Erica with her son Mustafa and daughter Elizabeth at Siloah Lutheran.

It took some time and convincing, but in February, checking service manager Erica Johnson was finally recognized as a trailblazer.

“I’d turned it down several times,” she says of the annual Trailblazer Award, which Siloah Lutheran Church’s gospel choir gives to members of the congregation for their ongoing service. She prefers to let others shine. “But they kind of twisted my arm.”

It was certainly time. Erica has been a member of the Milwaukee church since 1991, and her service comes in many different forms. She and her late husband, Fred, operated Sunshine Catering until his death in 2005 and routinely prepared the food for large church events.

“I still cook for the church from time to time, but it’s on a lower scale,” she says — a few dozen people, rather than hundreds. She adds that she and her family received the Trailblazer Award at the 33rd annual Black History Sunday celebration and fundraiser dinner for the choir on February 24, but that she got to relax a little that night. “They sent me out of the kitchen!”

The award.

As the choir’s treasurer, she did, however, have to order the plaque and flowers for her own award, she notes with a chuckle.

“Because of my financial background, I usually serve as treasurer of the church organizations I’m part of. They feel confident having me handle the money,” she says. Indeed, Pastor Brady Coleman calls her “a key component of Siloah’s Finance Committee.”

“She distinguishes herself from many others with her jovial personality and humble spirit,” Pastor Coleman said. “I’ve personally experienced the kindness, warmth, and generosity that Erica exhibits, and am grateful to be able to call her a friend.”

“Different people serve different ways. It’s just like at a job — you need everybody for different parts and positions,” says Erica, who is also a reporter for the Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society. “Whatever somebody’s talents are, they’re recognized for providing them to the church.”

A tenor, she joined Siloah Lutheran largely so she could be part of the choir. “I came to visit all the time to hear the choir sing,” she says. Her daughter Elizabeth also sings in the approximately 15-person choir, and her son Mustafa used to. Both children also serve the church in other ways, as well.

Erica estimates she devotes at least 20 hours a month to Siloah, and quite a bit more at the start of the year, when planning the Black History Sunday dinner, comparing it to a wedding. “That’s the only other place you’ll find me, besides the bank. Next year will be a little easier, because I won’t have to worry about how I look,” she jokes. This year, she was glad to invite Jude Lengell, VP, customer support, and Lyneen Fischer, VP and security/payments manager, to see her receive the award. “They got to see I’m not playing when I say I have to get out of here at the end of the day!”

“It was an honor to see Erica and her family receive this great recognition for all they do to share their talents and serve others,” Jude says. “We are equally appreciative for the great service and support she has provided over the last 30-plus years and continues to provide in her role here at North Shore Bank.”