Year In Review - AGM 2021

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

1

A Year in Review

D EC E M B E R 1 , 2 0 2 1

Table of Contents

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

3

4

A Note From Scott Lanigan

6

It’s Not About Us

10

We Are a Mosaic

14

We Light Up The Dark

18

We Measure In Life Change

20

We Pass The Baton

28

We Are Better Together

32

We Boycott Boycotts

38

We Are All In The Same Boat

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

A note from Scott Lanigan on behalf of the Trinity Team It wasn’t until the late 1960’s when seatbelts began to appear in the front seat of passenger cars. It consisted of two belts: one for your shoulder and one across the lap. They were not popular. Years later when I was a young child, I clearly remember traveling those infinitely long Saskatchewan prairie roads in the backseat of my parents car, face pressed against the window, without a care in the world, and without a seatbelt. With more cars on the road, more accidents were happening with unnecessary loss of life. Car companies knew seatbelts saved lives, and took swift action to get people to use them. Their solution was an advertising campaign launched at encouraging drivers to fasten their seat belts, using the tagline “buckle up.” The campaign was incredibly successful. About the same time, the use of buckle up as an idiom appeared. It was used in a figurative sense to warn someone that something exciting, frightening or otherwise intense was about to happen. Fast forward to today, and you are most likely to hear it from hockey commentators as two rival teams enter overtime: “Fasten your seatbelts everybody. This is gonna be good.”

The last 12 months felt like you couldn’t get your seatbelt on fast enough. As the COVID pandemic sped across our world, it left few aspects of our lives unaltered. It was and continues to be a transformative moment in history. Old forms rapidly being replaced by new ones. In the local church it was no different requiring a retooling of every single aspect of ministry.

It truly reminded each one of us the church is not a place it is a people; followers of Jesus who have been chosen, set apart, gifted, enabled, and empowered to fulfill God’s purposes.

These next pages express what ministry looked like during that retooling. A reminder that God was in control. He was not overwhelmed. He was not worried. And if he could do all of this in the middle of a pandemic, imagine what he might want to do through Trinity church next.

Buckle up.

4

5

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

“Shout for joy to God, all the earth!

Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious.

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you.

All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing the praises of your name.”

Come and see what God has done, his awesome deeds for mankind!”

Psalm 66:1-5

Core Value

It’s Not About Us

This is the Father’s party and we are His servants, privileged to prepare the party and invite the guests. We design our environments to be relevant and welcoming for all to come as they are.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

7

Weekends & Teaching Stream Seeing the need for our community to have a consistent diet of biblical truth, there was an intentional investment into teaching through The Story. This provided a steady stream of biblical content that was helpful for the seasoned follower as well as the newbie to better understand God through the biblical text.

Then, there seemed to be a shift pre-summer in people’s attitudes locally and beyond. As restrictions lifted and then reinstated again, there was a growing frustration and unrest in the city which appeared to be present in the church (of Kelowna) as well. To address this, the teaching stream shifted to the Fruit of the Spirit, and then to the Unstuck series; a very intentional approach to helping people understand integrity matters and to move into the freedom that Jesus offers. A five-week series on the book of James will finish out the fall as we move toward Christmas.

2020

October – November: The Story December: Christmas

2021

January: The Messy Middle

February – March: The Story April: Easter/Cultivate

May – June: The Story

July – August: Infused (Fruit of the Spirit) September: Family Reunion October: Unstuck

November: James

December: Christmas

relevant and welcoming

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

8

Weekend Elements Confession

There has been a very deliberate strategy to help people understand the importance of confession and forgiveness.

People are wearing so much hurt and pain that have either been done to them, or they have done to others. These acts of confession are to provide sacramental moments where the Holy Spirit can do the healing work the church so desperately needs.

Giving

There has been an intentional shift in language from “support” to “purpose”.

Baptism

We continually see people be transformed by the Holy Spirit and respond with baptism. 18 people were baptized this past year and 11 are currently affirmed to be baptized.

Christmas

As the auditorium will not be completed until sometime in the new year, multiple options from a digital-only experience to a rental of Prospera Place were explored.

After much deliberation, the choice was made to use the Refinery for a more intimate Christmas experience.

Keeping the values of celebrating Jesus, allowing people to give toward an initiative and inviting them back into our community in the new year.

