Ministry in action

Last year, St. Paul expanded it’s mental health and housing ministries with the purchase of a home on Carey Ave in Davenport. Now, the final piece of the expansion is soon to be completed as renovations to the 2025 Main Street house, located right on the St. Paul campus, near completion and the home’s new residents prepare to move in.

St. Paul began its mental health ministry more than 25 years ago and the house at 2025 Main Street has been filled with residents nearly the entire time. Small updates and projects were completed during those years, but a larger renovation would require temporary housing for those residents. That’s why the timing of the purchase of the Carey Ave home was so serendipitous. Residents from 2025 Main Street permanently relocated to Carey Ave, and renovation work on Main Street began.

St. Paul campus and groundskeeper, not to mention all-around handyman, Larry Keller helped lead the renovation project alongside operations director Miles Thompson and building manager Matt Spencer. It takes a large team to accomplish a home renovation and the work of more than 30 volunteers to clean, update, build, paint, and prepare for its next residents is unparalleled.
This past June, volunteers first came into the home to strip wallpaper, take down wall hangings and blinds, remove furniture and carpet, gut the kitchen, and get the space prepped for the next phase.

St. Paul member Ron Mullen was there from the beginning. First helping to clear out the house and then stepping in as a member of the painting crew.

“You could tell the house was very lived in. Everything was outdated and in need of a refresh: carpet colors, wallpaper, kitchen appliances, everything. You could see the new house start to come through and it just kept getting better and better with every project,” Ron said. “There is the overhaul of the kitchen, the creation of a back entryway mudroom by Keith Kutzbach, and a half bathroom that Gary and Nancy Ingelson made their own. I didn’t know most of the people I volunteered with well, mostly in passing, but we’ve spent a lot of time together and we clicked as a team.”

Ron said it’s the importance of this ministry that inspired him to volunteer.

“For St. Paul, 2025 Main Street has been an ongoing ministry for more than 28 years. The needs in this community are many,” Ron said. “Both mental health and housing are ministry areas St. Paul identified as a need many years ago and, with the support of the mission board and the congregation, has been able to expand to make it as successful as possible.”

The painting crew consisted of nearly 10 people and the teams often communicated through sticky notes on doors or walls when they were working different schedules. “Needs second coat.” “Primed.” St. Paul member and ‘ceiling master’ (as Ron referred to him) Jerry Bippus said he volunteers to give back.

“St. Paul gives back so much to the community. It’s just amazing and there is such a need. I can help be part of giving back. God gave me a healthy body, and I can use that to help others,” Jerry said. “So many people put so much work into this house. I was only a small piece of a much larger team.”

Operations director Miles Thompson said the credit goes to the volunteers.

“We’re grateful to every person who came out to lend a hand throughout the entire process. The incoming residents have a place to call home because of the work of volunteers,” Miles said. “So many people donated their time, their talents, and their resources throughout this process and we can’t say ‘thank you’ enough. Your work and your generosity have an incredible impact on the future of these ministries, but most importantly, on the lives of the four people living in that house.”

St. Paul expanded its partnership with Vera French Housing, making 2025 Main Street a home for women with mental illness. Residents plan to move in at the beginning of March and an open house is scheduled for the middle of February (see below) to give the congregation a chance to celebrate the work of these volunteers.