On a Hill Above Chaska
Crown of Glory Lutheran Church sits partway up the hill along Minnesota Highway 41 in Chaska, at the corner where Cardinal Street meets Victoria Drive. Drivers coming from the south see the building on the left as they climb; those coming from the north pass it on the right after crossing Engler Boulevard. Inside, the congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has been gathering for more than five decades to worship, teach, and serve neighbors across Carver County. The community is known for an inclusive welcome, a robust schedule of faith formation for every age, and an unusually deep commitment to caring for creation through twelve months of small, practical actions.
A Reconciling in Christ Congregation
Crown of Glory is a Reconciling in Christ (RIC) congregation. The public statement reads: "Crown of Glory loves and welcomes all people, including all sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, races, and abilities. We celebrate the sacredness of all. We prioritize listening to diverse voices and are committed to dismantling oppression, opposing racism, and fostering a safe space." That welcome is woven into the life of the church through a Justice and Inclusion Team that meets one or two Tuesday evenings a month, fostering community, working for equity, allying with neighbors, and challenging forces that seek to exclude, harm, or discriminate against any child of God.
One Sunday Morning, Three Worship Styles
Sunday worship at Crown of Glory begins at 9:00 a.m. and is offered in person and livestreamed on YouTube year-round. The congregation strives to make each service meaningful, relevant, and experiential, whether a visitor prefers traditional Lutheran hymns and liturgy, contemporary Christian music, or a blend of the two. The same single Sunday hour can carry different musical textures from week to week, anchored by a roster of ensembles described below. Streamed services remain online for ongoing viewing, and bulletins are posted so anyone can follow along at home.
An AV Ministry Team handles sound and video for worship and other events. Worship Assistants step into leadership roles during services by reading Scripture and leading the Creed and Prayers of the People. Ushers, greeters, communion assistants, and fellowship volunteers form the Hospitality Ministry, ensuring members and visitors feel welcomed from the moment they arrive until the moment they leave.
Communion for Everyone, Gluten-Free Bread
Crown of Glory practices open communion. Everyone is welcome at the table of grace, and gluten-free, allergen-free bread is provided so all can participate. Baptisms happen throughout the year, scheduled after an orientation conversation with the officiating pastor to walk through the promises, names, and requested dates. Weddings can be held in the sanctuary, with receptions accommodated in the Sun Hall under facility guidelines.
First-Time Visitors
There is no dress code at Crown of Glory; the invitation is simply to come as you are. Greeters are stationed to answer questions and help newcomers feel comfortable, and the atmosphere is casual, with friendships forming and relationships deepening between services and classes. A Kiddos' Corner sits on the north side of the sanctuary, open to all children and parents throughout the service. No one is asked to stand and introduce themselves in front of the congregation; one of the pastors will simply introduce themselves afterward to see if there are any questions.
SPARK, Connect, and the Sunday Milestones
Children's ministry at Crown of Glory is built around a series of milestones that mark a family's journey from baptism through Confirmation. SPARK Sunday School, the early childhood ministry, stands for "Scripture, Prayer, and Relationships for Kids." It meets on Sunday mornings from 10:00 to 10:35 a.m. between September and May and welcomes children ages three through third grade who are toilet-trained and ready to participate in a group. Lessons follow the SPARK Lectionary model, designed to be creative and approachable.
Fourth and fifth graders move into Connect Ministry, a Wednesday-evening program whose curriculum walks through Old Testament stories including Creation and Fall, the Flood, Covenant, the Commandments, and more. Third graders are recognized in the spring as they complete Sunday school; fifth graders are recognized as they complete Connect and prepare to enter Confirmation. Each fall, fourth graders receive a Bible to use in class and at home. Blessing of the Backpacks happens on Rally Weekend each September to launch the new program year, and all baptized children may attend a one-day First Communion instruction class offered in fall and spring.
Middle School, High School, and a Mission Trip
Confirmation Ministry gathers students in sixth through eighth grade for three years of learning, worship practice, and service. Affirmation of Baptism takes place on Reformation weekend each October for ninth graders who have completed the program; once affirmed, they become voting members of the congregation. The senior high youth group organizes a weeklong service mission trip each year for eighth through twelfth graders, and Green Lake Bible Camp is offered as a summer option for those who have completed grades two through twelve. Green Lake Lutheran Ministries operates the younger camp at Shores of St. Andrew near New London, Minnesota, and the older camp at Green Lake Bible Camp in Spicer.
Music for Every Voice
For more than thirty years, Crown of Glory has offered quality music to its congregation and the surrounding community. The program includes ensembles for younger and older musicians alike.
The Chancel Choir is a vocal ensemble open to ninth graders and adults, singing twice a month in worship. Rehearsals are held each Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. in the Music Room (7:15 p.m. during Lent). Servant Song, the contemporary worship band, leads the service about once a month and welcomes vocalists, drummers, guitarists, and keyboardists; rehearsals are Wednesdays at 5:00 p.m. in the sanctuary during the program year. The Chancel Chimers, the handbell choir, are open to sixth graders and up and play in worship once a month, with Wednesday rehearsals at 6:00 p.m. (5:45 p.m. during Lent). Soloists and small ensembles round out the music each year. The program is led by Director of Chancel Choir and Servant Song Leader Grace Becker, Organist Tabitha Hanson, Piano Accompanist Ginger Larson, and Director of Chancel Chimers Sarah Morrow.
