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Church mission: Free clothes for the needy
Pastoral Pondering:
Are you well watered in this time of drought?
Religion Briefs
Church
flows into
new quarters |
By Christie Scotty, Newberg Graphic
Reporter
Email Christie at cscotty@eaglenewspapers.com
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Wedged into an industrial office park area on North Elliott Road, one could
almost drive past the boxy, grayish new home of Living Waters Christian Fellowship.
But a rocking chair is visible through one of the large windows out front,
one hint this place isn’t an all-business commercial or industrial site. And on
Sunday mornings for the past month, those driving past might have noticed an entire
congregation meeting in the parking lot for worship.
The building has been gutted in anticipation of the church’s moving into
the first floor, which it now leases.
“The first time I walked in, I shook my head and said this is not
going to work,” said Pastor Tom Fuller. “I checked it off the list.”
After sitting vacant for several years, getting the building into shape
wasn’t just a matter of redecorating. Walls needed to come down, it needed to be
brought up to city code. Fuller came back with others, and they brought crowbars and
hammers. Slowly but surely, those changes are being made.
Plumbing, ventilation, carpeting — it’s all being done by
volunteers, after work or in their spare time. “It made the difference between being
able to do it and not being able to do it,” Fuller said of the help.
A church elder is doing the ventilation. A local plumber is donating his
time. Much of the labor comes from a construction ministry at the Salem Calvary Chapel
(Living Waters is an outreach of Calvary Chapel). The work includes everything from
electricians installing wiring in conduit, to a man who owns a remodeling business
installing at no cost the discount-cost carpet.
Even some of the furniture has been donated. Fuller was at a country garage
sale looking at an antique chest when he began talking to the seller about his plans.
“Pretty soon, he’s loading it up,” he said.
Now the church has a country antique theme despite its location in a modern
building.
The main room is expected to seat about 200. The total of 1,600 square feet
the church is leasing is about double the size of Living Waters’ former home on
Hancock Street. The parking lot boasts 63 spaces, compared to what Fuller called the old
building’s “parking lot-ette,” with a half-dozen spots.
Eventually, the church hopes to grow large enough to also lease the top
floor, and use part of the ground floor as a bookstore and coffee shop. The renovation is
expected to conclude later this month. |
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From Aug. 2,
2003, Newberg Graphic
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