Team Day

This was a new initiative as we launched our in-person gatherings in September. For the first time, mission, vision, values and training across all volunteer roles were done in one experience. This event was transformational as teams were trained up and empowered. Many had never served before in our community. More than 150 people attended and created the strongest fall launch in recent history.

trans

9

sformed by

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

10

Core Value

We Are A Mosaic We are intentionally diverse, believing that a mix of generations, ethnicities, and cultures helps create the rich and surprising unity Jesus desired.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

11

“I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ.”

1 Corinthians 9:19

Trinity Online: Campus Launch While Trinity has livestreamed its services for a number of years, this past year spurred the official launch of Trinity Church’s second campus – Trinity Online.

Our hybrid church reality (regular in-person expressions & online experiences) has changed the playbook. Trinity will continue to be a church that creates excellent content intended to inspire and help others on their spiritual journey. However one chooses to engage with our weekends, they will hear a centralized message that has been specifically designed for the environment they’re in.

Target Audience

For those who call Trinity Online home

Our online experience has become Trinity’s second campus and many have chosen to make this the primary location at which they attend a weekend service.

For those who can’t attend in-person

Whether for medical or personal reasons, geographical location or travel, attending every week in-person is not an option for many. Trinity Online is the best way to stay connected.

For those who are discovering Trinity Church for the first time

Most people will check out the digital presence of a church before attending in person. Trinity Online provides a window into who we are and what to expect at an inperson gathering.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

12

Intended Outcomes

Values

As is also the goal of our in-person expression, our hope for a weekend experience is that everyone discovers Jesus in a life-changing way. Each person can identify where they are on their spiritual journey and know how to take their next step.

Creating continuity across our in-person and online gatherings is key to building a seamless look and feel to Trinity, no matter where people attend. Trust is built when there is alignment between all expressions.

Lives are changed & growth is evident.

Connections are made.

Consistent and accessible next steps are provided for people to digitally engage with Community Groups classes, and everything Trinity has to offer.

People feel at home.

Trinity Online offers a welcoming environment that promotes a sense of belonging. This should encourage someone to continue attending online or to attend in person for the first time.

Our reach is global.

Trinity’s message and medium are unique, and our reach is international. We will continue to journey with people from around the world who have chosen to track with Trinity Online as their home church.

Continuity

Welcoming & Casual Environment

To connect with people who are sitting in their homes, or in a variety of locations, our environments, wardrobe & language will lean towards the casual side of the spectrum.

Excellence

Imperfections, whether visually or audibly, are magnified when watching a video. We strive to create a high-quality experience online that eliminates potential distractions from the message we’re communicating.

Storytelling

Storytelling is the bridge between our digital and in-person experiences. Stories of local impact and global reach build a sense of ONE church and belonging.

13

We are a mosaic TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

14

Core Value

We Light Up The Dark We realize God has called us here to be a light. We courageously move into hopelessness, need, and injustice with the redeeming power of Jesus Christ.

Digital Media & Communications Over the past year, we have seen the ways our church community engages shift significantly. While much of the reason for these shifts was related to the requirements of meeting together digitally rather than in person, we have heard countless stories of people finding rhythms of life that they never would have found otherwise. Rhythms that helped families and individuals find meaningful, lifechanging encounters outside of the typical ‘hour on Sunday.’

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

15

Trinity Online Metrics

350,000+

The length of time our viewers stay on our livestream pages is

20% higher

views of our weekend service experience

40,000+

than the average retention rate from other churches around North America (70%, while the average is 50%)

hours of content has been viewed online

650+ 40 countries videos Viewers from over

uploaded to our digital archive over on our YouTube page.

from around the globe

Where people access Trinity Online: Trinity’s Livestream Page (from website)

YouTube

9%

45%

11%

Trinity’s Livestream Page (from app)

When people access Trinity Online has also expanded beyond our previous service times: Saturday

18%

35%

59%

Sunday

Facebook

Watch the archive within 7 days

20%

3% Watch the archive within 7-14 days

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

16

17

Trinity Social Media & Newsletter How our church accesses information has shifted as well.

While Trinity will continue to offer clear communication from the stage on weekends, our primary method of information delivery has shifted in this season.

Social Media

Our followership has grown significantly on Facebook (2.7k page likes) and Instagram (1.9k followers). These platforms have been referred to as “the church foyer of our online campus.”