Creation Care: A Year of Small Actions
Crown of Glory's Creation Care ministry organizes a yearlong program called Restoring God's Earth. Each month focuses on a theme - January's carbon footprint, February's energy efficiency, March's healthy air, April's healthy soil, May's creation-friendly yards, June's plant-rich diet, July's composting, August's water conservation, September's environmental stewardship, October's zero-waste home, November's food waste, and December's shrinking consumerism for Christmas - with practical weekly tips and resources drawn from University of Minnesota Extension, the ELCA Social Statement on Caring for Creation, and partners like the Minneapolis Synod's EcoFaith Network.
The congregation itself has enrolled in a 100 percent renewable energy program through the City of Chaska Electric Utility's Clean Energy Choice. Organics recycling and curbside recycling are part of daily practice at the building, and the Creation Team periodically organizes Adopt-a-Highway cleanups along Highway 212. The Justice and Inclusion Team and the Creation Care ministry often work together on issues where environmental justice and neighbor-care meet.
Justice and Inclusion in the Community
The Justice and Inclusion Team carries forward the RIC commitment beyond the sanctuary walls. Their work includes fostering community within Crown of Glory, working for equity in the wider region, allying with neighbors, and educating members to recognize and challenge exclusion, harm, and discrimination. The team typically meets one or two Tuesday evenings a month.
Adults in Small Groups and Conversation
Adult faith formation at Crown of Glory takes many shapes. A women's Bible study meets monthly on Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. to walk through a book of the Bible together, currently journeying through First and Second Corinthians. Sunday Conversations is a once-a-month adult study held in the Sun Hall from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., covering biblical, social justice, and timely topics. Bible Study, Book Club, Men's Pub Ministry (craft beer and conversation, starting at 6:30 p.m.), and Lutheran Women Gone Wild (a monthly women's social gathering starting at 5:30 p.m.) round out the calendar. Men's and women's retreats are offered through the year.
Faithful Knitters and Faithful Knotters keep hands busy and gifts flowing outward. The Knotters create quilts for community needs and meet every Monday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Bethany Room; the Knitters work on personal and church projects such as mug cozies for Welcome Bags.
Caring Hands and Pastoral Care
Member Care at Crown of Glory flows through several channels. Caring Hands is the lay ministry that drops off meals, mails cards, makes phone calls, and provides transportation to medical appointments or short errands for members celebrating a new baby, recovering from surgery, or facing a serious illness. Most volunteers give less than two hours a month. Pastoral Care for baptisms, hospital visits, marriage preparation, and times of stress, transition, or grief is offered through the pastoral staff, and a public prayer list lifts those in need during worship.
Kitchen Essentials with Love INC
Crown of Glory is the host church for the Kitchen Essentials Ministry, a partnership with Love INC (Love in the Name of Christ) of Eastern Carver County. The ministry provides basic kitchen wares - dishes, glasses, silverware, pots and pans, baking sheets, measuring cups, cooking utensils, can openers, toasters, coffee pots - to families in need in Eastern Carver County, often those who have just found housing after homelessness or a house fire. Volunteers sort and box items based on referrals from Love INC and deliver them to screened families. Around seventy families each year receive kitchen items through the partnership. Members of Crown of Glory are invited to donate new and gently used kitchen items throughout the year.
Food Shelf, Scouts, and Neighbors
Crown of Glory has long supported Bountiful Basket Food Shelf in Chaska. A donation box in the gathering space outside the sanctuary welcomes personal care items, laundry and dish soap, non-perishable foods, and fresh garden produce. The church building is also home to several Scout troops that meet regularly: Girl Scout Troops 17964, 18463, 18874, 18631, and 27632, and Scout Troop 174, each with its own weekly or monthly schedule.
Two other organizations operate out of the building. Preschool Place offers full-time daycare and part-time preschool classes for children sixteen months through kindergarten, using the Core Knowledge Preschool Sequence. DS Driving School West provides a thirty-six-hour intensive program designed in coordination with AAA of Minnesota for new drivers. Two additional congregations share worship partnerships with Crown of Glory, using the sanctuary, music rooms, and Bible study spaces.
Sharing the Building
The Crown of Glory campus includes the Sanctuary (seating up to 250), the Sun Hall (seating up to 130, with an attached kitchen), the Bethany Room (seating up to 12), the Emmaus Learning Center (seating 8 to 10), the Conference Room (seating 10 to 12), and an outdoor patio with eight tables and four chairs each. Onsite rentals add a projector, screen, easels, microphone and speaker, bounce house, photo backdrop, and a range of tables. Outside groups may book the building when it does not interfere with church worship and events; reservations are coordinated through the Administrative Office Assistant.
Joining Crown of Glory
Visitors who want to make Crown of Glory their church home are invited to a brief New Member Orientation with Senior Pastor Reggie Klindworth, followed by a welcome during worship a few weeks later when the family is introduced to the congregation and photographed for the New Member Bulletin Board. New members join a body that contributes to the global, national, and regional ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America through the Minneapolis Synod. Giving to the congregation can be made online, by text, through the GIVE+Church mobile app, by mail, by PayPal, or by Venmo.