By Kelly Dunlap

One fall evening in a small North Carolina town, a group began to congregate, uninvited, in the pavilion of New Salem UMC. A well-intentioned member of the church set off to inform the group that they couldn’t gather on their property, but when Pastor Steve Bergkamp caught wind of what was happening, he ran after them to insist that they were welcome to stay.

The unexpected visitors were a recreational line dancing group that had lost access to their usual facility and needed a place to dance. Bergkamp invited them to return as they wanted and offered the use of the church’s fellowship fall, free of cost.

The members of New Salem UMC were not surprised by, or resistant to, these new regulars on their property. Since beginning at the church just two years prior, Bergkamp had built up trust among the congregation and conveyed his desire to cultivate new relationships in the community.

Bergkamp had told the congregation: “The church isn’t going to grow by what we do on Sunday mornings. Our goal is to utilize our property and buildings Monday – Saturday, then Sunday will take care of itself.”

However, while church growth is welcomed, these community interactions are not covert strategies to grow the flock. Bergkamp has made sure that it’s clear, both in his congregation and the community, that there are no string attached when community groups use their space—there are no requirements for visitors to join the congregation or claim religious beliefs. If there were expectations, Bergkamp believes that “people will sniff that out and know we’re not authentic.”

The congregation went through a discernment process during the recent schism in the United Methodist Church, in which some churches chose to disaffiliate. New Salem decided to stay in the UMC and through those discussions on values and vision, the congregation identified that they cared more about having an impact on the community than growing attendance on Sunday mornings. This clarity of vision gave Bergkamp a “green light” to put energy toward relationships outside of the church. A very small number of members, already unhappy with New Salem’s decision to stay in the UMC, left the church over the its approach to community outreach.

Those who stayed had a renewed energy to make space, literally, for new life in the church. Church members have been cleaning out the church library and old Sunday school rooms so that they can be used by the community. Bergkamp says that attention is being paid to respecting and preserving their heritage, while not letting it be a hindrance to what they believe God is calling them to today.

Church trustees even decided to spend $12,000 to replace the fellowship hall floor to better host the line dancers. The dancers became very active in the church’s fundraisers for this project and even other ministry efforts.

While there was no expectation the dancers would support the church in this way, Bergkamp did say he’s given one stipulation for their use of the space: that people of all backgrounds from the community were welcome to participate for free. The group eagerly agreed.

Building community partnerships is not a new territory for Bergkamp. Prior to becoming a pastor, he served for 35 years as a Park Ranger and Superintendent, including being a “burn boss” responsible for prescribed fires. In these roles he organized community groups to assist in park operations. He recognizes that some of those outreach and organizing skills are being put to use in his new role as pastor.

But Bergkamp doesn’t see New Salem’s outreach efforts as exceptional, but rather as a part of a larger trend of congregations asking how they can use their properties in service to the community.

And New Salem’s new ways have stirred curiosity in the town about the church. “We’ve become known as the church that has a full parking during the week,” Bergkamp says.