L. C. M. M.  History 

The Lutheran Church of Martha and Mary started as a mission of the former American Lutheran Church. Under the direction of the ALC, groundbreaking and building began in June 1963. Pastor Waldemar Bartell arrived on November 10, 1963 with the first worship service being held on December 22, 1963. The congregation was officially organized on March 15, 1964 with 30 charter families and 115 baptized members. On January 1, 1988, LCMM became a congregation of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod of the new Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
We began our year-long 40th Anniversary celebration by planting three trees on June 15th, 2003, the date of the groundbreaking at Martha and Mary in 1963 The trees we planted are called "Serviceberries", in honor of 40 years of Christian service in this place. The tree planting took place following our Outdoor Worship Service.
On March 14^th, 2004, we celebrated Heritage Sunday. In between our regular church services, at 9:45 we had an opportunity to view pictures and documents from the very beginning of our church to present day. There were songs, raffles and a contest as we strolled down memory lane. Our anniversary committee hosted a special coffee hour on that morning. Finally, on April 25^th 2004, our year of celebration concluded with a service at 10:00 a.m. followed by a banquet at 12:00 noon at The Wellington in Arlington Hts. This was a special day to share with our friends and families and to feel the grace of God among us.