ERIE (BRN) – In the northern corners of Erie, Pennsylvania, rows of grapevines consume field upon field, filling the air with the sweet aroma of produce ready to be plucked. In the southern pockets of this northwestern city, the metropolitan region sees both high class sail boats docking at Bayfront and run-down warehouses sitting vacant on impoverished streets.
In addition to the divine beauty of vineyards and lakefront views, there also exists a noticeable brokenness in the city that is home to the fifth poorest zip code in the United States.
This stark difference was evident to the 294 volunteers who came to Erie, Sept. 20-21, to participate in the inaugural Serve PA/SJ weekend, hosted by the Baptist Resource Network (BRN) of Pennsylvania/South Jersey. The Serve PA/SJ initiative was a dream sparked by Send Relief’s Serve Tour Philly effort that took place in Philadelphia last year, Sept. 15-16.
“It was always a hope that our churches could partner together and do something in a collaborative way that would make an impact. Not that I thought about a Serve Tour like we did specifically, but [we] always had that heart that we could get churches to work together on something…so the Serve Tour in Philly just absolutely set the spark that created the fire,” said BRN Executive Director Dr. Barry Whitworth.
After a year’s worth of planning and plenty of conversations between Whitworth and Buff McNickle, BRN director of compassion ministry and partnership development, Serve Erie, the first tour under the Serve PA/SJ banner, came to fruition.
During the two-day mission effort in Erie, the BRN partnered with three local churches affiliated with the state convention – Millcreek Community Church (MCC), Harborcreek Community Church (HCC) and Walnut Creek Baptist Church (WCB) – and Erie City Mission (ECM), one of the leading ministry organizations in Erie, to complete 19 projects.
“We wanted to come alongside them and really just enhance their impact [and] their influence in their community for the gospel of Jesus Christ,” said Buff McNickle, BRN director of compassion ministry and partnership development, who headed up the Serve PA/SJ initiative.
McNickle shared that the goal of Serve Erie was three-fold: encouraging the BRN churches in the Erie area by coming alongside them in their gospel efforts, showing the power of network collaboration and propelling churches to get outside their comfort zones in their own communities.
“We have to get out into the streets. We have to get out into the communities and declare and demonstrate the power of the gospel, both in word and deed. That’s the heart of compassion ministry…that’s the heart of these weekends,” said McNickle.
Thirty-one churches, 27 of those being BRN affiliates, and seven partnering organizations participated in the effort, including Southern Baptists from Florida and South Carolina. Amongst these participates, an estimated 306 gospel conversations took place and 3,448 people were served.
“This is such a blessing to us, to have BRN come and bring almost 300 volunteers to Erie and do a bunch of projects around the city,” said Erie City Mission CEO Brian Johansson.
Many hands make light work
During the first day of projects, volunteers completed tasks assigned by the partnering churches in Erie. Many of these opportunities were possible because of previously cultivated relationships between the churches and local organizations.
Near Millcreek Community Church, volunteers took the time to build beds for foster families in the area, while others spent the day at Grover Cleveland Elementary, where they added a fresh coat of paint to the teacher’s lounge and tended to the school’s playground.
“We came out to freshen up all the mulch and pull all the weeds. We also designed a Gaga ball pit for the elementary school kids, which a lot of them haven’t heard about and they’re very excited,” said Jennifer Palmieri, member of Riverbend Community Church in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Palmieri and her husband started attending Riverbend about two months ago, and were praying for a mission trip opportunity for their family when they heard about Serve PA/SJ.
“We just think it’s important to come out and, no matter where we’re at, be the hands and feet of Jesus, no matter if we have to drive, or if it’s in our backyard or whatnot,” said Palmieri.
Serve Erie was Palmieri’s first mission trip with her husband and two children.
Millcreek Community Church also used this opportunity of working at the school as a way to bless the teachers and support staff there with a free lunch from Chik-fil-A.
Just down the road at Elk Valley Elementary, Walnut Creek Baptist Church introduced volunteers to the Elk Valley Community Closet.
This treasure trove of clothes, coats, food and more allows students to stock up on items they may need for the weekend or, even, the impending winter season. Volunteers came alongside Walnut Creek to help organize the pantry and clothing closet there.
