Reaching out in dynamic new ways doesn't always require leaving the church building. Unique ministry can happen where you worship — you just have to figure out how to use what you've already got.
Getting rid of what you have to make way for something new is a twist on this idea, and it's working for a congregation near Chatham, Ont. Blenheim Church had a healthy store of money, but few people filling the pews. After considerable soul searching, the congregation sold the building and put the profit to better use.
The money is now funding a youth ministry. Rev. Tom Godfrey helped develop KRAM — the Kent Regional Alternate Ministry. It was born out of the need to give youth in the area more attention. "We worked hard, but we couldn't get enough people to carry on," said Peggy Roger, a member at Blenheim for nearly 18 years. "The young people are really enjoying it. It's a wonderful ministry."
KRAM was launched at its new home, Duart Church in Muirkirk, Ont., at the church's 134th anniversary service on Nov. 7. Thanks to Godfrey's musical talent, praise and worship are a large part of the program.
The 14 to 16 people who had been attending Blenheim have dispersed to other churches in surrounding areas — some Presbyterian, some not. The church was sold to the Royal Canadian Legion, who turned it into the Blenheim Freedom Library and Museum. "We're pleased about that," said Roger. "We couldn't very well go on with a dwindling congregation and not enough helpers. People have said to me, 'you must be sad.' I say, 'Not really. It's being used for a good purpose, it's honoured as a church building, and the money is used for furthering the church in the community and among youth.'"
It was an interest in youth that led Parkwood Church in Ottawa to a new ministry with the multicultural community. Parkwood hosts an after-school tutorial program for children from the area. Run by a community member, the program and the church originally had little to do with each other. Family members used to wait quietly in the narthex, keeping to themselves until their children's class was done. Sensing the opportunity, Rev. James Hurd decided to extend some hospitality.
Jan Sheridan, an elder, heeded the call, and now the church is bustling with noise and fellowship on the nights of the tutorial. She learned the children's names, offered juice to those waiting, and led the kids in crafts which are donated to charitable causes. Doctors Without Borders has benefited from teddy bears made by the children. Some of the kids' mothers have even shown up to Sunday service.
"It certainly has continued to build upon a sense of openness. It conveys to the community that this is a place where people can find help and a warm welcome. It's helped some people in the congregation realize that reaching out to a changing neighbourhood isn't that difficult," said Hurd. "We want to share the gospel, but we have to build bridges with people first."
St. Andrew's, Saskatoon, is busy building bridges with the elderly. Like many Presbyterian churches, St. Andrew's has many members unable to come to Sunday service. Sensing that visits to the congregation's shut-ins weren't enough, the church decided to bring these elderly members to the church, instead of the other way around.
Originally just for shut-ins, the guest list has grown to include other old timers. Thanks to this amendment, St. Andrew's welcomes about 40 people to the special service each year. Guests are picked up and dropped off by church volunteers.
"Just seeing the look on people's faces who haven't been out for a long time is enough for me," said Rev. Annabelle Wallace, co-minister, along with Rev. Amanda Currie. "I can think of two men who came for their first time, and they were just beaming! They were so glad to be back in a church building."
Using the church to minister with music and meals has spawned the creation of the Bistro Boys. In southern Alberta at St. Andrew's, Lethbridge, the Boys are exercising their vocal chords and culinary skills. A group of 20 men, ages 12 to 85, have been wowing crowds with their amusing songs and succulent meals. Created to help ease the burden of food production on the congregation's women, what started out as a small group has grown into a popular male fellowship that hosts six or seven functions each year. "If there's a new family in the church, I approach the husband and I'm not often turned down. It's a great entry into the church as it's non-threatening," said Terry Basaraba, the main organizer. "You don't even have to know how to cook. The young guys in the congregation just love it!"
Pinpointing a need in the congregation and the community is essential for making a new ministry highly effective. The physical health of its members was overwhelming the congregation at Knox, Stratford. They knew national statistics were staggering: one in three Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer. The rates in Stratford, Ont., alone were extremely high. Lois Tutt, clerk of session of Knox's health committee, lost her father to cancer and then her best friend was diagnosed. "I had known so many people affected by this," she said. "You get a sense of overwhelming frustration and helplessness because there isn't anything you can do."
But session decided something could be done and wanted to get involved. It mapped a strategic plan and the health committee started asking some important questions. "Do people in Stratford receive enough support for cancer care? What can we do as a church to help fill some of that gap? Should this be solely for Knox or seen as community outreach, striving to fulfill needs that the community has, and that existing health care is unable to provide?" The decision was easy — in a cozy city of 30,000, community is paramount.
The team met with local cancer support groups and the head of the newly opened chemotherapy unit at the Stratford hospital. Everyone told them the same thing: we need free wigs. In the past, most patients have had to travel 60 km to London or 155 km to Toronto for chemotherapy. Usually, while there, they visit wig rooms for advice and free hairpieces or hats. Wigs are expensive, especially for real and styled hair. People from a small town, explained Tutt, travelling to a larger centre, paying for gas, accommodations and meals, can't afford to pay for what is ultimately seen by many as vanity. "You don't think about what losing their hair does," she says. "It affects people's self esteem and their dignity." In Nov. 2004, Knox debuted a wiggery for people battling cancer.
Within the first month, half a dozen people called on the service. "Everything we've tried to do around the wig room has been so easy and people have been so generous. It just speaks to me that God has had His hands around this," said Tutt, who added that not only have the wigs, hats and scarves all been donated, but so have the services of local hairdressers. "People are just coming out of the woodwork and saying, 'How can I help?'"
The work of such Presbyterian ministries is dependent upon dedicated parishioners, like those at Duart, the small country church chosen to host KRAM. "They're dedicated to the church and they're dedicated to God," said Peggy Roger.
