THUNDER BAY – Readers Ledger – Grace Ministries operates a storefront church on, called Grace Place, in one of the poorest areas of Thunder Bay. Grace Place is located at 235 Simpson Street and was opened on June 17, 2008. Pastors Gary and Melody Macsemchuk are the Senior Pastors and I have the position of Associate Pastor. We minister to people living on the streets, drinking hairspray and mouthwash, the addicted people prostituting themselves to support their drug habits and the spiritually and financially “poor” people that don’t know the love of Jesus and His saving grace. Our goal is to provide a safe haven off of the streets for our clients to visit, relax and to connect with the much needed services, so many in the area are in need of. We serve 250-300 meals each day and expect to serve 42,000 meals this year. We provide the following services to our clients.
• Drop-in and lunch 3 days a week, Mon, Tues, Wed 1-4pm.
• Free clothing to those in need.
• Emergency food hampers through our “Compassion Cupboard”
• A Sunday non-denominational church service at 2:00 with a time of worship, teaching and ministry.
• A Children’s church for ages 2-12.
• Youth meetings each Friday evening at 7:00pm.
• An annual youth camp/retreat at a local bible camp.
• We perform baptism, marriage and funeral services for our congregation and their families.
• We provide spiritual support and pastoral care to many individuals struggling with addictions, prostitution and poverty.
This is all possible with God’s grace and through the donations we receive from local grocery stores, businesses, other ministries, and from private individuals. Grace Place runs solely on donations, whether it is food or finances, as we are not funded by any other source.
Our youth group, which consists of about 26 people, meets on Friday evenings at 7:00pm. A typical evening consists of a meal that the youth prepare, a time of worship, a one hour bible study and one hour of music practice and lessons. Our meetings are a time of worship and fellowship with many opportunities for individual mentoring and counseling.
Future planned activities for our youth group include; volunteering at Grace Place to help prepare and serve the daily meals, bowling, swimming, skating, boot hockey, snowshoeing and ice fishing. We also plan to attend area youth conferences and rallies at least three or four times each year.
To enhance our youth music program we require the following musical equipment;
• 4 acoustic/electric guitars with cases, straps and tuners
• 1 electric bass guitar, amplifier and tuner
• 1 electric guitar, amplifier and tuner
• 1 electric keyboard with stand
• 1 electric drum set
• A small portable sound system
Please consider my request for your organization to supply the musical instruments and equipment that our youth group desperately requires. May God bless you abundantly as you bless the youth of Thunder Bay.
Blessings,
Pastor Charles Boyce
Associate Pastor
Grace Place
235 Simpson Street
Thunder Bay, ON
473-3538 (church)
631-5537 (cell)
C_boyce2006@yahoo.org