'Walk and Pray' Leads Group to Gang-Controlled Park

LITTLETON, CO (April 26, 2004) - When you decide to walk through your neighborhood, pausing to pray and asking God to tell you where to begin ministering to people, don't be shocked to learn it is a run-down park in the heart of a changing multiethnic area controlled by gangs.

That's exactly what happened to several members of Centennial Covenant Church in Littleton when they encouraged their congregation to reach even further outside of its four walls and find additional ways to touch the lives of people living in the surrounding neighborhoods.

"We asked one question," says Jim Reiner in recalling the birth of a program that now ministers to some 25 mostly Hispanic children in a park not more than 10 minutes from the church. "If this church disappeared, would they miss us?"

Reiner (accompanying photo), director of a nonprofit agency and a member who is fairly new to the church, teamed up with Katie Brooks, a suburban teacher who joined a Bible class Reiner was leading. Both shared a passion for urban ministry, as did others in the small study group. When the study ended, the participants decided to form Metro Active – a small task force focused on urban ministry.

"We spent three months praying and considering a strategy to reach our neighbors," Reiner said, noting that the general area surrounding the church has changed significantly in recent years, partially due to gentrification of neighborhoods. "We decided we could do urban ministry right in our own back yard," Reiner said.

The group began visiting neighborhoods where they walked and prayed, asking God to direct them to an area where they could effectively reach people. "We felt unsafe and tired at times," Brooks noted, "but we showed up and God did this incredible stuff."

It was on one of the group's walks that they encountered a policeman who wanted to know what they were doing in the neighborhood. After explaining their intent, the officer directed them to a specific block that suffered from one of the highest crime rates in Littleton – it also is the fastest-growing Hispanic neighborhood. "We felt drawn to that area," Brooks said after the group had spent time there in prayer. As it turned out, a Centennial member rented an apartment not far from a park in that area – she gladly made it available for the group to use in pursuit of after-school activities for children in the area of the park. (The lower group photo shows some of the adult volunteers, including – from left - Thomas Anderson, Katie Brooks, Martha Jackson and Teresa Anderson.)

There was no formal program launch. "One day we just showed up," Brooks recalled, "and gave out free ice cream cones, carrying a sign that read 'From Your Friends at Centennial Church.' " Around Halloween, the group drove a number of cars to the park where they lined them up end-to-end, opening trunks and handing out goodies to the children who quickly appeared, going from car to car.

A week later, the group was back at the park and some 16 to 20 kids appeared – and what is now known as the Kids Club was born. Many of the children were no strangers to Brooks, who substitute teaches at a school the children attend. Word of the new kids program spread quickly in the school.

Word also spread among members of a gang that sees the park as its turf. An unwritten rule says that no one who is not Mexican is to be in the park. That message didn't stop Brooks, who said at one point she engaged some members of the gang during one of the Kids Club activity times, asking them if they knew of other children who would enjoy participating in the activities. Gang members initially may not have welcomed Brooks and the others with open arms, but they seemed to warm up after a time.

What at first seemed like a disappointing upset – the loss of the apartment when the member/renter moved – eventually turned into an opportunity when a small neighborhood church and its pastor learned of the kids ministry and the need for new space. The church opened its doors and has begun partnering with the task force in reaching the neighborhood.

Others have become inspired, too, including one individual who donated $1,000 to be used in some kind of children's ministry. "The tables in the park are in poor shape – some are burned," Brooks noted. So, the group is going to buy a new portable table that can be easily transported to the park for use in their programs. And, some in the neighborhood have pledged to help refurbish the park.

The park ministry also has stimulated new thinking in other areas of ministry. "We haven't seen any of the neighborhood Hispanic families coming to the church yet, but the ministry is only five months old," Reiner observed. He says that has started the group thinking in new directions. "Do we start a Spanish-speaking service? Do we think about planting a Hispanic church in their neighborhood? We are waiting for God's leading."

Pastoral intern Ann Farley-Rolle, also a member of the original Bible study group, said other members of Centennial have been encouraged to begin "walking and praying" their neighborhoods. "We want people in all areas to become passionate about reaching out to their neighbors," she says.

What does the future hold for this new neighborhood/park ministry? The name of the park perhaps sums it up best - "Promise Park."

(Editor's note: This story was prepared as part of a group assignment during a workshop conducted in Littleton April 23 by the writer. Workshop participants who collaborated in interviewing and reporting this story included the following individuals and the home churches they represent: Linda Brainard, Arvada Covenant in Arvada, Colorado: Rebecca Sahr, Jim Persson and Ann Farley-Rolle, Centennial Covenant in Littleton, Colorado; Jim Groth, Salem Covenant in Oakland, Nebraska; Sharon Marquarch, Christ Community Covenant Church in Arvada, Colorado; Bill Taylor, Harvest Ridge Covenant in Shawnee, Kansas; Jean Mitts, Community Covenant in Kearney, Missouri; Sharon Milford, Grace Covenant in Lakewood, Colorado; John Esh, Evangelical Covenant in Lindsborg, Kansas; Wayne Bellinger, First Evangelical Covenant in Lincoln, Nebraska; M. Maxine and Butch Lewin, Aurora Evangelical Covenant in Aurora, Nebraska; Carolyn and Bill Lennard and Mary Andrews, First Covenant in Omaha, Nebraska; Dick Swanson, Evangelical Covenant in Mead, Nebraska; Kent Peterson, Sveadal Evangelical Covenant in Brady, Nebraska; Sue Radosti, Evangelical Covenant in Wakefield, Nebraska; and Lisa Ellis, Evangelical Covenant in Albert City, Iowa.)

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