Dear Brothers of the Arizona Conference,
Shepherd Lutheran Church is pleased to be hosting the 2023 meeting of our conference on May 2-3. We look forward to welcoming you to the great state of New Mexico. Our campus had a major renovation in 2014 and we look forward to hosting worship and our meetings in the sanctuary. Refreshments will be made available in our fellowship hall which is connected to the worship building.
The address is:
Shepherd Lutheran Church
3900 Wyoming Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM 87111
Lodging
We have a number of rooms reserved at the Drury Inn Albuquerque North. The phone number for the hotel is (505) 341-3394. The group code for online booking is 10057169, or you can use this link to directly book the room: https://www.druryhotels.com/bookandstay/newreservation/?groupno=10057169
Standard Room with 2 Queen Beds: $153 per night plus tax
The group rate is available Sunday night-Tuesday night. If you would like to come a day early, there will be an informal golf outing at 1:00 PM (weather permitting) on Monday and a gathering at my house for snacks and drinks in the evening.
Meals
On Tuesday, both lunch and dinner will be on our own. There are a good number of options near the church for lunch. And for dinner there are many chain restaurants near the hotel, but the city has many great local (and affordable) options.
With the assumption that Wednesday will move quickly, the church will provide an easy lunch to help people on their way.
A complimentary breakfast is available at the Drury Inn each day and their “kickback” starts at 5:30PM.
Fellowship Opportunities
Since our congregation does not get the opportunity to host many conferences, the members are desiring to help offset costs for two different events.
On Tuesday May 2, our minor league baseball team plays at 5:35 PM. If attending a MiLB game interests you, the tickets will be half-price for all who would like to attend (roughly $6-10). Please text or email me that you’d be interested in this. We would need at least 10 people to get the discounted price.
Another fellowship opportunity will be offered to all who would be interested in taking the tram to the top of the Sandia Mountains. The tram takes about 15 minutes to get to the top and there is a restaurant at the peak. The tickets would be 100% covered by the congregation. But beware that the restaurant charges a little more than you’d think for everything. For more information about this unique ABQ experience, see this link: https://sandiapeak.com/. There is no minimum number required for this opportunity. If interested, please let me know through text or email.
Lastly, if you don’t want to be confined to a baseball game or top of a mountain, the fellowship opportunity would be to meet in Old Town (about a 12-minute drive from the hotel) to hang out at the various bars and microbrews and enjoy the downtown area. The Old Town PDF in the resources folder shows the many different options available.
If there are any other questions let me know. We would forward to seeing you in Albuquerque soon. Blessings on your Lenten and Easter preparations!
In Christ,
Josh Rathje
pastorslcabq@gmail.com
505-417-3534