Lutheran Services Carolinas is a great brand. Since 1960 we have been known for our senior services ministry and since 1976 for our child and family ministry.
As I write this, I am in the middle of our annual Tour de LSC. Part of that tour is a State of LSC presentation to our teammates at each tour location. I spend a good bit of time talking about our Vision, Mission, and Values.
I explain that we are unapologetically a Lutheran/Christian nonprofit ministry. One doesn’t need to be Lutheran or Christian to be served by or work for LSC, but we were founded by the Lutheran church and we honor that heritage. That’s why Lutheran is in our name and Christ is in our mission and vision statements. Many of our most loyal and supportive teammates and clients/residents are Jewish, Muslim, or of other or no faiths. LSC has adopted the motto All Are Welcome. We mean it, that all are welcome under the tent of Lutheran Services Carolinas.
We even encourage starting all meetings with prayer, but encourage non-Christians to not participate or pray their own prayer simultaneously. See, All Are Welcome.
Branding an organization is complicated. We have so many programs and senior communities. We have always struggled with how to brand ourselves, and we struggle today. For example, the church and state and national governments need to know Lutheran Services Carolinas, and we have a strong reputation in those circles as a quality provider of health and human services. But in our senior services communities, each community needs to be the brand. We really don’t care if people in Albemarle, NC know LSC; we need them to know that if they need the best nursing home in Stanly County, they need to go to Trinity Place.
Child and family programs present other issues. We have so many different programs in numerous communities and across two states! We have to decide often about using the LSC brand or sub-branding. Again, it’s not simple and we will continue to find our way.
The important point, though, is to keep our eyes on LSC’s Vision, Mission, and Values, and how we live that out as All Are Welcome. If we keep our eyes on that prize, we will continue to be successful in caring for our residents and clients.
