St. Paul Lutheran Church sits on Indian Trace in Weston, Florida, a master-planned community in western Broward County. The congregation belongs to the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and to its Florida-Georgia District, and its mission statement is short and direct: to nurture and strengthen the families of a diverse community. Members describe the parish as Christ-centered, deeply rooted in the Word, and committed to welcoming people wherever they are on their journey of faith. Everything the church offers, from two Sunday services to its preschool, from its three choirs to its partnership with Mission: Haiti, flows from that purpose.
Worship on Sunday Morning: Two Identical Services with Holy Communion
Sunday is the heart of life at St. Paul. Worship with Holy Communion is held twice, at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Both services follow the same order of worship, so visitors can choose whichever time fits their schedule and find exactly the same service. Between them, a Bible Hour runs at 9:45 a.m. for children and youth, and an adult Bible class gathers at 10:00 a.m. in rooms 201/202, led by Pastor Scott Henze. A coffee-and-donuts fellowship time connects the two services, giving newcomers an easy way to meet people without feeling rushed.
The liturgical Lutheran tradition shapes the music and the prayers. The Adult Choir, the Bell Choir, and the Children’s Choir all contribute at various points in the year. Services are also livestreamed on YouTube, Facebook, and the St. Paul Weston smartphone app, and a complete archive of services is kept so that anyone, anywhere, can see what to expect when they visit. The two Sunday bulletins and a weekly devotional called Taking Faith Home are posted in PDF form so that members can follow along, prepare for the next week, or catch up if they were traveling.
The Foundation: Scripture, Grace, and Faith
St. Paul teaches the historic Lutheran faith. The name Lutheran comes from the sixteenth-century reformer Martin Luther, and the congregation’s understanding of Christianity is summed up in three words: Scripture, Grace, and Faith. The Bible is taught as the living Word of the living Lord, the guide and standard for faith and life, because it leads people to Jesus. Grace is the center of the message; it is God’s undeserved love, given fully and finally in the person of Christ, who on the cross became sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God. Faith is the gift through which that grace is received, since even the faith to believe comes from God. The Apostles’ Creed is the congregation’s regular confession, recited each Sunday, with Jesus named as God’s only Son, our Lord, conceived, crucified, risen, ascended, and coming again.
Becoming a member is open in several ways. People transferring from another Lutheran church can bring their membership directly. Those who once were confirmed Lutheran but are no longer on a congregation’s rolls may reaffirm their faith. Anyone from another background, or anyone wanting a deeper refresher, can attend a one-day class called Discovering Life with God, offered several times a year on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Campus on Indian Trace: Finding the Church
St. Paul Lutheran Church and Pre-School share a single campus at 580 Indian Trace, Weston, FL 33326, just south of I-75. From I-595 westbound, drivers follow signs to I-75 north and exit onto Indian Trace, turning left; the church is on the right after 1.9 miles. From I-75 northbound, the easier route is to exit at Royal Palm Boulevard, continue east for 1.4 miles, turn right on Town Center Boulevard for 0.6 miles, then turn left on Indian Trace; the church will appear on the left after a mile. The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; the summer schedule is 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., with Fridays closed. The phone, 954-384-9096, and the office email, office@stpaulweston.org, are answered during those hours.
Visitors are welcome to stop by, schedule a tour, or simply join a service. The doors, as the congregation likes to say, are always open.
Children: Sunday School, Kids Choir, and a Week of VBS
Children are at the heart of the parish. Sunday School meets during the school year at 9:45 a.m. for ages Pre-K through high school. Each week is built around one Bible story, designed to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a way children can carry home and talk about. There is no cost to participate, and a registration form on the site is the simple starting point.
Music begins early. The Kids Choir, led by Irene Villanueva, doubles as a drama team, and each December the children put on a Christmas musical. Rehearsals run on Sunday after the late service, with auditions for parts in October. Vacation Bible School, a single week each June, is one of the biggest annual events. The 2026 program, called Rainforest Falls, runs from June 8 through June 12, 9:00 a.m. to noon, and is capped at 300 participants. Registration for students going into 4-year-old PreK through 5th grade opens online each spring, and a separate youth and adult volunteer corps is recruited at the same time.
Youth Ministry: Middle School, High School, and a Year-Round Calendar
Jeremy Becker, the Director of Youth and Family Ministry (a DCE, or Director of Christian Education), oversees the youth program with the help of adult volunteers. The mission is to give young people a safe place to ask hard questions, learn to serve, and live out their faith in everyday life.
Middle school students, sixth through eighth grade, meet with Jeremy and high school leaders for Sunday School during the school year and gather for Teen Nights on the first Friday of each month. Service projects run throughout the year, and middle schoolers are part of the worship life of the church as crucifers, helping to carry the cross in procession at the 8:30 and 11:00 services. High school students come together on Wednesday evenings for Spirit Nights from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m., with additional fellowship events, service projects, and trips. Recent and planned highlights include an annual Spoke Folk bicycle mission tour, the Lake Yale Middle School Youth Gathering in the Florida-Georgia District, an Eighth Grade Confirmation Retreat, and Rock the Universe, a weekend of Christian concerts at Universal Studios in Orlando.
Parents stay in the loop through the REMIND app, where each grade has its own class code, and a youth medical and liability form kept online through the church’s Breeze database.
Adult Ministries: Sunday Classes, Men’s Studies, and a Senior Fellowship
Adult Sunday School convenes in rooms 201/202 each Sunday at 10:00 a.m. with Pastor Henze. A separate Wednesday Morning Bible Study gathers at 10:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary, led by Paul Viscovich. Men have two dedicated options: a Men’s Bible Study over coffee at Einstein Bagels in Weston on Wednesdays at 6:30 a.m., led by Vicar Tracy Bovee, and a Monday-night Men’s Study Group at the church at 7:30 p.m., with Don Henry and Gary Carraway as contacts. A Tuesday-morning Knit and Kneel Ministry, led by Marta Villacorta, knits prayer shawls and chemo hats in the Sanctuary from 9 a.m. to noon, combining craft, conversation, and prayer.
