Inspired by a refugee family her own family hosted when she was just 11, Vicki Schmidt has dedicated decades to supporting those seeking safety. Watch her journey and discover how answering the call of welcome brings hope to refugees and immigrants, and meaning to those who choose to walk alongside them. Learn more in this video from Global Refuge.
During Nevada’s legislative interim, committees meet to listen, learn, and begin shaping the future of policy in our state. These meetings take place primarily in Las Vegas and Carson City, bringing together lawmakers, advocates, experts, and community members.
This week, Pastor Paul will be listening in on several key interim bodies, including the Regional Rail Transit Advisory Working Group, the Interim Standing Committee on the Judiciary, the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Commerce and Labor, and the Interim Finance Committee.
Unlike the legislative session, interim committees do not vote on specific bills. Instead, they hear testimony on pressing issues facing Nevadans. That testimony—along with research and expert input, helps shape interim reports, typically released in the fall. These reports often become the foundation for legislation in the next session.
For example, last week Pastor Paul attended the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Commerce and Labor. This meeting is especially important as Nevada continues to grapple with a deepening housing crisis. Lawmakers heared recommendations from partners like the Nevada Housing Coalition and the Nevada Housing Justice Alliance, as well as research from the Guinn Center and University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Why the Interim Matters
The interim is one of the most important, and often overlooked, opportunities for advocacy.
In other words: this is where the groundwork is laid.
How LEAN is Engaging
Over the coming weeks, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) will be tracking interim charges and hearings closely. We’ll highlight areas that need focused energy and identify opportunities for meaningful engagement.
If you come across an issue or interim charge that speaks to you, reach out:
This Is a Season of Possibility
This time of year can feel wide open, full of possibility, even in a challenging political climate. That’s true for those we agree with and those we don’t. Everyone is preparing. Everyone is organizing.
So should we.
Lean into this moment. Engage deeply. Build relationships. Share your story.
And let us know how we can support your work.
Nevada is not an afterthought in national elections. We are a state where turnout, organizing, and faith-based engagement have shaped real outcomes.
National leaders are investing heavily here because they know what we already know: when Nevadans organize, elections shift.
Faith communities across Nevada have been part of that story. Congregations have hosted voter education forums, encouraged civic participation, and helped build cultures of engagement that last far beyond a single election cycle.
Our state is competitive because our communities are engaged.
That did not happen by accident. It happened because people kept showing up.
And we are doing it again.
Do you want to make an impact in the 2026 Nevada midterm elections?
Reach out to LEAN with the subject line Voter Education, and Pastor Paul will help coordinate with your congregation, county officials, and the Secretary of State’s office to host a voter education forum.
Now more than ever, we need trusted community spaces that strengthen confidence in our election system and encourage full participation in our democracy. Please vote.
Earth Day is April 22
Our planet is an amazing place, but it needs our help to thrive. That’s why each year on April 22, more than a billion people celebrate Earth Day. Earth Day is an annual event celebrated on April 22nd worldwide.
Earth Day 2026 affirms that environmental progress is real, resilient, and ongoing despite policy uncertainty. Innovation, education, and community problem-solving remain durable. Local systems — cities, schools, Tribal nations — continue implementing solutions that strengthen energy reliability, conserve resources, and reduce risk because they’re grounded in economic sense and public safety.
The theme for Earth Day 2026 remains Our Power, Our Planet, but its application reflects current global economic, environmental, and civic conditions.
In 2026, Our Power. Our Planet. refers to the role of people and communities worldwide in sustaining environmental protections that affect the cost of living, public health, infrastructure reliability, and long-term stability. Environmental conditions influence food systems, water availability, energy access, disaster risk, and economic resilience across all regions. Community participation has historically shaped these outcomes across countries and political systems.
Since the first Earth Day in 1970, civic action has helped establish and strengthen environmental institutions, laws, and international norms. These measures have been associated with reductions in pollution-related illness, improved access to clean water, and long-term public health and economic benefits in many parts of the world.
Earth Day 2026 calls on communities worldwide to take action during Earth Week to support clean air, clean water, clean energy, protected natural resources, and climate stability. These factors are directly linked to human health, economic predictability, food security, and cross-border infrastructure performance.
TAKE ACTION: Educate. Advocate. Mobilize. Pledge.
52 Ways to Invest in Our Planet
Every day is Earth Day! If this is how you feel, here are 52 actions and tips to make a difference, every day of the year.
https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-tips/
For other ideas and resources, including an Earth Day Toolkit, click below.
APRIL 16, 2026
“Jesus said, ‘Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs’” (Matthew 19:14).
Dear church,
Christ is risen!
This Easter Sunday, we celebrated the good news by proclaiming “Alleluia!” for the first time since Ash Wednesday. In four short syllables, that word — “Alleluia!” — encompasses all our joy in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. To a world beset by fear and violence, it is a bold declaration of faith in God’s promise that sin and death will not have the final say.
Yet there are times when “alleluia” springs forth not as a shout but as an anguished whisper, an expression of our yearning for the fulfillment of that promise. Even as the church celebrates Easter, we remember many among us who still long for the church to bear witness to that promise.
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This month, I invite us as a church to be the people we are called to be — witnesses to God’s desire for the well-being of all, especially the vulnerable children and adult survivors in our midst.
At least 1 in 7 — and as many as 1 in 4 — children in the United States experiences abuse or neglect. Many of them will face lifelong consequences of physical and emotional trauma, including higher rates of depression, thoughts of suicide, substance abuse, and even cancer and heart disease. When the church has failed them, many others will face the deep spiritual trauma of guilt and of anger toward the church and God.
But it does not have to be this way. Trauma need not have the final say.
The ELCA social message “Child Protection” (2025) describes the harsh realities of child maltreatment, acknowledges the Christian church’s complicity in this sin and names steps the ELCA is called to take to prevent harm and accompany survivors. It offers words of promise and challenge to each of us as we commemorate this month:
To survivors of child maltreatment: Even amid your pain, anger and doubt, be assured of God’s unending love and unfailing promise for your well-being.
To preachers and teachers in congregations: Share the good news of Jesus Christ by studying and teaching the theology of childhood described in the social message. Remember that every worshiping community in the ELCA likely includes victims of child maltreatment. Preach and teach Jesus’ model of welcome and care for children.
To council members and congregation staff: Take time this month to review your child protection policies and practices. Read and discuss the policies recommended in the social message.
To rostered ministers: As stated in the social message, this church expects you to report suspected instances of child maltreatment. Learn more about your state’s legal requirements for clergy as mandated reporters of child abuse or neglect by visiting www.childwelfare.gov/resources/clergy-mandatory-reporters-child-abuse-and-neglect/. Encourage your congregations to advocate for public policies endorsed in the social message.
To counselors, chaplains, teachers, school administrators, social service providers and all those who work for the safety and well-being of children: Thank you, and may God continue to bless your efforts.
In this Easter season, let us pray that all our neighbors may experience resurrection hope and that, for children of all ages, everywhere, a resounding shout of “Alleluia!” may be the last word in God’s story.
In Christ,
The Rev. Yehiel Curry
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada 