Welcome to the Rock

The Home Front is an ongoing series where we highlight the mission and ministry taking place around our territory. We will visit each Canadian province and territory, as well as Bermuda, and celebrate the innovation and impact the Army is having in corps, social services and youth ministry.

CAFÉ CONNECT IN ST. JOHN’S

With connection at the forefront of their ministry focus, and with the support of the mission board, Majors Bradley and Jennifer Reid, corps officers at St. John’s Temple, N.L., wanted to create a space within the church that would foster a sense of community. This idea inspired Café Connect, a multi-purpose space for corps and community members to gather throughout the week.

According to Major Jennifer, the space was already there, fit with a kitchenette and kids’ area, but needed a refresh. “God has placed on our hearts this focus on connection, and so we wanted to build on the connections that already exist here,” says Major Jennifer.

The corps applied for home missions funding to refresh the space with new couches, café-style tables and chairs, new toy bins for the kids’ play area, and a kitchen and coffee station filled with a variety of coffee pods, creamers and syrups.

On Wednesdays, Café Connect is used for the Grow With Me program for babies, toddlers, parents, grandparents and caregivers. Later in the week, the Craft and Chat group gathers to make prayer shawls and other crafts. On Sunday mornings, the space invites congregants to share in coffee, snacks and fellowship together. It’s also used by the youth group and for leadership board meetings.

In the fall, St. John’s Temple launched its Alpha program, which also runs in the café, as well as Tuesday morning Connect4Prayer meetings.

“The people at our corps have really taken ownership of this café,” explains Major Jennifer. “Someone took care of the decor, another person was in charge of creating the kids’ corner. We even had a poll where people voted on the paint colour for the walls. We really wanted the church to continue to love the space.”

One corps member designed a new Café Connect logo, featured on custom coffee mugs, and another made unique custom paintings for the walls that tell her own story of belonging.

“We’ve welcomed a lot of newcomers from Ukraine and other countries in the last couple of years. One of them is a Ukrainian artist, and she started painting using coffee, and donated two of her paintings. The story behind them is beautiful,” says Major Jennifer.

When Tim Hortons runs their smile cookie campaign, Majors Reid invite people to stay after church for a smile—a cookie— and that’s one of the ways the artist and her husband first found connection within the church family. So, one of the paintings is a smile cookie. The other painting is a Red Shield chocolate, which was handed out during a volunteer appreciation day.

“Sometimes you don’t realize the little things that speak to someone else and make them feel welcomed,” says Major Jennifer. “These paintings have become conversation pieces for people.”

After an official grand opening in September, Café Connect welcomes people for weekly programming, continuing to be the most used—and loved—space in the church. “We see Café Connect as a way to build the connections that are already taking root in our corps, but we are keeping our eyes and ears to God for new opportunities to invite more people in.”

—by Abbigail Oliver

FRESH PROGRAM FOR MOMS IN CORNER BROOK

Group photo of moms with their art work — FRESH is a place for moms to have fun, learn new skills and build relationships
(Photos: Major Valerie Wheeler)

Every Wednesday morning, the aroma of coffee and baked goods fills the air at Corner Brook Community Church, N.L., greeting participants of the FRESH— focused, relevant, empowering, supportive and hopeful—program for moms.

“I bake something every week so that when they come in, there’s always something fresh,” says Jane Ash, community and family services worker. “We’re a listening ear and a cup of coffee or tea— and a place to learn new skills.”

Ash started FRESH in 2015, after hearing from women through her role in community ministries. Many felt isolated and alone.

“I found a lot of the moms saying, ‘I spend all of my time parenting my children. I do nothing for me,’ ” she says. “They also said, ‘I don’t really know how to cook or bake’—but they often got flour and yeast at the food bank. So, I thought, let’s teach them how to make homemade bread.”

Photo of pumpkins and fall leaves

Since then, FRESH has grown into an eight-week program, two to three times a year, for eight moms at a time. Each week begins with a devotional and then moves into an activity, such as a fun craft or cooking a meal to take home. Ash also brings in guest speakers to present on topics suggested by the women, including anxiety and depression, mindfulness and how to keep children safe online.

In the last session, three of the moms were widowed, and so Ash invited a social worker to share resources on grief, as well as how to help children navigate loss. For one of these moms, the group’s weekly practice of journaling became a helpful way to express and process her feelings.

“I say to them at the beginning, ‘I’m not a counsellor, but I can listen,’ ” says Ash. “The friendship piece means a lot to them—the fact that they have a place to go, where they can contribute and receive something. Emotionally, it’s very important for moms to have that.”

Where she can, Ash connects the women to other resources at the corps or in the community. The corps has also become a place of friendship and support for some of the kids of the FRESH moms—two girls go to the youth group, and one boy has joined the junior band.

“We want to empower these moms to be who they are and encourage them,” says Ash. “Not everyone has the same supports in place. It’s about saying, ‘You’re doing a good job. You’re a great mom.’ ”

“LET’S DO THIS THING” IN BISHOP’S FALLS

Youth attend a workshop on fly tying (Photo: Corinna Burton)

In Bishop’s Falls, N.L., where a river runs through the town, salmon fishing is popular—so a workshop on fly tying was a fun way for the Salvation Army corps to reach out to youth in the community. After trying their hands at some basic flies, they went outside to practise casting in the parking lot. The fly-tying workshops were part of a series of events, supported by a territorial innovation grant, called “Let’s Do This Thing.”

"Our goal was to develop meaningful relationships with youth and young adults,” says Major Judy Goudie, corps officer at Bishop’s Falls Citadel. “We wanted them to acquire life skills that will help them along the way.”

They promoted the initiative with fliers around town, and about 40 young people in total have attended the events, which are held every three or four months. The first, in January 2024, was a painting night. They have also offered baking lessons, a St. John’s Ambulance first-aid class and a babysitting preparedness course. Still on the agenda are sewing, cooking a simple meal and minor car maintenance and repairs.

The young people have been grateful for the opportunities and Major Goudie is hopeful it will lead to spiritual conversations.

“Everything we do, whether it’s just in the way we act toward them, represents Jesus and promotes Jesus-centred living,” says Major Goudie. “One day, they may start asking questions. That’s our goal as a church—to make a difference in somebody’s life and to win people for the Lord.”