There was much excitement in the air as Troy Church members, neighbors and friends gathered together to celebrate yet another historical Sabbath. It was the long-awaited open house for the new church addition.
The congregation had been discussing plans to expand their church building for decades. They were badly in need of a newer, larger fellowship hall for community dinners and functions, but the funding was simply not there. Troy is a small, family church in a small community. Although their light in the community shone brightly, they realized their congregation was not growing and their church would soon start dying off if there was no new growth.
So the members began praying. Dennis Nickel, the pastor at that time, made a call for a prayer group to pray for new church growth — specifically children. For two years, Troy members met before Sabbath School each Sabbath and prayed. There were only two children attending Troy, and now more than 35 children attend — a real live miracle!
Troy now has children in all four children’s divisions, which hadn’t happened since the late 1980s. To accommodate all the kids, members had to convert one of the old church storage rooms into another classroom.
During this time, he discussion of expanding the church building came up again. Proper funding was still not there, but seeing how God had answered their many prayers concerning church growth, Troy Church members decided to take a leap of faith and start the expansion project. And again, another miracle! “It is amazing that we were able to raise the money to do this. There were times when I would open a donation and my jaw would drop. Sometimes because of the size of the donation, other times because I knew that the party donating was giving very generously for their means, and other times because some donations came from a donor I had not expected to give at all and yet here they were donating. God bless them all. Even though I saw the money come in, I myself couldn't figure out where it all came from. It was amazing,” says Laurie Nelson, Troy Church treasurer. They held their church groundbreaking ceremony on April 14, 2013, dedicating the project to God.
The money came in steadily, as needed for the different stages of the project. Under the direction of Darrell Hunt, a church member and also a local contractor, the church family started excavation — then the foundation, building structure, roofing, wallboard and so on. Dedicated church members showed up each Sunday for work bees. Much of the construction was done by members who donated their time and skills.
The 9,000-square-foot addition includes a new foyer, fellowship hall, kitchen, bathrooms, pastor’s office, resource room and several children’s Sabbath School rooms. A remodel of the sanctuary has also been started. The sanctuary will be turned around with a new rostrum, lights, baptistery, carpet and more.
After the church’s Christmas program on Dec. 27, 2014, elated members exited the sanctuary into their new church foyer for the first time. It was a high Sabbath as the group, led by Ole Olesen, Troy Church pastor, went from room to room consecrating the building to God with prayer, singing and readings from His Word.
The open house for the new church building was held on Feb. 21. Among those who spoke for the ceremony were Ole Olesen; Darrell Hunt; Royce Nelson, Troy Church head elder; Randall Terry, Upper Columbia Conference treasurer; and Ken Whitney, Troy mayor.
Whitney related how the Troy Church has had many members who have been involved in and added to the community of Troy. The church is supporting a community center that, in turn, helps support the needs of many in and around the area. In the past, the town doctor and dentist were Adventist members.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was headed up by previous pastor Otis Parks and his wife, Ann. Music was provided by a choir made up of the church children.
Because their miracles have circulated around their children, members had many stations in the new fellowship hall set up for kids. Some included fun and interactive booths for Vacation Bible School and a kids' program that the church puts on once a month called Happy Hour for Kids, which is an extension of VBS.
Another station included health and Bible literature with information and an invitation to upcoming church events. Other stations included two sit-down areas to view both a slide show of the building project from start to finish and a historical video of the original 1906 church.
Troy Church intends to make this new facility available for the enrichment of their community and to share Christ’s love. A sign-up sheet was available at one station for visitors to give their ideas or needs for the new building. There has already been usage of and interest in booking it for town functions, weddings, funerals, town club meetings and interfaith church functions. During a recent community choir rehearsal, Olesen told the guests, “We are so glad you are making beautiful music here. You are helping inaugurate our new facility.”
The personal ministries committee has already hosted eight midweek DVD presentations of Tracing the Footsteps of Jesus by Tony Moore. Attendance each night averaged 25 people, half of whom were community members.
As a church, Troy Church members feel humbled at the outpouring of God’s blessings on them and want to openly give Him thanks and the glory. They are eager to share these blessings with others around them.
Lyndi Littler, Troy Church communication leader, and Kandy Nelson, Troy Church clerk
Lyndi Littler, Vonnie Olesen, Ann Parks, former pastor Otis Parks, Ole Olesen and Laurie Nelson participate in the open house celebration.
Royce Nelson, Troy Church head elder; Darrell Hunt; Ken Whitney, Troy mayor; and Ole Olesen, Troy Church pastor, contribute to an open house celebrating the church's expansion.
Dixie Hunt and Darrel Hunt.
Ann Parks, Otis Parks and Ole Olesen.
