Community and Church in St Roch | Crossroads Missions

One of our longest lasting partnerships in New Orleans is with St Roch Community Church. Over the years we have assisted them with a variety of projects and new ministries. For the past few years, we have been unable to work in the neighborhood as frequently as we used to.

The Church

This summer we were asked to help re-paint the iconic yellow church building. “The yellow of the church is such a symbol to the neighborhood, so to have it refreshed and revived was such a beautiful thing,” shared Julie Whiteman, office administrator and former CrossRoads staff.

With such a large project, every group got to participate. Cleaning, repairs, and multiple coats of yellow paint gave a backdrop for conversations with church staff and neighbors as we worked outside. Julie continued, “It’s also so great to connect with other churches from outside of New Orleans, to create that bond.” St Roch Community Church Pastor Jason Davison added, “We are incredibly grateful for your efforts in repainting our church building; it looks phenomenal! There are a host of ways that you could have spent your time away, we are humbled that you dedicated it to enhancing the sanctuary building and spending it around us!”

Memories

While working on this staple of St Roch, we looked out over the park and began to reminisce on our favorite moments in this community. We used to host a weekly cookout in the park with our groups which was put on hold along with other projects. We talked with the church leaders about starting the cookout again. With their insight, we decided to end the hiatus. Though we were not sure if anyone would show after so many years without the event, we set up the food, games, and facepaint at St Roch Park filled with anticipation for the community to join us.

Amy Hudelson of Wellspring Christian Church recalled the same feeling from her first cookout ten years ago: “When the time came for the handing out of hotdogs and chips, we didn’t know what to expect. Would anyone show? And man did families come! It was so nice to be able to see people let their guard down a little and just be together.”

Volunteers and community members playing Nine-Square this summer.

In fact, it was during that 2015 mission trip that Wellspring introduced us to the game Nine-Square; an elevated combination of volleyball and four square. The setup allowed large groups to play at once, making it a great way to bring people together! It was an instant hit and became a staple for the cookout. “Because the community loved the game so much,” Amy continued, “our teens decided to give up their game and let CrossRoads have it, to be able to share it with the community at St. Roch every week throughout the summer. Some of the teens signed their name to the game pieces.”

The Cookout

As we pulled the game out of storage for the cookout’s revival, memories surfaced for everyone. “I was surprised to see that CrossRoads had held onto and was still using the original Nine-Square donated to them over ten years ago. My heart was so happy to go around and read the names of the original students who made such an impact on that trip. They would be so happy to know that they are still spreading joy in the community all these years later.”

The excitement for the cookout spread to so many groups. Brian LaRue of Galilee Christian Church shared, “It felt right to be back in St. Roch. In the first few years we teamed with CrossRoads, the park cookout was one of the highlights of the week. It’s because we got to be with, play with, and even eat with the amazing people of St. Roch. Pictures flashed to my mind of our students painting faces, and then having their faces painted or better yet, covered in paint by the kids of St. Roch!” The face painting station became an immediate expression of how fun it was to be back together! And gave volunteers the opportunity to talk one-on-one with the community.

Making Connections

The focus of our work in St Roch is community connections through outreach, especially the cookout. We see these connections grow in so many ways. Amy got to witness her daughter forge a connection this summer. “It also filled my momma’s heart to see my daughter connecting with a young teenage mom and her baby at the park. Just sitting with her, hearing her story and laughing together. I was also impacted by the way that the teens of the community shared their space with us. Playing basketball and soccer on the sports field with our students and adults.”

It has been amazing to see the joy of bringing back a wonderful connection to the community that has had such an impact on us and our volunteers. Amy shares that sentiment, saying, “What a blessing St. Roch community is to so many of us. They have opened up their space and have shared it with others and that has been a blessing.” We know it will continue to be a blessing for everyone involved!

Building Relationships

We were excited to hear the community agrees with that feeling. Brian shared “Several months after serving in St Roch, out of the blue, we received a very thoughtful card from our sister church, St Roch Community Church, thanking us so much for serving. Their gratitude brought back to mind the Kingdom work we got to do this past summer, and that’s always good to be remembered.”

Pastor Davison completed the card by saying, “We pray that the Lord produces great fruit through the glimpse of His wider Kingdom and work that you experienced while in New Orleans. We are blessed that you took to heart the words of Paul to the church in Thessalonica: “Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).”

We couldn’t agree more. It is humbling to see so many people from churches across the country come together in support of each other and their communities.