Covenant News

"Hip Club" Helps Minnesota Church Reach Youth

BROOKLYN PARK, MN (July 9, 2003) - Nearly three years ago Redeemer Covenant Church youth leaders were meeting kids from the neighborhood but couldn't plug them into their regular ministries.

Thanks to Hip Club, that's no longer a problem. Under Mark Ellingson and Tim Nelson, Hip (Holy Individual People) Club has provided the predominantly-white Redeemer Covenant Church with a unique way to get to know their African-American neighbors.

Nelson says that the grassroots ministry attracts about 150 middle-school kids – many unchurched - for events that are usually held on the last Friday of every month. Parents of children from the church and college student volunteers assist Ellingson and Nelson with the program. The church also has regular church youth programming that attracts about 80 junior and senior highers.

Hip Club started when youth leaders became acquainted with some junior highers hanging around church one summer, said Nelson. Since then, the Friday group has enlisted the help of Randy Washington, a worker from a local parachurch ministry, as a primary speaker. The program's goal is to connect area kids to the church's Sunday programming and it seems to be working, as a handful of children have attended church from the neighborhood and some families have begun attending church recently.

"Some of these kids are from some pretty hard families," Nelson said of the Hip Club group. "Some live with their grandparents, some live with others. But God loves kids of every color. And the church is very positive (about Hip Club), they back it a lot."

Nelson said that the some of the students from the Redeemer youth group have become involved in Hip Club, and that students from a weekly Awana club have expressed interest in joining in as well.

To find out more about Hip Club or other youth ministry activities at Redeemer Covenant, call Nelson at 763-561-8769.

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