Dear friends of Jesus at Peace, 

Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;  though lofty, he sees them from afar.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life.

You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes;  with your right hand you save me. (Psalm 138:6-7)

The Lord God protects his people. We rest in his protection from all of our enemies. 

Since he protects us, we want to protect all who are his - everyone who gathers to hear his Word and receive his gifts. In order to do that, various groups at Peace regularly review all of our safety practices. That includes ushers, exit signs, fire extinguishers, evacuation routes, emergency medical training, door locking, and more. 

We also are considering an armed security team. We would like to take a survey on a volunteer armed security team here at Peace. These individuals would carry concealed weapons and have training to use them. They would be individually approved through a certification process. They would operate within state laws and insurance policies. 

On the survey question below, a “yes” response indicates you support the presence of armed security at Peace Lutheran Church services. A “no” response indicates you do NOT support an armed security team at our services. 

This is the beginning of a process of exploration. This survey would need to be followed up with policy development, training, and approval. Again, the desire of this action is to keep members, families, guests safe before, during, and after services. 

The National Church Shooting Database recorded 139 shootings between 1980 and 2005. 185 people were killed including 36 children. From 2018 to the present there have been 165 deaths and many injuries. 

We would like to invite everyone who participates in Peace to add their opinion in this survey. You may add comments below. We also invite you to reach out to pastor or Gary Coombs (269-341-2149). Please leave only one yes-no response either in the box at church or through the electronic survey by November 20th. 

Thank you

Gary Coombs for Peace Lutheran Church