Start
Shepherd of the Cross started as a mission congregation in 1986 when Pastor Arno Frerichs literally knocked on thousands of doors to invite community members to hear the Gospel. For the first years, the congregation gathered for worship in the former Muscatine Holiday Inn. The current building was completed in 1989 with the help of ELCA Mission Builders.
By 1991, Wonder Years Preschool began. Today, preschool director Michelle Rogers and assistant Diana Evans continue to teach three- and four-year-olds during morning classes.
Pastor Arno Frerichs resigned in 1988 and the congregation entered into the call process, and for the next two decades, several pastors continued to lead this congregation forward in mission.
Our Pastor
Today, Shepherd of the Cross is led by Pastor Aleese Kenitzer who accepted the call in July 2016. Aleese graduated from Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa, with a Masters of Divinity. Prior to seminary, she studied at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, majoring in music and religion.
At her core, Aleese is passionate about helping others encounter God’s grace through worship, education, and service and equipping disciples of Christ to utilize their God-given gifts in their everyday lives. As a public leader of the church, she takes seriously the development of relationships within the congregation while also being a public witness to the kingdom of God in the broader community.
She serves on the Board of Directors for Camp EWALU Lutheran Bible Camp, the Board of the Early Childhood Iowa Muscatine County (ECIMC).
Aleese also enjoys playing music: especially her violin, harp, and piano. She is an active member of the Muscatine Symphony Orchestra and has collaborated with the Muscatine High School Orchestra and the Muscatine Civic Chorale.
