Former school site of Saturday evening outreach services
COSHOCTON – For the next six months the former South Lawn Elementary School will be alive with Christian music, food and fellowship on Saturday nights.
The Christian music group Saving Sunday has committed to help a collaboration of area churches start utilizing the building at 753 South Lawn Ave. for community outreach programs.
The family friendly events will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. Saturday nights and the first of these special evenings was held Feb. 28, with Pastor Jason Diaz from the Coshocton Christian Tabernacle as the special speaker.
“We as a church are always looking for opportunities to impact the community and show people that we love and care for them,” he said. “Our church does a lot of outreach but in the past it was more of what we call one and dones. We’d put a lot of effort into a single event and it would go over well, but then we’d be done until the next one and that might be several months from then. It’s on our hearts to want to make a real difference and not just once in a blue moon. We want to be consistent.”
The building is being made available to the churches through its owner Dave Ianniello.
“He purchased the building and was hoping to use it as an outreach center for the community,” Diaz said. “There are now several different churches working together on South Lawn outreach plans. This is a really neat opportunity for churches to get involved.”
One of the other churches that helped out with getting the Saturday night programs going was Coshocton Baptist Church.
“They brought in a group of teens and adults and helped clean the facility,” Diaz said. “There was a lot of sweeping, mopping and dusting that needed done and there was some vandalism a few months back so we had to repair broken doors and windows.”
The Saturday night evenings of free music, food and fellowship are just the beginning of plans for the old school. Diaz said Women of Witness plans to move in there, an alcohol recovery program is in the works and there is talk of opening a Christian book library and compassion center to help tutor and feed under privileged children in the area.
“We are excited about our plans and feel we are headed in the right direction,” Diaz said.
Churches or community members interested in becoming part of the South Lawn Outreach committee are welcome to contact Diaz at the Tabernacle at 622-4133.
The Saturday evening outreach services are open to the general public and child care will be available.
josie@coshoctoncountybeacon.com
Category: Faith
