About Good Shepherd Ministries
“By God’s grace and authority we will grow and serve in faith, by actively sharing the Good News with the community and all people, with Christ Jesus as our focus, and with the power and joy of the Holy Spirit.
On August 12, 1963 mission work began in North Ft. Myers, Florida by St. Michael’s Lutheran Church of Ft. Myers, Florida.
In January of 1965 the Rev. Paul Esala was commissioned to serve here and by March 1, 1965 Good Shepherd Lutheran Church was organized. Twenty months later on November 27, 1966 our original Church Sanctuary and Parish Hall were dedicated.
The following year Good Shepherd Lutheran School was born – our first Kindergarten class graduated in 1968.
During the next two decades our church and school continued to flourish under the leadership of the Rev. Martin Renner. We built a new church and expanded the school campus. Our church has a 200 seat sanctuary, fellowship area, narthex, plus a nursery, choir room, Pastor’s office, two conference rooms, secretary’s office, kitchen area, storage area and bathrooms. Our school has 24 classrooms, a fully operational hot lunch cafeteria, school library, science lab, school administration offices, and a meeting room. Our grounds include 2 small playgrounds and a large sports field. We currently have two year old day care, three year old kindergarten, voluntary pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten through eighth grade.
In 2006 our school earned NLSA accreditation. We follow a Christian based curriculum with classes in art, drama, PE, Spanish and Computers along with organized sports teams. Tuition assistance is provided through various sources; scholarships, Florida Step Up for Students, needs based, and McKay funding for the learning disabled. Our grounds are secure and include 2 small playgrounds and a large sports field.
Since Pastor Renner retired in 1998 we have had three pastors; Pastor Frank Martin 1998-2003, Pastor Phillip Alexander 2005-2009 and Jerrald Lawson.
