Imagine the scene: A Mormon preschool student walks into a Lutheran preschool and sees a cross on the bulletin board. He asks the teacher, “Is that a ‘t’?” The teacher is able to respond, “It looks like a ‘t’, but that is really a cross. Jesus loves you so much that He died on the cross to forgive your sins.” Where would you guess this preschool is—Omaha, Lincoln, Norfolk, or Grand Island? No, this is an example of the ministry taking place in Hyannis in the Western Sandhills of Nebraska.

In the heat of the summer of 2004, Johanna Safarik, wife of DELTO vicar Andy Safarik, was approached by several mothers of preschoolers (who were not Lutheran) and asked if she would start up a preschool. Soon Johanna found herself caught up in a flood that would give rise to "Noah’s Ark Preschool."

As Johanna looked into the possibility of using the existing ministry center for preschool, she soon realized the improbability of getting the building up to state code. The interested mothers said, “Let’s divide up the list and we’ll all do part of it,” and they all pitched in to make it happen. Amazingly, a tidal wave of community-supported fund-raising, fence-building, and work made the beautiful, 88-year old Sandhills Lutheran Ministry Center building in Hyannis into an accredited preschool in time to open in October of 2004!

An issue facing this blossoming ministry was the cost of operation. The prayer was that the preschool funds would pay the propane bill. That fall, people started showing up at the parsonage with monetary donations. People who don’t even go to church said, “I just want to give you money to start your preschool.” One lady brought a check from the Chamber of Commerce, along with a personal check from her and her husband.

District congregations also partnered in this new mission opportunity through their common gifts to the Nebraska District, as well as directly through on-site aid. Members of St. Paul, Ogallala, provided electrical work to hardwire the needed smoke detectors in the ministry center, as well as CPH curriculum and encouragement. Other congregation members, as well as community members not connected with any church, donated fencing, labor, and other needed materials. District support of this preschool and the Sandhills ministry continues, thanks to the gifts received from District congregations.

Another miracle in the story of this preschool is the commitment of the families who bring their children to Hyannis twice a week. Only two families live in town, with many living in the area around Hyannis, and one family coming from 40 miles away. Parents have shared that this commitment comes from their belief in the importance of a preschool with a Christian base, in addition to the desire to give their children a chance to socialize.

Before Easter one year, the class assembled Resurrection egg boxes. In each plastic egg the children placed a symbol of the Easter story: a palm leaf, a thorn, a cross, a sponge, a rock, etc. The last egg was left empty to represent the empty tomb. One little boy, Vonn, listened very attentively while they filled their eggs, then he took his home and told his family the whole story. The next year, on the first day of kindergarten, each student was asked to bring something special to show the class. Vonn knew just where his Resurrection eggs were! He took the eggs to school, opened each one, and told his public school class the whole Easter story, including the following witness, “This is a cross because Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sins ... and this one is empty because the tomb was empty—Jesus is alive!”

The doors of this preschool opened in October of 2004 with nine students, and classes have continued every year. The 2007-2008 school year started with 12 students, the maximum allowed by the preschool’s license, with no advertising at all. Johanna started asking the moms to stay and help on the days they bring the snack, providing an extra set of hands, as well as allowing the Mormon and unchurched moms to hear the Gospel.

It has been four wonderful years of sharing the Gospel with an ark full of preschoolers who come from miles around to sing, play, learn, and hear about the Savior who died for their sins. Currently, children from two families who go to the Mormon church attend the preschool and hear of Jesus’ love and redemption twice a week. Just as God was in charge of the first Noah’s Ark, so we find God still at the helm today.

Other ministry is taking place in the Sandhills alongside this preschool ministry. Vicar Andy Safarik serves three congregations—Swede Valley, Ashby; Bingham, Bingham; and Faith, Hyannis—under the supervision of Pastor David Dobbertien. There is also a midweek program in Hyannis involving 25 children, mostly non-Lutheran, as well as a high school youth Bible study. Rev. Rudy Schaff ministers to the congregations of Grace, Merriman, and Zion, Crookston. Rev. Ben Eickhoff serves the people at Zion, Arnold, and Trinity, Thedford, in addition to a preaching station in Mullen. For more information on these ministries, or to see how congregations and individuals can be supportive through gifts and prayers, visit www.ndlcms.org/ministries/district/sandhills.html.