By Andrew Humphries
Ken Baker says while the Airport West Uniting Church congregation may be an ageing one, that doesn’t mean its members are resting on their laurels.
Church Council Chair Ken says congregation members have a big heart and believe that missional work and support for the community should be at the forefront of what they do.
“It’s a very open and friendly congregation, which always welcomes newcomers,” Ken says.
“Congregational members describe Airport West Uniting Church as welcoming, caring, friendly, energetic, practical, prayerful, ecumenically minded, dedicated, hard-working, generous, supportive and devoted to others.
“But we’re not just sitting back and relaxing.
“All of the members believe part of being a Uniting Church congregation is one involving giving and being part of the community, and in that regard it’s a very caring congregation.”
While not a huge congregation, with numbers around the 40 mark at most services, it’s one with an extremely strong missional focus, something Ken witnesses on a regular basis.
“Yes, it’s an ageing congregation, with members in their 90s, but it’s one which is very much outreach and mission focused,” he says.
That focus on mission and the concept of Faithful Giving continues to drive the good work carried out by the congregation.
That work can be traced back to a strategic decision made nearly 20 years ago by members of two congregations.
Airport West Uniting Church was formed through the amalgamation of the former Keilor East and Airport West congregations and officially came into being in 2006.
In 2012 the congregation decided to sell the Keilor East site and use the proceeds to renovate and extend the Airport West Site.
Following further consideration, it was then decided that the Airport West building should be demolished, and a new facility built, a decision which opened up the sale of two blocks of land which were no longer required.
Ken says it was that far-sighted decision, and the financial boost that resulted from it, that has allowed Airport West members to carry out substantial and ongoing missional work, both within and outside the Uniting Church.
“The positive out of this for us was that it guaranteed us an ongoing income,” he says.
“It’s (a congregation) which is very much outreach and mission focused,” Ken says.
While the congregation makes a substantial annual financial commitment to the Uniting Church at a Synod level, with a yearly contribution to the mission and service program, an additional 5 per cent of its total annual income is directed towards mission projects at international, national, state and local level.
“We have a mission projects team and they look at what funds we get in each year and how that might be allocated to different charities,” Ken says.
“The priority, of course, is those charities associated with the Uniting Church, like Food for Families, but we have supported charities overseas if some form of emergency has come up.
“We also have a benevolent fund which is used to support local people and groups experiencing difficulty.”
As well as the benevolent fund, ongoing support to a number of charities comes in the form of donations of food and toys.
In 2022, Airport West members held an Autumn Fair, a Spring Fair and a Christmas Market Day, with the proceeds from the market going to support Victorian flood relief.
That community involvement is a big part of what makes the congregation tick, says Ken, with members always keen to support groups wanting to make use of its facilities, meaning they are used most days of the week.
“A Samoan Seventh-day Adventist congregation uses the church, and we have a men’s group, friendship groups, and a children’s dance group using it, as well as canasta, knitting and creative living groups,” Ken says.
The congregation is also involved with service clubs Rotary and Probus and has, over the last few years, hosted a number of community meetings, including gambling and drug forums.
Ken says the congregation has fostered a strong relationship with members of the Gladstone Park congregation, with both congregations sharing a supply Minister to lead worship services.
Ken is hopeful a Minister will be appointed on a permanent basis soon, able to conduct two services a month at Airport West and two at Gladstone Park, with both congregations contributing to the cost.
“As the congregation seeks to live out its missional objectives, it hopes for new life and ministry in the next few years,” Ken says.
Your FAITHFUL GIVING supports the wider church by funding grants; training for ministry candidates and local leaders, Presbytery Ministers and ministry; Crosslight, websites and e-news; resources to assist in worship, witness and service; Narana; equipping Leadership for Mission (eLM); providing services to help meet obligations to keep our people and properties safe; and supporting church communities in rural and remote regions.
