Lockport Emmanuel United Methodist Church caps of bicentennial celebrations this weekend

Thomas Tedesco, Lockport Union-Sun & Journal, N.Y.
·3 min read

Nov. 4—Over the course of its two centuries of existence, the congregation of Emmanuel United Methodist Church has always aimed to expand the ministry beyond their church's walls.

While they have called a couple of different buildings their home and have weathered a few storms since being founded as Lockport Methodist Episcopal Church in October 1823, Pastor Daryl Barrow said their faith and overarching mission have remained constant.

"Outreach has always been the center of the church," Barrow said. "That vision is the sense that you could invite people in a non-threatening way around the table, to read scripture, to ask what are your prayer needs. and to just open the scripture, but without sort of imposing that."

Several longtime church members said that Emmanuel's participation in the community is just as important as their participation in Sunday worship.

Christa Caldwell, chair of the church's administrative council, and her husband liken it to another popular Sunday activity.

"Sunday morning is like the football coach with the team... the rest of the week is the game," Caldwell said.

Over the years, Emmanuel has worked closely with various charitable groups in the community including Lockport CARES Homeless Shelter, Salvation Army and Habitat for Humanity. The membership have also carried out their own community outreach programs including Lenten Luncheons and their long-running, free community breakfasts, which are served on the third Saturday of every month.

According to the church members, the most fulfilling part of their mission is having an impact on the lives of their fellow community members.

"When people leave the breakfast on Saturday. I can't tell you how many people say, 'this church is a blessing,'" lay leader MaryBeth Wilson said. "I hear those kind of comments constantly."

Even in the face of adversity, Barrow said Emmanuel UMC endures and provides its ministries and services to the community.

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic "didn't mean that worship was closing, or that the church was closed," Barrow recalled, it meant worship services went online and community breakfasts were served take-out style.

"We love the fact that we never stopped," Wilson said.

Judy Johnson-Paonessa, chair of outreach, said that even the simple things such as Emmanuel's Little Free Library went a long way in the congregation's efforts to provide for the community.

"Those pantries and that little free library were huge. The (public) library was closed, so that filled a service for people looking for things to read," she recalled.

The members likened the adversities they faced during the pandemic to another crucial point in the church's history.

After the church decided to relocate to 75 East Avenue from Genesee Street in 1928, the Great Depression arrived before construction of the new church was finished. So, the members banded together to support it.

"They had one Sunday that they called Golden Sunday. Everybody brought their gold jewelry and melted it down for cash....They borrowed against the life insurance policies and gave that money to the church," Caldwell said.

The Emmanuel congregation has always found a way to come out on the other side, Barrow said. "That's the point, adversity in the midst of celebrating historic achievement."

Emmanuel church's bicentennial is being celebrated with a pair of events this weekend that are open to the public. A banquet dinner will be served at the fellowship hall at 5 p.m. today and a special service will take place at 10 a.m. Sunday.