Kensington Parish News - Summer 2014 Jun. 2014 | Page 14

CHRIST CHURCH CHRIST CHURCH Jazzbomb take to the stage to wow the crowd RESTORATION AND REGENERATION Bonnie Rozorio reports from a glamorous evening of fundraising and a new beginning for Christ Church C hrist Church Kensington is about to begin an exciting building project, which we hope will breathe new life into our church building and make it even more useful for the church and our local community. Christ Church has become one of the few community spaces available in the neighbourhood and each week we see local schools and colleges, a Montessori nursery, children’s choirs, English language classes, a ballet school, the local branch of Alcoholics Anonymous, residents’ associations and many others community groups use the building for their activities. Wonderfully, Christ Church’s congregation has grown by about 250% in the last two years. Our Sunday School can sometimes feel as if it is bursting at the seams, and our older children’s group have to meet off-site in a local home as there simply isn’t space to house them in the church. Our evening congregation, established in 2013, shares supper after the service. 14 | 2014 Spring However, without adequate kitchen facilities in the building, food for 80 people is often cooked in local homes and carried in to church. Over the last few years, the church council identified the need for additional meeting spaces, as well as increased open space, a new kitchen and sufficient lavatories, heating, lighting and storage capacity to accommodate multiple ministry and community requirements. The competition was raging as the silent action happened on tablets throughout the night. Through our restoration and regeneration project, we hope to provide a venue for worship in West London, as well as a hub for community activity that will be fit for purpose for generations to come. If you would like to know more about the project, we’ve set up a website: www. christchurchcommunityappeal.com where you can read details about each element of the project and how it will benefit our church and community. With support from the local community and an enthusiastic Appeals Committee we began fundraising in July 2013, envisaging that it would take three Spring 2014 | 15