Congregation ready to celebrate at new church
Christmas Eve services will be a little extra special this year at Orchard Hill Church, 120 Walker Ave. They will be the church's first in its new permanent home.
Orchard Hill, part of a three-church community that includes campuses in Wexford and Pittsburgh's Strip District, started in Butler County in October 2017 at Penn Christian Academy in Penn Township.
It moved to a rental space at Trinity Presbyterian Church, 107 Staley Ave., in the fall of 2018 before moving into the former Intersection Church this spring.
“We had our first services around Easter,” said member Laura Leslie of Butler. “This will be our first Christmas in the new space, the new neighborhood.”
“For the first Christmas in this space, we bought all new decorations,” said Pastor Brady Randall.
A group of 12 volunteers set up the trees, Advent wreath, gift boxes and garlands right after Thanksgiving.
“The trees came flocked, and I made the mistake of wearing a black top, and I left here completely flocked,” said Leslie, one of the volunteers.
Randall and Leslie said the volunteers took off work to spend a half-day decorating the sanctuary, the children's ministry area and the cafe area.The decorations don't have to be taken down after church services as was the case in the church's previous two locations.Randall said the 165-member congregation will be able to attend a 3 p.m. and a 5 p.m. candlelight Christmas Eve service in its new home this year.Leslie has been a member of Orchard Hill since 2006.“For me, it's feeling at home. The message every week speaks to me. It's a welcoming family,” she said.“It's fun after every service here to see how many people don't leave. Everybody stays and talks,” Leslie said.A key decoration in the sanctuary is the Advent wreath, which has candles that count down the weeks until Christmas.“We'll light the Christ Candle on Christmas Eve in preparation for Jesus for his first return and future return,” Randall said.The church's former tree has been repurposed as a “giving tree” in the cafe area, where congregants donate clothing and hygiene supplies for the area's homeless.Randall estimated volunteers from the church put in at least 1,000 hours of painting, cleaning and remodeling to get the building ready for its new mission.That mission, he said, was to be a church for the whole community.“Whether you have been a believer your whole life or you are investigating claims of faith, we welcome you as you already are,” Randall said.“The saying goes if you speak to the already committed, soon you will only have the already committed present. But if you speak to the whole community, you will have the whole community present,” he said.The children's ministry area makes this a great place for families, he said. And the church hopes to start First Fridays in the church's gymnasium beginning in January where children can play games.But for now, Randall is looking forward to conducting the first Christmas Eve ceremonies in Orchard Hill's new home.He said, “We're excited. I think with the hustle and bustle of Christmas, a Christmas Eve service in a church gives people a chance to focus on the real reason for the season, when we remember the one who has come to rescue us.”Orchard Hill welcomes anyone to attend its Christmas Eve services, but asks that people register online at https://www.orchardhillchurch.com/ and follow the links there.
