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Monday's Internet Edition, March 15, 2010.
RM Community Church has room to grow in new building
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Photos by Wendy Smith
The Rancho Murieta Community Church now occupies a space in the former FAA building on Cantova Way, creating more room for the church to grow.
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By Wendy Smith
River Valley Times Staff
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The Rancho Murieta Community Church has moved to the FAA building on Cantova Way and now has room to expand. The church held its first services in the new locale on Sunday, June 7 with the entire move from the old building adjacent to the firehouse occurring in just one week.
Interim Senior Pastor Rick Pitcher called it a near miracle. “People really stepped in to help out,” he said. “We’re very thankful for that.” Pitcher, who stepped into the role of interim senior pastor this last year after being a Worship pastor with the church for seven years, said that the new space will give the church the opportunity to grow. “Not only does it allow us to expand, it allows us to be in one place,” he said.
The church offices and classroom are now under the same roof as the sanctuary, and all on one floor. “It’s much easier for people who want to see us,” Pitcher said, adding that the former offices on the second floor of the Plaza had been difficult to traverse for some congregants.
The much larger sanctuary provides room for congregation growth, with the current numbers of active attendants at roughly 300. “We have room to grow now, which we didn’t in the old building,” said Pitcher. “We can easily support 500 people in this building with two services. We would have needed many more in our old space in order to do that.” In addition to the new space, the church has new service times. The more classically formatted service is now at 8:30 a.m., and the contemporary service is held at 10:45 a.m. with the message the same at both.
The change of time allows for new adult classes to be held in the hour between services. These will include Bible study, financial planning, child rearing, new membership and more. “This is something that we’ve wanted to do for some time but couldn’t,” said Pitcher. “Now we have the space, and we’re really excited to be offering this to those who come to our church.” Children’s Sunday school will continue to be offered during the second service, with childcare also available at the first service.
Though the space may have changed, many of the community outreach programs in which the church is involved have remained constant. During a recent mission trip to Loma Bonita, Mexico, church members built a sports court to accompany the two-story church building and sidewalk that they’ve been working on the past three years. “We’re happy that we can go back and help them out both in our work and with our fundraising,” said Pitcher. “More kids are going to the school that the church has, and it’s really beginning to thrive.”
The RM Community Church offers a free vacation Bible school that began July 27. They also sold fireworks for the Fourth of July to raise money for the youth group, and junior high and high school parishioners will be going to camps in Southern California this summer. The church also has a mission trip to Utah this month.
Though the move to the new building promises positive growth for the church in the near future, it is still only a temporary home for the RM Community Church. The church will eventually occupy space along Highway 16, which also includes plans for a private Christian school. According to Pitcher, progress is being made with the county. The church is also nearing completion on its search for a senior pastor, with the board coming to a place of decision within the next few months.
Those interested in the RM Community Church are encouraged to stop by the former FAA building on Cantova Way or visit the website at rmchurch.org.
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Online publication, Copyright 2005, The River Valley Times.
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Copyright 2005, EZ Edit Web Publishing.
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