TAVERNIER &mdash; As the sound of carillon bells echoed out onto the Old Highway on a peaceful Sunday morning, a procession of ministers and church council members walked solemnly down the aisle of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Tavernier on their way to installing Rev. Donald Stier as the church’s pastor.</p><p>“We are very excited,” church council member and lifelong parishioner Debbie Williams said. “We have not had a pastor in three years, and he has the means of getting new people into our church”.</p><p>Stier is a former farmer from Illinois. During his youth, he and his family were snowbirds, living part of the year in Illinois and part in Marathon, so he is familiar with the Florida Keys way of life. </p><p>Stier said he found faith after he married his wife of 39 years, Elaine. She was involved in the Lutheran Church, and, said Stier, that got him involved. He found he loved talking to people about faith, and so he spent 22 years working as a pastor, winding up in Minneapolis.</p><p>Stier retired from the ministry in December 2008. That lasted exactly one month until he got the call from a small church in Tavernier that was looking for a part-time pastor. The church members invited him to come to the Keys for two weeks, all expenses paid, for an interview. It was February, and he quickly agreed to come.</p><p><b>God’s plan</b></p><p>“God planned this,” Stier said. “I had always wanted to retire to Florida,” and as a part-time minister, “the pressure is off.” </p><p>Full-time pastors spend a lot of time in their offices tending to paperwork and counseling, Stier said. This assignment will give him the time to do the outreach work he loves.</p><p>“Here in Florida, I want to do what I became a minister to do. I want to go out and greet people, knock on doors, and invite people to share my faith.”</p><p>During Stier’s installation ceremony, his 9-month old grandson, Ryan Cameron, seemed to be doing just that. The toddler tried to engage everyone who walked by him with his bright smile and joyful noises. He waved a photo of his grandfather, which was on the cover of the installation ceremony program. </p><p>Rev. Doug Kallesen, executive director of outreach for the Florida and Georgia district of the Lutheran Church, officiated at the oath ceremony. He was joined by several other local pastors. All of the members of the church council sat up in the sanctuary to share in the ceremony, and formally accept Rev. Stier as their new pastor. </p><p>Ann Stewart played the pipe organ and accompanied the assembled as they sang hymns. The Susan Bazin singers heralded the congregation with a few numbers. After the ceremony, the entire congregation joined their new pastor in a luncheon prepared by church volunteers.</p><p>The search for a new pastor took quite some time. </p><p>“We had interim pastors, but realized that if we wanted a regular pastor, we would need a place for him to live,” Williams said. That pushed the church members to start a fund drive and build a new parsonage. The concrete modular home was assembled on church property just this month. The church is waiting for county approval on the finishing touches.</p><p>“I hope to see this church grow. I became a preacher to help the church grow and to help people grow in their faith,” Stier said. He added that he was particularly excited to take this assignment because “at the end of my career, I get to do what I started out to do.” </p><p>Steir said he will be “attitudinally evangelistic” and he hopes the concept, and his phrase, will catch on.</p><p>“I intend to enjoy life down here, especially the water,” he said.