LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2001, Page 40

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40 SYNODICAL REPORTS

our church. In the area of museum. we intend to develop areas that
permanently tell the story of American Lutheranism and increase
our ability to exhibit effectively many of our rare artifacts and doc-
uments.

In order to accomplish more of the tasks that need to be done,
we will be working to develop a larger corps of volunteers to sup-
port our work in all areas. In addition, we will allempt to provide
internships for those preparing for careers in the archival field. We
will continue the computerized cataloguing of our collections that
will enable more effective and thorough retrieval of information to
assist researchers.

In these ways, we hope to become ever more effective in assist-
ing the members of our Synod to understand how great is God's
love in Jesus Christ. the Savior, as recorded in the thousands of un-
published records of pastors, teachers, and laypeople documenting
events in the life of the LCMS.

VIII. Recommendations

The Institute's Board of Governors has submitted a memorial
to the 2001 synodical convention under the heading “To Support
the Work of Concordia Historical Institute.” The memorial calls at-
tention to the year 2002 as the 75th anniversary of Concordia His-
torical Institute, draws attention to the Institute’s need for a new
facility, and asks for increased support from the Synod as a whole
and trom individual congregations and members to enable CHI to
provide a building and staff necessary for accomplishment of its
main purpose—that of providing ready access to the information
contained in its vast collections in order that the rich record of
God’s gracious works among us may be known and understood.

IX. Highlights of Activities
and Significant Accomplishments
* Addition of an archivist as a full-time staff position.
* The development and implementation of a records management
program for synodical departments.

* The arrangement and description of major collections: Executive
Office records, the Franz. Pieper papers, the Robert D. Preus pa-
pers, Concordia Historical Institute's own institutional collection.
and many others.

+ The creation of an exhibit of 43 original Albrecht Diirer wood-
cuts.

* The creation of an exhibit on the music, life, and theology of Jo-
hann Sebastian Bach.

* The creation of a permanent C. F. W. Walther exhibit.

* The development of a Web site with a complete database of
archives and manuscript collections and completed finding aids
that help potential researchers find materials that they can use.

* Reduction of the accessioning backlog to 2 1/2 years, the smallest
backlog for 20 years.

* Engagement of LCMS Ministries in the area of fund-raising and
development.

* The use of volunteers on major and/or long-term projects.

* Improvement in assistance provided to researchers of all kinds
who make usc of the resources of Concordia Historical Institute.

Significant Resources
|. Concordia Historical Institute Quarterly, a journal lor the his-
tory of Lutheranism in America (vol. 70 completed in 1997).

2. Historical Foomotes, a newsletter for members on Institute ac-
tivities and devclopments in Lutheran history and archives.

3. “Service Bulletins” on many aspects of archival work. include a
series on establishing and maintaining a congregational archive.
Jerzy Hauptmann, President

Daniel Preus. Director

2001 Convention Workbook

R2-06
Board for Communication Services
Introduction

The Board for Communication Services is responsible lor in-
forming, reporting, and interpreting—in consultation with applica-
ble officers and boards—the Synod's purpose, program, and posi-
tions to its members, as well as for promoting an increased
understanding of its positions and programs on the part of the
Synod’s various publics.

Most, though not all, of the Synod’s communications-depart-
ment work is organized into three divisions: News and Informa-
tion, which produces the Synod’s offivial periodicals (The Lutheran
Witness and Reporter), Broadcast. which includes The Jubilee Net-
work, three radio stations (KFUO and KFUO-FM in St. Louis,
KNGN in McCook, NE), and LCMS Teleproductions: and Public
Relations.

This report largely follows the lines of the communication de-
partment’s organization. First, however, are three items related to
the work of the Board for Communication Services that deserve
special mention.

“Message of Love”

In fall 1997, the Board for Communication Services launched
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s first-ever mass-media
campaign. using coordinated television. radto, and print advertis-
ing. The first phase of the campaign, called “Message of Hope.”
was a history-making effort, accomplishing two goals: The cam-
paign spoke simultaneously both to the outside world and to LCMS
members themselves. While raising public awareness of the
LCMS. the effort at the same time increased the enthusiasm of
LCMS members for their own church body. And. most impor-
tantly. the campaign provided members an entree for personal
evangelism by making it easier to tell friends and neighbors about
their church.

In February 2000, the Synod returned to television with the sec-
ond phase of the mass-media campaign. “Message of Love.”
Through the assistance of the Marvin A. Schwan Charitable Foun-
dation, coordinated media materials (such as customizable radio
and newspaper advertising, billboard artwork, and a CD providing
campaign graphics) were provided to all LCMS congregations. Air-
time on local network affiliates in 24 markets was purchased. Na-
tional advertising was purchased on cable networks CNN, Discov-
ery, HDLN, TBS, The Learning Channel. and TNT. And again,
grant funding was made available to congregations that wished to
implement part or all of the media campaign in their local commu-
nities. The “Message of Love™ campaign also expanded its reach
by adding two television ads designed for use in black-ministry sit-
uations and two Spanish-language ads.

“Message of Love” materials were eagerly awaited by congre-
gations that had successtully participated in the first mass-media
effort. Surveys revealed that many congregations were beginning to
budget to include such elforts on a continuing basis. Participation
in the grant-application process increased by 58 percent over “Mes-
sage of Hope” efforts, with 694 congregations receiving some level
of funding. Congregations receiving grants and reporting media-
purchasing plans at the local level indicated the purchase of 2.213
television commercials, 24.770 radio commercials. 16,454 news-
paper ads, 42,152 cable commercials. 397 billboards, and 88
months of theater-screen advertising.

The “Message of Love” campaign continued the groundbreak-
ing efforts that enabled more people to see and hear about the
LCMS and its message of love in Jesus Christ than through any
other single media effort in the history of the church body.