Seven RCA churches have been awarded Flourishing Churches Grants to improve their facilities in order to continue thriving in ministry. These grants, up to $50,000, are funded by the RCA’s Church Growth Fund. A committee of General Synod Council staff oversees the grant program, including reviewing applications and making selections.
Meet this year’s grant recipients
Last week, the selected churches were notified that their proposed projects will be grant-funded. Here’s what the churches plan to accomplish through their grant:
Bethel Reformed Church (Sterling, Illinois)
Twenty years after adding on to their original building, including a community room, Bethel Reformed has been notified that they need to make updates to meet fire code. The church will use their grant, in conjunction with budgeted reserves, to make the necessary updates, as well as resurface their parking lot, which is in bad shape. Both of these projects aim to continue the provision of a safe, welcoming place for the congregation and the surrounding community to use.
DeWitt Reformed Church (New York, New York)
As a church in and for the community, DeWitt Reformed plans to use its Flourishing Churches Grant to install fire doors that comply with the new standards set by the Department of Fire and Building. In particular, this update will assist in providing safety and security for the congregation and the children who participate in DeWitt’s Earlylearn Headstart program. An updated building also opens up outreach opportunities and advances in technological access.
Intersection Ministries (Holland, Michigan)
With its grant, Intersection Ministries will upgrade its main entrance to better welcome visitors—many of whom are immigrants, families in need, or underserved populations—and empower them to access the support and services they may need. “It’s an investment in strengthening the church’s role as a trusted, multicultural hub that enriches lives and uplifts the entire community,” says Pastor Tito Venegas.
New Ground Church (Caledonia, Michigan)
After a recent culture shift in the church, New Ground Church has a new vision, mission, and relational strategy that is growing the church and its community outreach. But their pastor reports that their parking lot looks more like it belongs to an abandoned building rather than a thriving ministry. The church’s grant will go toward repairing the parking lot as the church leans into values of authentic community and generous hospitality.
New Hope Reformed Church (Fairview Park, Ohio)
“It is now time to refresh the building as we use it hard for mission,” says Rev. Dan Sewell, pastor of New Hope Reformed Church. After successfully raising funds to fix the church’s roof, the church will apply grant money to repair its parking lot, which is currently crumbling and riddled with dangerous dips and hazards. This facility update will allow New Hope to continue to be a welcoming, “go-to” church for its community.
Sequoia Church (Fresno, California)
Sequoia Church’s grant project is twofold but singularly aimed at being a multifunctional space for its congregation and community. Warm, inviting paint colors will “allow us to be a sanctuary on Sunday morning and a vibrant Young Life club on Monday nights,” says Rev. Nic Pope. Additionally, new televisions will enhance worship, outreach, and community education.
St. Croix Reformed Church (Kingshill, Virgin Islands)
“In the U.S. Virgin Islands, energy is both unreliable and extremely expensive,” explains Rev. Michael DeRuyter. St. Croix Reformed will use its grant to make a number of electrical efficiency updates, including updating and adding solar panels, installing lithium batteries, and replacing operating mechanisms on the jalousie windows, which allow cooling winds into the sanctuary and classroom spaces. These updates all seek to allow energy independence at the church, positioning it to be a community resource when a hurricane hits.
These seven churches were selected out of forty-five applicants. The Flourishing Churches Grant supports churches that have thriving ministries but lack the financial resources for necessary building improvements. The grants provide funding for the facility upgrades churches need to continue and grow their ministries.
Past grant recipient reports back
Previous grant winners have re-paved parking lots, patched roofs, installed more accessible doors, and more—all for the purpose of continuing in ministry and outreach, even as church finances are tight. Greenwood Reformed Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan, was awarded a Flourishing Churches Grant in 2021. After a series of COVID-related delays, the church was finally able to build and open their food pantry in July 2023. In its first year, the community pantry has reached 1,252 families, representing 4,496 individuals.
Pictured above: The exterior and interior of the Greenwood Reformed Church food pantry, which was built with the church’s Flourishing Churches Grant (awarded in 2021).
“Our congregation agreed to step out in faith and develop a building that would provide for a grocery store–style pantry,” says Phil DeYoung, a deacon at Greenwood Reformed, as well as the Mobile Food Initiative coordinator. “We were very blessed to receive financial support for our pantry through the RCA Flourishing Churches Grant program. With staffing provided by 20 volunteers from Greenwood Reformed and Bethany Reformed, the pantry is open for two-hour sessions each Monday, Friday, and Saturday.
“The Greenwood pantry has quickly developed a reputation within the community and the pantry system where clients are warmly greeted and made to feel welcome,” adds DeYoung, who has worked with the Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes pantry system since 2006. “The circumstances that bring individuals and families into situations where food assistance is needed are many and varied. For some, the need can be very short-term, while for others, the need can continue for several months. One of the greatest rewards for our volunteers is being able to meet and establish relationships with many of the clients. The positive feedback from many of our clients and the Loaves and Fishes call center give us additional encouragement to continue to look for ways to expand this ministry.”
Grants will be available again next year. Find out more about the grant and application process at www.rca.org/flourishing-churches-grant.
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