Concordia United Methodist Church
Purpose and Culture
Our Covenant:
I will be loyal to the United Methodist Church and uphold it with my prayers, my presence, my gifts, my witness, and my Service.
Our Statement of Mission:
As a witness to Christ in our community,
we are committed to spiritual growth and service.
As A Reconciling Congregation:
“We celebrate God’s gift of diversity and value the wholeness made possible in community equally shared and shepherded by all. We welcome and affirm people of every gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation, who are also of every age, race, ethnicity, physical and mental ability, level of education, and family structure, and of every economic, immigration, marital, and social status, and so much more. We acknowledge that we live in a world of profound social, economic, and political inequities. As followers of Jesus, we commit ourselves to the pursuit of justice and pledge to stand in solidarity with all who are marginalized and oppressed.”
Our History
The Full Story
Concordia United Methodist Church started out as a class of 11 German speaking members in Sauk City in 1853. In 1870 this growing congregation became known as the “Friedens Gemeinde” (Peace Society) with services held in members’ homes. In 1872 a stone church was built in Sauk City near the village limits of Prairie du Sac in a section known as Middletown. By 1905 the congregation had grown to a membership of 238 prompting the decision to build a new church. This church was built in Prairie du Sac at 585 Fifth Street (at the corner of Fifth and Galena). The name on the red granite stone on the bell tower is “Friedens Kirche der Ev. Gemeinschaft” (Peace Church of the Evangelical Association). In the 1930’s the language of the Worship and Sunday School gradually changed from German to English. About this same time the name was changed to Concordia Evangelical Church.
When the Evangelical and United Brethren churches united, our name changed to Concordia Evangelical United Brethren Church. In 1968 when the EUB and the Methodist churches merged, we became Concordia United Methodist Church. An Educational Unit was added in 1952 to meet the needs of an expanding Sunday School program.
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Today we have a membership of 172 with Sunday School classes from nursery to adult, meeting from September through May. Church programs include an active Youth group, Men’s and Women's Fellowship groups, and a Handbell Choir. Our member activities in the surrounding community range from elective office to volunteer work in many service organizations.
Our Staff
Reverend Kook Ho Kim
Pastor and U.S. Army Reserve Chaplain
Beloved of Concordia,
My name is Kook Ho (first name) Kim (last name). I grew up in Seoul, South Korea. I came to the U.S. as an exchange student at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in 2009. I received my Master of Divinity degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL in 2015. I became a provisional Elder in 2015 and a full Elder in the Wisconsin
Annual Conference in 2018. It is my calling from God to serve not only a local church but also our community and nation, so I am serving as an Army Reserve Chaplain (Captain), too.
I am married to my awesome wife, Ran (first name) Yoo (last name). She is an ordained Elder in the Northern Illinois Conference and is currently serving as an associate pastor at First UMC of Madison. We have two beautiful children, Caleb Y. Kim (7) and Christine Y. Kim (3). My passions in the ministry are:
1. Maintaining the church with spiritual health
2. Growing the church spiritually and physically
3. Reviving our next generation (children, youths, young adults) in faith
4. Outreach and Missional work in our community, in our nation, and in our world
I always welcome more conversation with all of you, especially about matters of faith, Jesus, mission, and my own faith journey. And remember you are always invited to join our weekly worship service in-person or via livestream.
Blessings,
Rev. Kook Ho Kim
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Office Hours:
Monday thru Thursday: 9:00 am - 12:00 noon
Available weekday afternoons by appointment.
Tanya Bare
Administrative Assistant
Hello Concordia!
My name is Tanya. Although I am originally from Iowa, I have lived in the Sauk Prairie area for more than 40 years! My kids (can I still call them that?) Gabriel and Angelica grew up and went to school here. Angelica and I both graduated from University of Northwestern—St Paul in 2021, Angelica in Art and Theology and I in Business Management. Gabriel is currently working on a Business degree as well!
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I enjoy staying busy by helping my family and playing the piano. I work with my sister, Teresa (some of you know her from PT at the hospital), at her store, ReTwist-T, located at 515 Water Street in Sauk City, across from Ace and Vintage. If you’ve never visited, I hope to see you there sometime! My parents, my daughter, and my brother (Travis) and his family also share their creativity at ReTwist-T. I enjoy playing in the Handbell Choir here at Concordia, as well as the piano on occasion. I also play piano at River Hills Church and at the Von Maur store in Madison nearly every week. My faith journey has been an interesting and varied one, but through it all I know that serving in the local church, as well as short-term missions projects, are my passion. I guess that about covers all the interesting tidbits about me - I am always available for a chat or a hug when I'm in the office!
I am thrilled to be serving here at Concordia. Thank you for being so kind and welcoming. I look forward to getting to know each of you!
Church Office: 608-643-6356
