Come play with us
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“Our heart’s desire is to serve our community,” says Pastor Bryce Grieco of the Free Methodist Church of Greensburg (PA). A well-respected Christian childcare and preschool program; a new, cutting-edge playground; and the inaugural Free Methodist Golf Classic fundraiser are just three creative ways this FM church is reaching out and drawing people into the kingdom.
Since its inception 20 years ago, the church’s childcare center has become an increasingly vital part of the lives of local families, especially now when both parents often work outside the home. The center currently serves 65-70 children (from 6 weeks to 12 years old) during the school year, and a growing group in its summer day camps as well. Grieco estimates that 80 percent of the children hail from unchurched families.
The new community playground is expected to become the gathering place of choice for local kids and their families. It features an 8-foot climbing wall, 5-foot rock wall, 5-foot cloverleaf climber and four slides (straight, curvy and a side-by-side speed slide). The church is located on a 13-acre former farm and already has several play areas with swings, etc. The property provides a beautiful place for people to meet and walk as well.
Funding for the playground comes in part from the church’s first-ever golf tournament, a four-person scramble with an 8 a.m. shotgun start, held June 28 at Glengarry Golf Course. Each registration included 18 holes of golf, cart, practice balls, a ticket to the post-tournament banquet and the playground’s grand opening ceremonies. Invitations to players and sponsors were extended to childcare center and church families as well as the community at large.
Parents, youngsters, golfers and families having fun — climbing, sliding, swinging, walking and playing together — these are the hallmarks of growth and change at the Free Methodist Church of Greensburg. These are the keys that are opening doors to the kingdom for a whole new neighborhood and beyond.
