About
At Northlake Lutheran, we believe we are called into a life of love—loving God with our whole hearts, minds, and strength, and extending that same love outward to our neighbors, our community, and the world around us. This calling is not rooted in obligation, but in the abundance of God’s love that first meets us.
We trust that all people, though we may miss the mark, are held fully in God’s grace. This grace is not something we earn or achieve—it is a gift, freely given and endlessly offered. There is nothing you need to prove to receive it, and nothing that can separate you from it.
In Jesus, God chose to draw near to humanity—to share in our lives, our struggles, and our suffering.
Through his life, death, and resurrection, we see the depth of God’s love made visible: a love that meets us where we are and holds us with compassion, dignity, and care.
We receive this grace through faith, trusting in a love that continues to shape us. Even as we navigate the tension of being human and sometimes missing the mark, we believe the Spirit is at work within us—guiding, restoring, and renewing. Rooted in this grace, we are freed to live with gratitude, to act with love, and to participate in the healing of the world.
If you’d like to learn more about the teachings of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, we invite you to explore further.
Meet Our Staff
Meet the people who help bring Northlake Lutheran to life each day—leaders, listeners, and community-builders rooted in grace and committed to care. Each member of our staff plays a unique role in creating a space where all are welcomed, known, and invited into belonging.
Pastor
Jill Nichols-Hicks
Pastor Jill serves as pastor at Northlake Lutheran Church, a role she holds with deep gratitude and a strong sense of calling—one that first took root in her childhood in Walla Walla, Washington. She studied Speech Communications at Western Washington University, where she met her husband, and later continued her formation at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary after years of leadership, ministry work, and founding a women’s organization. Following an internship in Massachusetts, she was called to serve the Northlake community.
Pastor Jill and her husband enjoy traveling, exploring the outdoors, and spending meaningful time with family and friends. She is also a proud parent of a transgender child, a part of her life that continues to shape her commitment to creating spaces of belonging, dignity, and love for all people. At the heart of her ministry is a deep passion for building authentic community and sharing God’s abundant love as people walk together in faith.
Director of Worship & Community Engagement
Tom Frodsham
Tom was born in Seattle and raised in the Lutheran church, where he began leading worship from a young age. With a background in music, theater, and audio-visual production, he has spent his life blending creativity, faith, and community-building. After years of volunteering, he followed a call into ministry, serving churches across the country in a variety of contexts. Most recently, he led Luther’s Table in Renton, helping cultivate an inclusive, arts-centered space where all people were welcomed and valued. Tom is passionate about building a “Beloved Community” at Northlake—one where everyone is embraced, heard, and loved for who they are.
Organist & Pianist
Wendy DeLong
Wendy helps select music and beautifully plays the organ or piano during our worship services.
Church Council President
Judy Elbert
Judy grew up as an "Army brat," moving every year and a half, or so, until her family settled in the Pacific Northwest, choosing Northlake Lutheran as a place to raise their children in the faith. Judy was confirmed and married to Brian at Northlake and four of her children were baptized here. During her adult life she has also learned and worshipped at Roman Catholic and Baptist churches and in Bible Study Fellowship. She loves the mutual encouragement, wisdom and challenge that is shared in a community of faith.
Dubbed by her son, Paul, as “Mother of Many” she enjoys working with kids. She treasures her time working in camping ministry and currently volunteers with Larchaven. She loves the arts and volunteers with The Arts of Kenmore, which started at Northlake Lutheran.
She loves to canoe, swim and bicycle. Judy wants to hear about your favorite things.
As she plays enthusiastically and works hard she aims to bear Christ’s light wherever we go, however we get there, with the gifts he has given us.
Office Administrator
Jen Cumbo
Fueled almost entirely by coffee, as the mom of two teenagers, Jen's life is full, fast, and meaningful. She enjoys staying active, getting lost in a good book, and exploring new places that spark curiosity and connection. She values simple moments, new experiences, and the adventure of growing alongside her family.
Job Opening: Organist/Pianist
The Organist provides musical leadership and accompaniment for
worship services at Northlake Lutheran Church, helping create a
meaningful and welcoming worship experience through music. Working
in collaboration with the Pastor, Director of Worship, choir, musicians,
and other worship leaders, the Organist supports the congregation’s
liturgy and enhances worship through skillful and thoughtful music.
The ideal candidate has strong organ and piano skills, an appreciation
for Lutheran worship and hymnody, along with other styles and the
ability to work collaboratively with clergy, staff, musicians, and
volunteers. A spirit of flexibility, creativity, and enthusiasm for
supporting the musical life of the congregation is highly valued.
TO APPLY - please tell us about yourself and all applicable experience in
a letter of introduction, accompanied by a current resume
to buildingcommunity@northlakelutheran.org. This position remains
open until filled.
Whoever arrives at Northlake Lutheran should know one thing right away: this is a place to be welcomed, not measured. A place where every story matters, where grace leads, and where community is built through care, honesty, and hope.
Our Mission
We are created, called, and challenged to be in relationship with God, each other, the community, and all of creation.
Our Free Little Pantry ministry, located on NE 185th Street, is made possible by the generosity of our neighbors—helping keep it stocked so we can continue caring for those in our community who are in need.
Our Ministry
Our ministry comes to life through hands-on service, shared leadership, and care for our neighbors. From tending the Community Garden and our Imagine Arts Community to supporting Compass Housing Alliance with local partners, we are committed to showing up where it matters most. We also support food access through our Little Free Pantry, support to Hopelink and partner with Cedar Park Food Bank. Alongside these efforts, we offer ongoing opportunities for learning, outreach, and meaningful worship together.
Reconciling in Christ
We believe that all are one in Christ. We welcome the believer, the doubter, the seeker. While we are aware that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons are excluded by some congregations, we welcome, support, and celebrate people of all genders, gender expressions, and sexual orientations, as well as black, indigenous, all people of color, and all who suffer discrimination in any form.
We are honored to host LGBTQIA+ weddings and blessings, and happy to share in celebrations of love of fellow human beings.
As followers of Christ, who calls us to reconciliation, we pledge to strive to live as a reconciling people in our life together and our outreach to the world. We welcome all to Northlake Lutheran Church.
Social Justice
Grounded in the life and example of Jesus, who consistently moved toward those pushed to the margins, this congregation is committed to noticing and interrupting those patterns in our own world. Social justice here is not abstract—it is the daily work of honoring dignity, expanding belonging, and refusing to let anyone be cast aside. From a place of faith and abundance, Northlake seeks to be a community that restores rather than excludes, that listens rather than labels, and that actively participates in building a more just and compassionate world.
Solidarity Statement for Peace and Justice in Israel/Palestine
We at Northlake Lutheran Church stand with those who wrote this statement:Washington Solidarity Statement - Home (google.com)
Our
Story
Founded in the 1960s, Northlake has long been part of the life of Kenmore, growing through seasons of change while remaining grounded in worship, service, and care for the community.
Today, Northlake is a church with a strong sense of identity and a growing vision for what comes next. As a Reconciling in Christ congregation, Northlake affirms LGBTQIA+ people and works toward a more just, compassionate, and inclusive world. Worship is grounded in liturgy and tradition, while the life of the congregation reflects openness, authenticity, and a deep desire to walk alongside others with humility and hope.
This is a church where no one is expected to have everything figured out. It is a place for faith, questions, healing, belonging, and action. From worship and ministries to arts programming and community partnerships, Northlake seeks to be a light in Kenmore and beyond.