Faith Based Ministries
Establishing Lutheran Mission Outreach to the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing
Services We Provide
Ephphatha Lutheran Mission Society (ELMS)
Ephphatha Mission Society is a recognized service organization of the Michigan District LCMS. We are dedicated to establishing Lutheran Mission Outreach to the Deaf community and raising funds in support of these goals. It is our vision to see the lives of Deaf people transformed and impacted through God’s Word. Through our educational and support services we are dedicated to bringing the word of God to all people.
God has faithfully grown our ministry, He has brought many Deaf and Hard of Hearing people to ELMS and provided Deaf-led classes, interpreters, and outreach opportunities for Deaf people and their families.
Our society was founded in 2003 for the purpose of bringing the good news of Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins to Deaf and Hard of Hearing people. We are always seeking new ways to reach, serve and support the deaf and hard of hearing.
St. Martin Lutheran School for the Deaf
St. Martin Lutheran School for the Deaf, a program of Ephphatha Lutheran Mission Society has been serving the Detroit metro area for many years. It’s a ministry that has been much needed in this area for a while. The school’s goal is to not only educate all of their students, but to have them know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior within the setting of academic excellence.
St. Martin will delivers excellence in Christ-centered Classical Education to meet the spiritual, academic, and social needs of its students. Our school provides a bilingual ASL and English environment for grades Pre-school to 8th with partner hearing school, Emmanuel Lutheran School in Dearborn, MI.
“Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
Church Interpreter Training Academy
Church Interpreter Training Academy is a Christian program provided by Ephphatha Lutheran Mission Society to train church interpreters in bringing the Gospel to people who are deaf. This program has been running in Fort Wayne for nearly four decades. Classes are taught by certified interpreters, Clergy and Deaf instructors. CITA teaches religious sign to signers of all skill levels, equipping them in American Sign Language to bring the Word of the Lord to deaf people in their churches and communities.