What is the Faithful Next Step?

One trend we’ve noticed about the student ministry attendance numbers over the years is the peak and subsequent drop-off. The current space is not as hospitable as we’d like to support the number of students that seem interested in being part of this thriving community. 

One of the main things holding us back is the layout of the large meeting space. Every week the student ministry team sets up nearly 100-140 chairs shoulder to shoulder. Seats line the small stage in the corner and push back in a narrow and diagonal space toward the kitchen bar with a small center aisle. The remaining two thirds of the large meeting room fills quickly with crowds of students and leaders playing games, hanging out, greeting visitors, and having intentional conversations in the time before formal programming begins. After large-group time, one of the Life Groups meets in this meeting space while other students flood the current classrooms.

The proposed design will solve this in three main ways. First, a ground-level expansion to the current student ministry building will be able to seat 200 people in lecture-style seating. Students will gather here for large group teaching and it will be able to accommodate other large gatherings and trainings throughout the week.

Second, the current large space will be remodeled to create a coffee shop environment. This will be a hospitable space for students to gather before formal programming, for large and small adult groups to gather and break out during the second service on Sunday mornings, and for staff and groups to utilize for small meetings during the week.

Third, in addition to adding more versatility to the current space, the end product will produce twelve classroom spaces, doubling the current amount of classrooms the student ministry has. The majority of this will be accomplished by adding a sub-level space to the new student large meeting area. 

If you’ve made your way through the lobby into or out of the Great Room, this project should be no shock to you. And while we do not have building designs or drawings completed yet, we’ll flesh out our main goals.

First, the lobby is not conducive to the flow of traffic we see each Sunday morning. Our hope is to open up this area to alleviate congestion, allow greetings and conversations among members, and create a more hospitable first impression for visitors.

Second, the kitchen, serving area, and coffee bar do not fit the needs of our current church body. When the kitchen was built, we cooked meals for the entire church body weekly. Now, we need some space for basic preparation, and ample space for serving. We hope to design a new layout that creates a natural flow of traffic any day or night of the week.

Third, we want the Prime Timers Life Group to be able to meet together in the same building as the main worship service. Currently they are outgrowing a classroom on the second floor of the Grade School Building. We want to combine some of the offices currently lining the lobby hallway to be their designated space on Sunday mornings.

In this process, we will address the Family Room that is available for mothers of nursing babies or fidgety children to find reprieve from the Great Room in a calm environment with the service live-streamed. 

We will also allocate some sort of space for ushers to count and safely keep offerings, as well as sufficient storage space.