Last week, as the staff and leaders at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church were putting the finishing touches on plans to host the annual RibFest, the prediction of more rain for New Prague and the area gave them reason for concern.
More rain is the last thing the church needed as plans for the church’s largest annual fundraiser were being finalized. Concerned more rain would diminish attendance, the group looked for a back-up plan.
“We started looking at the weather last week. Katie (Kienow, the church’s director of youth and family ministry) and Jamie (Bisek, the office manager) began working on a back-up plan,” said Lindsey Cornell, president of the church council.
Their “Plan B,” Cornell said, involved moving the event indoors the newly redesigned church. The band, Little Chicago, played in the front of the sanctuary. A silent auction was held across the sanctuary. Meals were prepared in the newly-redesigned kitchen and served in the church’s community room, the same space where the annual Thanksgiving dinner is served. Church rooms used for programming were put into use for activities.
“There is no way we could have pulled this off indoors (before the redesign) Cornell said. Without it, we would have had a whole new level of stress.”
As he started to rearrange the sanctuary area last week, Cory Magnuson, the church’s facility manager, was confident ‘Plan B’ could work. He said the redesign project...
To see more on this story pickk up the June 19, 2025 print edition of The New Prague Times.
Holy Trinity’s expansion makes RibFest’s ‘Plan B’ a success
