President – Kandy Pflaster has been a member of American Lutheran in Cozad for twenty years. She is a past president of her women’s unit for four terms; served as Council member for Evangelism; past NSWO High Plains Board Representative, two terms; and Nebraska Synod ELCA Voting Member to ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Orlando 2005. Kandy has traveled on NSWO Vision Trips to Companion Synods Argentina in 2004 and to Tanzania in 2005. Her other travels have taken her on a Leadership Training for NSWO in Atlanta, GA with other NSWO members; attended Women of the ELCA Triennial Gatherings in: Philadelphia, San Antonio, and Salt Lake City.
Kandy is coordinating a 2013 trip for her church’s senior/junior youth groups with Adult sponsors to travel to the companion Synod in Tanzania to build and nurture some relationships with their youth. The group will be making a dedication to some families while there. This trip will also be open to some other nearby congregation. She is Chair for the Shared Governance Quality Council and serving on the Steering Committee for “Magnet” certification & recognition which is for nursing excellence at Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney. There are only 300 hospitals internationally that have achieved this distinction.
Kandy is a Surgical Nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital & Trauma Center in Kearney. Tony and Kandy have been married for eighteen years and they have three children: Dusty, Lindsey, and Ozzie; and two grandchildren: Khayden and Kelseigh. They also have one dog and one cat. Kandy is currently serving as a Cozad Hospital Board Member.
Vice President – Terri Johnson returns to the NSWO board after a ten-year break from her previous role as High Plains Conference Board Rep. She stayed involved in her conference and church in-between and is currently her unit’s treasurer. She and her husband Tim live on his family farm near Hershey and attend Maria Lutheran Church in Hershey. They have two grown children and are first time grandparents this year. Terri works at the North Platte Public Library and is active in the Nebraska Library Association. She enjoys reading, baking, photography, and traveling when they can get away. Traveling to Omaha to see granddaughter Ellie is definitely a current priority.
Secretary – Randi VenHuizen is serving her first term on the NSWO board and she is excited to be a part of this team. Randi and her husband Brad moved from California to Omaha in 2004 and loves living in the Midwest. Randi and Brad joined Lord of Love and immediately became involved in the life of the church. She has served in her congregational women’s unit as Treasurer and a board member at large. She is currently on the church council, worship planning, choir, and is a Stephen Minister. She has also served on Metro East’s Spring Gathering Planning Team and is currently their Recorder for the 2012 Gathering. She loves reading and entertaining and traveling with her husband. They are a blended family and have four children and two grandchildren who all live in other parts of the country.
Treasurer – Janet Schmidt is a member of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Lincoln. She is the past-chair for the 2011 NSWO Convention Team. She has served in a leadership capacity in her previous congregation as Chair of Mutual Ministry Committee, Sunday School Curriculum Coordinator, Confirmation Group Leader, and past unit Vice-President and President. On the Nebraska Synod level, she is a trained Mission Interpreter. In her community, she has served for many years on the Lincoln/Lancaster County CROP Walk Planning Committee. Janet works for the state agency, ServeNebraska, as a Fiscal/Operations Officer. She is also a certified grants management specialist. She enjoys reading and doing scratch art. Janet is married to Lyle and has two adult children, Emilie and Daniel. She enjoys being a grandparent to her three-old grandson, Shane.