OWLS, which stands for Older Wiser Lutherans, is the senior fellowship of the church for members and friends 55 and older. They meet for a shared meal on the second Friday of each month; Claire Loftus coordinates. A small-group ministry offers roughly two dozen groups across the week, from a Spanish Bible Study on Tuesday evenings to a Care Ministry Group on Wednesday evenings to Gardening to Grow and Orchid Decorators on Saturday mornings. Several groups meet offsite and welcome newcomers.
Music Ministry: Three Choirs and a Bell Choir
Music is core to worship at St. Paul. The Adult Choir rehearses on Thursday nights at 7:30 p.m. under Brett Karlin and sings regularly in worship, with new singers always welcome. The Bell Choir, directed by Christine Viscovich, rehearses on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and adds another dimension to services throughout the year. The Children’s Choir, which doubles as a drama team, rehearses on Sundays after the late service and culminates in a Christmas musical each December. Music ministry is also a place where middle and high school students can lead by carrying music, singing, or ringing.
Care Ministry, Stephen Ministry, Prayer, and Grief
St. Paul’s Care Ministry coordinates the work of the pastors, lay ministers, Stephen Ministers, and ordinary members who care for one another. Anyone going through a difficult situation can request prayer, support, or a visit by reaching the church office or contacting Pastor Henze directly at pastorhenze@stpaulweston.org.
Stephen Ministry is the structured part of that care. Stephen Ministers are lay members of the congregation who are trained to provide confidential, Christ-centered, one-to-one care to people working through grief, divorce, job loss, chronic or terminal illness, or any major life crisis. A Stephen Minister typically meets one care receiver each week for about an hour. Men are paired with men and women with women.
A Prayer Ministry meets both in person and online on Wednesday mornings from 9:00 to 9:30 a.m. to pray for the people of the church and the needs brought forward. A digital Prayer Wall, accessible from the church’s site, lets members post requests that others can pray over. GriefShare, a national video-based grief recovery program, is offered as a small-group ministry for people who have lost a loved one.
St. Paul Child Enrichment Center: The Preschool on Campus
Sharing the campus is St. Paul Child Enrichment Center, the church’s preschool, which is itself a ministry of the parish. Classes serve children from 18 months through Pre-K-4, with a school day that runs from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and optional extended care until 2:00 p.m. The center follows the Creative Curriculum, a whole-child approach that builds cognitive, emotional, psychomotor, and language development through active exploration, music, art, drama, early math, science, and pre-reading skills. Each classroom is self-contained, age-appropriate, and staffed with a head teacher and one or two assistants.
Tuition is set as a yearly fee, divided into ten monthly payments beginning in August. For the 2026-2027 school year the center is introducing Before Care and a nap-time option, along with a new ProCare app for communication between parents and staff. The preschool admits students of any race, color, or national and ethnic origin, and its mission, in the words of the staff, is to help connect people to faith.
Serving Weston and Beyond: Local Outreach and Global Mission
The church gives a tithe of its offerings each year to mission and benevolence organizations, and members serve the community through regular hands-on projects. Youth groups assist LifeNet4Families in Broward County on Saturday mornings during the school year, helping the organization that supports people experiencing hunger, homelessness, and poverty. On the last Sunday of each month, oil, rice, beans, and other non-perishables are collected for a local Haitian congregation and other partners, and members periodically assemble flood buckets to help neighbors affected by hurricanes. The parish supports BOLD Justice, Broward Organized Leaders Doing Justice, as part of its social-justice work. At Christmas, members go caroling at the Nininger Veterans Nursing Home.
Beyond Broward, St. Paul sends mission teams to Haiti through Mission: Haiti, which is dedicated to glorifying God and transforming lives through service to the Haitian people. Members have traveled with Thrivent and Habitat for Humanity to help build homes in South and Central America. Youth participate in Spoke Folk, a bicycle mission tour that travels between churches to share the Gospel in towns along the way. The church also supports the work of Lutheran Hour Ministries, Concordia Publishing House, the Concordia University System, and Lutheran Church Extension Fund, all agencies of the LCMS, as well as Lutheran Life Online for news from across the Florida-Georgia District.
Special Events and Seasonal Traditions
A handful of events mark the rhythm of the year. On the Sunday before school starts in August, students bring their backpacks forward for a Blessing of the Backpacks. In early fall the parking lot becomes the site of a Trunk or Treat, with decorated cars, treats, and a safe alternative to traditional trick-or-treating. Each year, near the Feast of St. Francis, the front lawn hosts a Blessing of the Animals, with a pet parade, music, and raffles. The Saturday before Palm Sunday brings an Easter Egg Hunt. Good Friday is observed with a Stations of the Cross at Peace Mound Park at noon, and the choir and worship team lead a Quiet Christmas on a December Sunday evening, with music and readings followed by a light reception. The congregation also joins the city of Weston for the Fourth of July parade, and periodic Church Work Days give families and teens a chance to serve together on campus.
Getting Connected
Several easy on-ramps exist for newcomers. A worship visit on Sunday morning is the most natural place to start. An online Connect Card on the site routes questions to the staff. Anyone who wants to roll up their sleeves can join one of the small groups that meet throughout the week, or volunteer in roles such as usher, greeter, altar guild, communion assistant, audio-visual assistant, lay reader, choir member, or children’s ministry assistant. The church’s app, available for iOS and Android through Subsplash, carries the bulletin, sermon archive, announcements, and a giving option for those who want to support the ministries of the parish.