FERGUSON—Music, hot dogs and face paint played an important role in bringing a neighborhood together. Passage Community Church, a plant church in St. Louis, sponsored the block party in the Ferguson area recovering from the 2011 Good Friday tornado.
“Our ministry goal for the night is to provide a night of happiness and fun for the neighborhood,” Joe Costephens, pastor of Passage, said. “We are not here to add members to the rolls, but to lift the spirits of the people after being hit by the tornado last year and to help the Sewards get acquainted with their neighbors for ongoing ministry.”
Stephen and Julie Seward, members of Passage, hosted two other “grill outs” for the community during the tornado cleanup, but this block party June 5, with the help of the visiting mission team from Dutch Fork Baptist Church in South Carolina consisting of 19 youth and seven adults, provided much more for the children.
“Having the mission team is a big help,” Julie Seward said. “With the team doing so much of the work, we’re able to mingle with our guests. I’m recording information in my phone to help me keep track of everyone.”
The Seward block party had 135 people registered with many more attending. According to Leon Boss, music and worship leader of Dutch Fork, the mission team handed out more than 1,800 fliers to area homes about the two block parties scheduled in north St. Louis County. “We want to show the community that we care and have an interest in them,” Boss said.
“We began planning games and music several months ago.”
The Seward home is a regular magnet for the neighborhood children. “I’ve been encouraging them to come and bring others,” Julie said. “I have a network of kids based on my relationship with them.”
Justin Lucas, 11th grade member of the Dutch Fork youth team, wants to build on that relationship and enlarge it. “I love helping people,” he said, “and working with kids makes this mission trip special.”
Freshman Cassidy Mattingly, another member of the youth team, agreed that helping people is a wonderful experience. “I love this ministry opportunity,” Mattingly said. “I love the hands-on painting and cleaning that we do in the community during the day and then, with the block parties in the evening, we bring people together.”
The giving spirit of these students is an encouragement to Jared Kyzer, youth minister at Dutch Fork. “I want these students to develop a heart for missions,” he said, “and to learn to help people from different backgrounds.”
Boss gave the students some advice before they left South Carolina for St. Louis. “I told them that we would be singing, but our lifestyle of worship is the most important. We would love people and show them authentic worship by showing what God has done for us.”