First Serve PA/SJ effort sees 294 volunteers labor in Erie, Pa.

A total of 31 churches and 294 volunteers headed to the northern most corner of Pennsylvania, Sept. 20-21, to serve alongside three BRN churches and the Erie City Mission for the the sake of the gospel.

September 26, 2024
Buff McNickle

ERIE, Pa., (BRN) – We had a total of 31 churches, two universities – Penn State University and PennWest Clarion – and two partnering organizations come together to serve the city of Erie, Pennsylvania, Sept. 20-21, for the first ever Serve PA/SJ project.

The goal of these two days was to enhance the Kingdom work of our three BRN churches that minister weekly in this region: Millcreek Community Church, Harborcreek Community Church and Walnut Creek Baptist Church.

The collaborative effort of our volunteers worked together to accomplish 19 projects over two days all over the city. Erie, Pennsylvania, has the poorest zip code in the state and is the fifth poorest zip code in the nation.

The needs and opportunities to make gospel impact are endless. We worked with our three BRN churches in this city and the Erie City Mission to build on local partnerships and build new ones through compassion ministry. We ended the weekend with a Celebration Rally at Walnut Creek Baptist Church, where we celebrated all God did over the weekend.

Quantifiables

Churches Involved: 31 (27 BRN churches)
Partnering Organizations 7 (2 Universities, 1 Network Partner – S.C. Baptists, 4 other churches)
4 States participating – Florida, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and South Jersey
Total Projects: 19 (2 schools, 5 community organizations, 3 churches)
Volunteers: 294
Meals Served: 1286
People Served: 3448
Gospel Conversations: 306

Stories

Serve Erie was a beautiful expression of cooperation and unity among the BRN of Pennsylvania/South Jersey churches. It was incredible to see churches from all over the two states come together to serve the poorest zip code in all of Pennsylvania.

Erie, Pennsylvania, is the furthest city north in our convention and has three BRN churches that are making gospel impact in the city. It was great to see churches as far as South Jersey come to serve these churches and this city. That willingness to serve from all over shows the power and reach of our network.
While we didn’t see anyone come to Christ in our inaugural Serve PA/SJ weekend, we did see many seeds planted, partnerships formed and gospel impact happen.

Pastors, project leaders and participants shared some of their highlights and stories from this impactful weekend:

One of our pastors shared that, “As a pastor….my cup was overwhelmingly filled by the people serving at my project! It was so encouraging to serve alongside believers from all across the state as they joined us to serve our community.”

One of our project leaders, who led an outreach at a local elementary school that one of our churches have a partnership with, said, “The teachers and facility were blown away by our kindness. A few of them cried. A teen boy that came to serve prayed for the teachers that will be using the lounge. A huge step for him spiritually! We see this as a huge relationship bridge as we continue to do ministry in the future at the school.”

One of the projects took place at a local retirement village and rehab facility. Volunteers worked on the 18-acre campus by rehabbing and refurbishing four of their courtyards that are there for the residents. Residents of the facility opened their windows and gave a standing ovation to the volunteers as they completed their work.

We took our Mobile Grill ministry to two local homeless encampments, the city’s main park square and to a local community shelter. Pastor Larry Baker recounted that he had the opportunity to pray for Joshua at a homeless camp and he felt the Spirit of God so strong inside him that he believes God wants him to keep praying for his salvation.

We had a construction team complete the stage and platform in the Erie City Mission that has been on a list for over three years praying to be completed. John Barkley, project leader and BRN Pastor, said that it was a blessing to see the joy in the staff with the completed platform. The reality of how many lives will be changed from that platform has given our church a new prayer priority.

It was incredible to partner with Erie City Mission, whose roots were founded by the ministry of that great 20th century evangelist Billy Sunday. We helped them put on a Harvest Celebration for the city, which brought in 28 local organizations that offer services to the city’s most vulnerable. We provided games and activities for kids and families. We provided a hot meal for over 500 residents of the city. Our Disaster Relief led the way by providing showers to ladies and cooking all the food for the event. Brian Johansson, the president/CEO for the mission, said, “As I went from site to site, I was so impressed with the organization, great attitudes, and, of course, the work that was accomplished. The impact on this community and bridges we built today will last far beyond today.”