Thriving Congregations and
Building Development Advisory Committee
Since 2023, Northminster has been participating in the Thriving Congregations Initiative, (TCI)
funded by the Lilly Endowment to support efforts that enhance the vitality of Christian congregations.
According to Seattle Presbytery: “The aim of the initiative is to prepare congregations to be transformational learning communities able to faithfully and creatively confront social and cultural challenges.”
In January 2024, the Northminster session voted to create a Building Development Advisory committee tasked with developing a recommendation for the future of our church property that enhances Northminster as an asset to our community. Northminster has at least temporality merged the two groups, (TCI and the Building Development Advisory Committee), and tasked them with reaching out to community leaders and listening to their thoughts about challenges, needs, and a vision for the future of Loyal Heights, Ballard and the greater community.
In April, the committee met with Maggie Breen, one of the leaders of the Thriving Congregations Initiative for Seattle Presbytery. Maggie reminded us that the goal of TCI is to become a learning organization. We should always be asking: what are we learning about ourselves and our community? In terms of talking with our community partners, we should be asking, what is the future calling both of us to?
Since May, the committee has spoken with leaders from neighborhood and senior centers; principals from nearby schools; local businesses; other churches and government representatives. We are learning more about our community with each conversation and we’re developing strategic relationships that we hope will lead us all to building a better community.
The combined committee has been asked to create a recommendation for the church buildings by the end of 2024. Here is the timeline, as it currently stands:
April – finalize categories of potential partners
May – identify individual community contacts and prepare questions
June – begin meeting with community partners
July – continue discussions with community partners
August – continue discussions with community partners
September – listening session with congregation and follow ups
October – compile report and present to session
If you have thoughts, we’d love to hear them. Please use the subject “Building Development and TCI” and send them to Info@Northminsterpres.org.