Elder Board Slate

 
 

Vote to approve our slate of elder board candidates!

Each year we have the privilege of prayerfully discerning whom God is calling forth as leaders in our congregation by serving on the board of elders of our church.  It is a collaborative process among God, the congregation, the current board of elders, and the nominating committee.

We want to thank the nominating committee for putting together this excellent list of elder board candidates! Please review the bios of each candidate below and consider voting to approve them at the congregational meeting this Sunday, June 9 (or vote via the online form now).

  • We are also voting on a proposed bylaws amendment - to change the term of an Elder from being two years to three years. This change was approved by the Elder Board and would serve the following purposes:

    1. Help create more of a sustainable training/learning curve for three new Elders to join each year, as three Elders rotate off, instead of having half (5 or so) Elders rotate off each summer with shorter ramp up/training time available.

    2. Establish more time for mentoring Assistant Moderators and Assistant Treasurers, as key leadership roles, to be better equipped to step into lead after they’ve had time to walk alongside/learn from predecessor.

    3. Solidify our commitment to have a sustainable and clear ask of lay elders, and to widen diversity of voices who can serve, maintaining a healthy rhythm for Elder Bd meetings being only once per month, remotely/on zoom, for one hour

Cliff Johnson

(Elder-at-Large)

Amber and I have attended LaSalle for nearly 18 years now. After failing to find a church for almost a year after we returned from a Peace Corps stint in the South Pacific, our old friend Oreon Trickey invited us to stop by one Sunday...and we just never left. This place has been our home in so many ways. LaSallers have treated our kids like their own, showed up for us during moments of both joy and grief, and made space for questions and doubts that didn't feel especially welcome in other communities of faith. It's been over a decade since I last served on the elder board now. While I needed that bit of a break, I feel very aware that we're at a pivot point as a community - we're figuring out what it will mean for us to do church together in the years ahead. Recent sermons have reminded me that God shows up when we show up in community together, and this feels like a way for me to do just that and lean into this season of transition with you all.

Oh, and when I'm not working or parenting, I enjoy writing fiction, telling stories, watching great movies, and making and consuming enough pizza to cancel out whatever exercise I got that day.

Karl Lauger

(elder-at-Large)

I've been at LaSalle for 28 years. I came here as a single adult and immediately loved being in a church where singles and families were both welcome, where ambiguity was not automatically a bad thing and where worship felt authentic and fresh every Sunday. I met my wife at LaSalle. We led a Disciple Bible study group and taught Sunday School together. I sang in the choir, but only once.

I hope to develop a strong sense of community during my time on the board (along with a balanced budget) and hope to extend that community out to the congregation as a whole. What is a church if not a community? Let's see if we can move further down that road together.

I enjoy running, biking, reading and tending to fruit trees and native plants at our home in suburban Oak Park - basically any reason I can come up with to be outside and moving around doing something.

Radhika Rawat

(elder-at-large)

When I moved to Chicago in 2016 to begin my MD/PhD training at Northwestern, I began searching for a church community that actively lived out the values they preached. My journey led me to Breaking Bread in 2019. Initially, my intention was simply to serve, but it quickly became evident that LSC was a community committed to tangible action—feeding the hungry, and nurturing souls. Over the years, my engagement deepened, through leading a Psalms study during the Covid lockdowns, and then again when Pastor Julie asked me to serve on the Advocacy and Outreach Board. This role has been both a privilege and a profound learning experience.

As a part of the Elder Board, I am eager to both contribute to and grow from the wisdom and spirit of Lasalle Street Church. My goals are twofold: to learn about practical church leadership from the individuals who have shaped LSC and stewarded LSC’s mission, and to strengthen the ways that we serve as a community, whether it is within our walls, or beyond them into our greater society - all in the spirit of expansive faith and a fiercely loving God.

Tamara Thompson

(elder-at-large)

I started attending LSC in the spring of 2019 and became an official member in 2023. My commitment and service to the church actually grew during the early stage of the pandemic. I attended online every Sunday and even started to read/record scripture for Sunday Virtual Service. Like many church goers, I slowly returned to in-person worship once it was safe to do so. To hold myself accountable to attend in-person service as often as I could, I started volunteering to serve as a morning greeter, after service hostess at The Welcome Table, and liturgist. I became a member on the Senior Pastor Search Committee which ultimately led to the nomination of our current pastor. In the fall of 2023, I became a founding member of the new Community Outreach Advisory Board. I also volunteer with Breaking Bread as often as I can.

I pray to bring some diversity to the Elder Board as a child of God that is: a "40 something" woman of color, an African American, a native Chicagoan, an educator, and devout seeker of justice for "the least of these" in our communities.

I am happily married to my high school sweetheart for almost 19 years, and we are both deeply rooted in our families and church communities.