How do we use a repurposed elementary school for our activities?

When it became obvious that our congregation was growing out of our old building, we began the discussions of where do we want our congregation to go physically and what would our new building need to help us in our spiritual growth.  We made what we felt was the socially conscience decision to use an existing building rather than build new.  The school presented us with many challenges but also many opportunities.  We now have LOTS of space to grow and allow members to set up clubs for companionship and learning and also allow them to organize for social justice actions. We are lucky to have a space big enough to support our programming as well as our FUUD Pantry and our cold-weather shelter.

Classrooms

What better place for children to play and learn than in a school?  This building has given us the space and resources to create a welcoming and fun area for our youngest members and visitors. 

Meeting Spaces

It is important for our congregants to have places to gather and celebrate our different perspectives and ideas.  Our building has many different types of meeting spaces to allow us to accommodate whatever type of gathering our congregants would like to have. 

Our Outdoor Space

We have two play structures for kids to play on during warm weather and a few benches for adults to enjoy just sitting outside.  We also have a Giving Grove of fruit trees and a community garden.  

Maker Space

During the summer our youngest members and visitors get to spend some time in our Maker Space.  Inventing is a messy business but totally worth fostering creativity!

FUUD Pantry

We are so lucky to have a year-round FUUD Pantry, run out of our building with volunteers from our congregation. We partner with Harvester’s Community Food Network, and they provide a lot of our food supplies for our pantry. The FUUD Pantry is open every Tuesday from 2:00-5:45pm.

Project 10❤️20

In half of our building, we house Project 10❤️20, the Johnson County cold weather homeless shelter in Lenexa. The shelter is open 7:00pm-7:00am each night from December 1—March 31. The organization provides transportation to and from the shelter, a hot evening meal, a hot shower, a grab and go breakfast in the morning, a safe place to sleep, care, compassion and support.