LCC dedicates “extraordinary” warehouse

Standing near the entrance of the ministry’s nearly 10,000-square-foot warehouse in Schaumburg, IL, LCC President/CEO Rev. Chris Singer looked around the industrial space.

Concrete floor. Four cinder block walls. Metal corrugated roof.

“Now look around again,” Rev. Singer said. “Ordinary warehouse. Ordinary machinery. Ordinary people. But in God’s hands … guess what this is? Extraordinary. And we give thanks to God for that. It’s dependent upon Him to take and use these ordinary parts and make it useful to His will and His purpose.”

On Friday, with members of the LCC Board of Directors, staff, and volunteers on hand to consecrate a facility gifted to Lutheran Church Charities in 2024, Rev. Singer and LCC commissioned the building and thanked God for the blessing it is to Disaster Response and Hearts of Mercy & Compassion ministries. Special guest Rev. Dr. Ross E. Johnson, director of Disaster Response for the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, attended the short ceremony that included Scripture readings, singing of the Doxology, and a ribbon cutting.

The warehouse, located about 12 miles from LCC headquarters in Northbrook, IL, will house all of LCC’s heavy equipment for Disaster Response. This includes two Chevy pickup trucks, two boom lifts, a bobcat with grapple, Polaris, dump trailer, and equipment and hauling trailers for various types of crisis response. It also holds an inventory of disaster response supplies, tools and safety gear. Additionally, the building has a workshop space for Hearts of Mercy & Compassion to cut wood crosses, paint hearts, and store inventory.

---

For years, much of the heavy equipment for LCC Disaster Response had been parked outside, subject to the harsh sun or brutal cold, with nowhere else to put it. 

Now, the warehouse keeps vehicles and machinery safe from the elements. Deac. Kathy O’Day, director of LCC Disaster Response, and Jamie Miller, LCC facilities manager, have worked for months cleaning up from an old diesel storage depot, moving in equipment, and organizing the space so everything fits.  

“We can keep all our trailers and heavy equipment under one roof now,” said O’Day. “It will help us to maintain equipment better, keep inventory of supplies, and offer indoor trainings and workspace. It has been a real blessing to the Disaster Response ministry.”
 
HMC Director Sarah Sekki expressed her appreciation as well.

“HMC is grateful to have a new space to train volunteers and a hub for all our supplies,” Sekki said. “Having ample room for large-scale builds and assembly workshops will be a tremendous blessing.”