Oak Ridge church calls new pastor, installation Jan. 28

Pat Hope

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church of Oak Ridge has called the Rev. Rosalina "Rosy" Rivera as its new pastor. Pastor Rosy is a graduate of Lenoir-Rhyne University, having earned a bachelor's degree in music education, with a concentration in voice and choral conducting. She graduated from Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa with a Master of Divinity and was ordained in 2013. She will be officially installed by Pastor Rick Ohsiek, the conference dean, at 2 p.m. Jan. 28 at Grace followed by a light reception. The public is invited.

The Rev. Rosalina "Rosy" Rivera
The Rev. Rosalina "Rosy" Rivera

Pastor Rosy has served at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Pflugerville, Texas; First Lutheran Church in Lorain, Ohio; and Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Woodstock, Georgia. She was a member of the Northeast Ohio (NEOH) Synod council and was president of the Lorain Clergy Association. She also has been active with the Girl Scouts and the Big Brother/Big Sister organization and has been a reading buddy for elementary school students.

Grace Lutheran Church is the only Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) congregation in Oak Ridge and Anderson County or counties north and west. Grace has a long history of serving the community. It is a founding member of CONTACT Care Line and the Ecumenical Storehouse, offers a food pantry on Friday mornings, and offers free classes in English for Speakers of Other Languages several days a week. It also offers free classes in Russian taught by a native speaker and is looking for a teacher for our Spanish class. These classes are open to anyone in the community.

Grace holds two Sunday services (in-person and online): 9 a.m. (contemporary) and 11:15 a.m. (traditional) and one combined service at 10 a.m. on fifth Sundays. Everyone is invited to attend. Grace Lutheran Church is located at 131 W. Gettysburg Ave., Oak Ridge. For more information, call or go online at 865-483-3787; www.graceoakridge.org.

This article originally appeared on Oakridger: Oak Ridge church calls new pastor, installation Jan. 28

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