They also sharpened the elementary’s crossing guard station by painting it to resemble a pencil, adding a welcomed splash of color to the staff’s day.
“The teachers were just blown away, all the teachers, staff, faculty, the principal – everybody – was just blown away by everything that we were able to help them with yesterday,” said Walnut Creek Senior Pastor Denny Adkinson.
Additionally, Walnut Creek utilized their church parking lot, and the additional help, to bless their community with a free car wash.
“This weekend was awesome. To have all of these hundreds of volunteers to be here and to help us do the things that, frankly, we’ve been wanting to do – we’ve been dreaming about doing – it’s really, really awesome,” said Adkinson.
He continued: “We’re so appreciative of everybody from the BRN and all the churches that participated. Many hands make light work…so we’re very, very thankful.”
It takes a (Brevillier) village
Heading north from the city, just 20 minutes away from the New York border, Serve PA/SJ volunteers partnered with Harborcreek Community Church to serve Brevillier Village Assisted Living and Home Care Facility, a community staple near and dear to HCC Elder Tom Osborn.
“My mother passed away in 2019 and she was at Brevillier,” shared Osborn.
He continued: “I have 10 siblings [and] as my mother was passing, they put her in a large room where we could all gather around her. Then they brought us breakfast – coffee and Danishes, orange juice – and throughout the day, they just kept checking in on us.”
The home care facility didn’t stop there. When they saw the extent of Osborn’s family and their deep care to remain by their mother’s side, they offered the family a place to stay.
During this time, Brevillier Village had just completed construction on a wing of one of their residential living areas. The wing was not quite ready for residents, so the facility opened it up to the Osborn family. This provided the family with a place to sleep, eat, shower and be together, all while not being far from their mother.
“That’s what makes them who they are. There’s people that serve there – they’ve been serving there for 25 years – and they’re not there because of the money. They’re there because they have a passion for these older people and to care for them,” said Osborn.
He continued: “So, locally, we are absolutely indebted to them for the way they care for our old…it’s a really great facility.”
Brevillier Village has been around since 1960, when the Brevillier family willed the 17-acre estate to the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Paul for “religious, educational and charitable purposes.”
In 1972, the first phase of what would become known as Brevillier Village was completed, with the opening of Conrad House. This was the first building on the property designed to house older residents.
“In our mission, in our philosophy, we try to serve the residents, and everything we do is for the residents,” said Jennifer Kehl, volunteer coordinator at Brevillier Village.
Harborcreek Community Church has been connected to Brevillier and its staff members, like Kehl, since 2019, serving the residents and its staff two-three times a year.
When Serve PA/SJ came around, it was a no brainer for Osborn and HCC as to where they could utilize more workers in their community.
During the Serve weekend, nearly 30 volunteers put their hands to the plow at Brevillier and helped restore some of the village’s grounds and courtyard areas.
“I personally have a friend in the nursing home who hasn’t gotten out for about a year and a half. Just having something visual out the window does a lot to lift them (the residents), so that’s very important to me…[and] this is going to provide a nice place for them to spend [time] with their visitors,” said Becky Buss, member of HCC.
Kehl echoed this sentiment, sharing that the courtyards often serve as spaces for the residents to relax, spend time with loved ones and feel at home.
“Brevillier appreciates this, because, you know, we always say it takes a village, but it really does, [and] at the end of the day, we do this for the residents…to make their days better,” said Kehl.
More than a place to rest
As day one came to an end, volunteers packed up their project sites and headed to Eben-Ezer Camp, also known as the Polish Baptist Center, in Girard, Pennsylvania.
For many years, the off-the-beaten-path facility has provided its visitors, often Polish in nationality, with an endearing environment to rest and debrief.
Born in Poland, Camp Director Robert Blank came to the States after concluding 20 years of ministry in his home nation, and, as of Sept. 20, 2024, he has been ministering to the Polish community in Erie for 18 years.
Eben-Ezer Camp was purchased in 1972 by the Polish Baptist Association to aid the increasing population of Polish immigrants. The camp quickly grew and became a beloved refuge for not only those a part of the Erie Polish community, but those in the surrounding areas.
