St. John's Vineyard Church

Group Location
Meetings at Holy Heart High School
55 Bonaventure Avenue
St. John's, NL

Contact Information
Curt and Hannah Clark
(709) 727-8464
website: http://www.envision.ca/webs/vineyard/

History

Origins of the group: The Vineyard Church is a movement that originated on the beaches of California in the early 1970s. In 1998, Curt and Hannah Clark and their four children moved to St. John's to bring the Vineyard Church to Newfoundland for the first time. The family is originally from Pennsylvania, however, they previously lived in Brantford, Ontario where they ran a church and a soup kitchen.

Highlights of the group's history: As the Church's main focus is ministry with the poor, its primary successes in St. John's have been in creating valuable relationships with the poor. In the Church's early years, members took food to families in low income housing and ran a food bank out of Curt and Hannah's home. Eventually they were able to rent space in Virginia Park to run an expanded program and while they no longer have this office, they have maintained their relationships and are still highly active in giving to the poor.

Present goals of the group: While Curt's personal dream is a revival in Newfoundland, their present challenge is keeping their faith in God to provide them with the resources necessary to help the many that are in need.

Structure

Membership: The Vineyard Church has no official membership and anyone can participate at any time. There are currently about twenty individuals involved. The meetings are conducted in English.

Leaders and Contacts: Generally the Church is not structure oriented. Curt is the informal leader of worship for the most part, however, others participate frequently. There is also a different leader for the band.

Facilities: The group currently meets in the cafeteria of Holy Heart High School for its service but also meets during the week in people's homes. As its first concern is ministry with the poor, the Vineyard Church prefers not to put money into infrastructure.

Activities

Information: More information about the group's programs as well as photographs of its activities can be found on its website (see Contact Information).

Schedule of Events: The Church's weekly service is held on Sundays at 11:00 AM in the cafeteria of Holy Heart High School. The meetings are coffee house style and everyone is welcome to attend. The group also has meetings for people in their teens and twenties on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 PM in people's houses. During the summer, children's programs are held and can vary from Bible study barbeques to mini golf.