History

On July 19th, 1885, Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church of Detroit Lakes was organized. Prior to this, services were held in homes of members out in the country or in a rented building in town. Then, in 1888 the Congregation decided to build its first church and, after the first site was destroyed in a windstorm, a new site was selected on B Street on the north side of town.

In 1889 the Zion Congregation called its first resident pastor, Reverend C. C. Metz. Reverend Metz was followed by Reverend John Neeb and then Reverend Robert Heyne who served the congregation until 1943.

This period of time saw a great deal of growth for the congregation as Sunday School and confirmation programs were established, new adult members joined, the Ladies Aid was formed, a church basement was added, the men’s club affiliated with the International Lutheran Laymen’s League (LLL) was granted charter and the church’s financial system was improved.

In 1944, Reverend R. G. Troeger accepted the call to Detroit Lakes at the height of World War II. Many young men from Zion Lutheran Church were serving in the armed forces and several others left homes in DL to work in defense plants. 1944 also saw the initial purchase of the land on Lake Avenue where the church now sits.

During the next several years Zion continued to grow, breaking ground in 1950 for the current church structure. Construction began in 1951 with many of the Zion men serving as hod carriers, hauling bricks and supplies from the nearby railroad to the construction site, with the dedication of the building being held on Sunday, May 18th, 1952. The congregation and its organizations were involved in many community and synod events, the building of the church.

On July 24th, 1961 ground was broken for the new educational addition on the south side of the current church structure with construction wrapping up in 1962. 1965 saw the addition of the art glass windows now seen in the church which outline the life of Christ. Then in 1967, Rev. M.J. Buchhop accepted the call to Zion Lutheran Church following the retirement of Rev. Troeger.

During this time, Zion saw the organization of a youth board, the addition of a music and worship committee, the formation of the adult education board and the start of the evangelism board. The church also purchased additional property to the south of the current site and eventually tore down the building and built a parking lot in its place.

In 1980, a $131,000 building project included: a new air-lock entry way at the west end of the church, a drive though with a canopy, an elevator, a library addition and the addition of one Sunday school room. This budget also included a remodel for the front of the church with the addition of a crying room and a cloakroom for better traffic flow and additional seating for overflow. Finally, additional property was purchased to the south of the church and another addition to the parking lot was added on that location. In 1984, the congregation called its first associate pastor, Rev. Brian K. Obermann and he was installed in 1985. During this time, the congregation updated the main worship area with new lights and a wood ceiling and converted part of the education addition to an office suite.

In 1988, Rev Buchhop was killed in a car crash and Zion continued with one pastor until Rev. Dan Abrahams was called as an associate pastor in 1990. In 1992, Rev Obermann resigned and Rev. Abrahams served as the only pastor until Rev. Hahn was called in 1999.

Zion purchased the Jordan property and house adjoining the west parking lot during this time. In 2003, Pastor Hahn resigned and in 2005 Bob Kohler was hired as the Youth Director. The church continued in the form until 2009 when Rev. Abrahams announced his retirement. From 2009 until 2012, Zion was served by vacancy pastors and in 2012, Pastor Gary H. Schultz accepted the call.

Pastor Schultz served the congregation until 2013 when he accepted a call to Westfield, WI and Pastor Gary Rehborg served as the interim pastor until 2014 when Pastor Guy Roberts accepted the call to serve Zion Lutheran Church. During this time policy governance was implemented and a campaign to build a church began. In 2024, Pastor Roberts accepted a call to Colorado and our associate pastor, Pastor Bruce Noennig, along with many guest pastors filled the vacancy until August 2025 when Pastor Andrew Mussell accepted the call.