“After War World II, there was a big Polish community of immigrants and they wanted to come every year for a conference. They found this place between Chicago, New York and Toronto, so they came every year here and started this camp,” explained Blank.
Over the years, the camp has grown to have a chapel, a dormitory building, a kitchen, two fire pits, hiking paths and other housing facilities. The camp continues the tradition of hosting an annual conference for Polish families, but also hosts a variety of other groups and organizations.
“It’s a special thing with Polish immigrants because some people are long time here without parents, without family,” shared Blank, his Polish accent peeking through.
He continued: “And we see how important it is to be with them…the love of God is so central for this experience, for this ministry here.”
Along with utilizing the camp for its warm showers and cozy cots, Serve Erie participants, specifically Disaster Relief (DR) trained volunteers, helped care for the campgrounds by cutting down 12 trees that measured 80-100 feet each and posed safety concerns.
“They were anywhere from 12-16 inches in diameter, and they were dead. So, they were danger trees, constantly dropping branches,” said DR Blue Hat Don Boore.
Boore and his DR team of three other men, one of which was 88-years-old, were successful in felling the trees. The DR team then used chainsaws to chop up the trees and, with the help of other Serve Erie volunteers, distributed the pieces of wood to different firewood stations around the camp.
Through a grateful chuckle, Blank commented on the amount of wood the facility now has, saying, “We are safe for a few years!”
Miracles every week
Day two of Serve Erie kicked off in the heart of the city with returning and new volunteers gathering at Erie City Mission to receive their project assignments.
The roots of the Erie City Mission date back to 1911, when the ministry of well-known 20th century evangelist Billy Sunday sparked the creation of a “Christian social outreach project.”
Throughout its history, the Erie City Mission has consistently cared for locals who struggle with addiction, poverty and homelessness, all while keeping the gospel at the core of its message.
“I always convey to them, God sent us to you, [and] you need to know that He wants you to know that you matter and that you’re important to Him,” said Erie City Mission Chaplain Rob O’Connell, who works specifically with many of the homeless individuals in the area.
On Saturday, O’Connell led volunteers to a homeless encampment directly behind the Erie Tool building, located between Liberty and Popular Street.
The tree tented area appears inconspicuous, especially next to the daunting warehouse and large dumpsters resting in the back parking lot, but a few steps up the short, inclined dirt path and the wooded area quickly reveals that it is more than meets the eye.
Piles of clothes, blankets, stuffed animals, mattresses, wooden pallets, vibrant shaded shopping carts, sleeping bags, plastic chairs, tarps and tents, cardboard boxes, abandoned containers, play kitchens and red toy cars, windchimes and additional remnants of a home dot the former encampment.
“[It’s] very humbling and eye opening. I’ve lived in this area for quite a while and I didn’t know this existed…or the extent that it existed,” said HCC Member Christina Gross.
Christina and other volunteers worked alongside O’Connell to clean up and clear out the encampment, after it was shut down and its residents evicted by the city.
“This is not a good place for anybody to spend the winter, so we’ve worked with the people in this encampment to get them housing and get them treatment, and now we’re honored to clean it up…the city’s very happy that we’re doing this,” said Johansson.
At the encampment’s peak, it was home to 30 residents. Around the city, there are at least a dozen other encampments with current residents, many of which O’Connell knows by name.
“We’re familiar with them. They’re not strangers to us,” said O’Connell with an understanding smile, further explaining that many of the encampment residents come by the Mission every day for lunch.
As one who formerly struggled with addiction for most of his life and, at one point, was near to being without a home himself, O’Connell deeply cares and relates to much of what his encampment friends are going through.
“I lived a life of slavery to addiction and alcoholism until I was 41 years old,” shared O’Connell.
Starting in his preteen years, O’Connell struggled with drugs and alcohol. Later, he joined the military and was able to come off of the drugs, but continued to be ensnared by alcohol. When he left the military, drugs hauntingly reentered his life, hooking him in a new and dangerous way.
“I was in jail getting ready to go through my second divorce. I had abandoned my children. I just hated myself and hated life. I prayed and didn’t know whether there was a God or not [but] I just asked Him…to either fix me or kill me,” said O’Connell.
He continued: “I woke up the next morning, so He didn’t kill me, and all that I knew to do was to begin reading the New Testament and praying to Him.”
During the two months that he was in jail, O’Connell gave his life to Christ and committed to live his life for God, in whatever ways He would have him.
Eventually, the Lord led O’Connell to the Erie City Mission.
“I cold called the Erie City Mission one day, just because of their name, ‘Gospel Rescue Mission.’ I called them and said, ‘You guys got any addicts down there? I need to come down there and tell them about Jesus,” recounted O’Connell.
This on-a-whim phone call ushered in a ministry that is now a part of O’Connell’s everyday life.
“I witness miracles every week of my life doing this,” said O’Connell.
He continued: “It’s just Him (God) guiding us places where we didn’t even know people would be; us finding encampments that we didn’t even know were there. It’s always Him doing that. He’s always so active and present.”
O’Connell started at the Erie Mission as a volunteer and then became one of the teachers for the recovery program they offer. Three years ago, he stepped into his current role as Chaplain and started overseeing much of the street outreach that ECM does.
This role has allowed him to strengthen his relationships with those living at the various homeless encampments around the city, so much so that two of the encampments welcomed him and Serve Erie volunteers into their space to grill and serve them a hot meal.
“I’m so excited for my people…I loved telling them [that] there’s people here from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and from Florida that came up here today just to grill for you,” said O’Connell.
Jim and Teresa Broome, long-time friends of Buff McNickle, often travel with a mobile grill and minister to the homeless population in their own community in Tampa, Florida. But when they received a call from McNickle about Serve PA/SJ, they couldn’t resist the opportunity to bless those without a home in Erie.
“We love the ministry that we’re in. It’s good for your heart, but you’ll see things that will make you cry, it’ll kind of sort of haunt you…but if you have to be the hand that reaches out to them, then so be it,” said Jim Broome.
Jim’s wife, Teresa, added to this, commenting that the mission is simple: “We want them to know that we see them [and] that they matter.”
Making noise for Jesus
In addition to the homeless encampment clean up project, Serve PA/SJ volunteers partnered with Erie City Mission to complete several other projects. These included painting and yard work at two of ECM’s recovery homes, preparation efforts at the Mission’s Grace House, building a platform for the ministry’s chapel and partnering with the Erie City Mission for their first ever block party.
Located at the corner of French and 11th Street, Erie City Mission barricaded the 11th Street block and lined it with local vendors, food booths, DR shower units, stations for free haircuts and plenty of family-oriented activities.
“We are really great partners with a lot of community partners, and what we wanted to do was bring them all to our campus so that we can be here serving our community together,” said Katie Peppers, Erie City Mission volunteer and special events coordinator.
She continued: “This location is really strategic because the 16501 zip code is one of the poorest zip codes in the state, let alone the country. So, all of our actual neighbors in this neighborhood are in need of community support.”
Peppers and the ECM staff worked hard to intentionally bring in community partners that could potentially benefit their neighbors in the upcoming fall and winter months.
The Pennsylvania/New Jersey Disaster Relief team contributed to these needs by providing a shower unit and feeding trailer. A total of 29 community organizations were present at the block party.
“God’s providing the people to do the work. Seeing our community partners and the volunteers, and then even our volunteers that regularly volunteer with us, everybody and their brother coming out of the woodwork to want to be a part of something that’s bigger than them, that’s just a beautiful thing,” said Peppers.
The Serve Erie weekend culminated with a celebration rally at Walnut Creek Baptist Church. Volunteers, project leaders and pastors heard testimonies from fellow participants and a resounding “thank you” from McNickle and Dr. Barry Whitworth, executive director of the BRN.
Whitworth recognized the efforts of the volunteers, noting that everyone was surely a “good tired.”
“It was truly Kingdom work with Kingdom impact…we used our hands, our feet and our mouths to elevate Jesus,” said Whitworth.
“We went into Erie to make some noise for Jesus on behalf of our churches, and I would say mission accomplished.”
The next Serve PA/SJ mission effort will take place in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pennsylvania, June 27-28, 2025.
Check out our Serve Erie Photo Gallery to view more moments from the inaugural Serve PA/SJ weekend.