Newsletter

With over 1,900 subscribers, our newsletter has proven to be the most efficient mouthpiece of crucial information and storytelling. If there is anything that should be known by anyone who calls Trinity Church home, they will likely first see it in a newsletter. Our community is recognizing this, and the subscriber list continues to grow exponentially each month. Subscribe today at trinitychurchkelowna.ca.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

2.7k

Facebook page likes

1.9k Instagram followers

1,900+ Email Newsletter subscribers

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

18

Core Value

We Measure In Life Change We are agents of God’s redemption on this broken planet. Our effectiveness is measured by both personal and community transformation.

Discipleship & Care

For the Discipleship & Care teams, our greatest desire is to model how to live out our Core Values. We long for people to connect, pray and read together, wherever they are at in their spiritual journey. During this past year, we have had many opportunities for people to do just that. Here is some of what we have been up to:

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

19

01 02

03

04 05 06

We continue to move people towards connecting with others through community groups because we believe doing life together, and knowing each other’s story is a powerful way to grow in our faith and help others do the same.

Over 100 people have gone through Alpha either joining in our online group, a community group or one of the 6 Alpha sessions at Freedom’s Door or Karis Society. As a result of Shawn Swail’s investment in Alpha, we now have a group from Freedom’s Door and Karis Society joining us in our in-person worship gatherings.

We also did Alpha Marriage online and we had 8 couples participate. One couple emailed (Pastor Brad) saying this saved their marriage because the husband would not go to counselling but felt comfortable enough to take this in via zoom. Praise God! We offered several online devotionals: The Daily, Advent, and Rule of Life where we saw upwards of 600 people participate.

Each week we offered the Talk About It Guide & podcasts, which have been great tools for community groups and others who want to dive deeper into each weekend’s message.

09

10 11 12

13

49 people are taking part in our first ‘phygital’ (inperson & via zoom) course this fall – Emotionally Healthy Relationships.

07

Pastor Gord and his team made over 5600 phone calls to check in with our seniors.

08

We were able to begin in-person hospital/care facilities visits and services in September 2021.

14

Because prayer is a huge value we have at Trinity, we knew during this time one of the greatest things we could do for and with people was pray for them.

We receive numerous requests for personal prayer each week. We have a 45-member prayer team that prays over these requests 3 times per week. As well, 136 households receive the Prayer Newsletter weekly. Plus, we had over 300 people participate in our online Prayer Summits.

Friendship Club sent weekly digital teaching to 67 friends, 180 care packages were delivered to all friends at Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving.

Friends received monthly connections via personal phone calls from Glenn Gardiner.

Mental health walking groups: We had 14 in our walking group with several of them saying that this was a lifesaver for them to get out to walk and talk.

AFG online recordings: We have had over 1100 views of our 4 online programs. This was a massive change and adjustment for our team to do all of this while not being able to meet in person. AFG continued to meet, when possible, with the help of our drive-throughs and BBQs at Helen’s Acres.

GriefShare continued meeting. One group of ladies kept meeting in a park after finishing GriefShare.

One lady in their group passed away and they hosted a memorial service for her because she didn’t have any family in her life. What a great example of how a community can really work.

Pastor Brad continued running support groups – 189 participants for the last 20 months.

Praising God that He did not stop moving during this season. Life change is continuing to happen, and we get to use our gifts to facilitate that.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

20

Core Value

We Pass The Baton We invest in the next generation and give influence to emerging leaders, allowing us to stay effective for generations.

Trinity Kids There are two passages that stand out as beacons in this past year. The first is 2 Timothy 1:7 which says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” The second is Hebrews 13:8 which says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” As COVID settled in for another year, there needed to be a different narrative. A narrative of courage and hope that communicated the fact that while we were in uncharted territory, God was not. He has plans & purposes during all this for the church to thrive in new ways. In the unknown, uncertainty and chaos, a new vision was sparked for Trinity Kids. This past year gave us an opportunity to jump on a train that we’d been looking to board…we just didn’t expect it to come down the track at full speed!

Kids ministry is about kids. It’s about seeing them belong to a community, grow in their knowledge and understanding

of who Jesus is and who He’s created them be. It’s about raising up and empowering the next generation to lead right now and for the future! Simultaneously, it’s also about partnering with parents as a community to embrace their God-given and God-inspired role as the primary spiritual leader in their family’s life. Our ministry can do activities and provide phenomenal programming with fun games and amazing volunteers and build remarkable community, but the magic, the nitty gritty of discipleship for kids, happens at home; around tables, in cars, getting ready for school, during bath time, snuggling into bed, and through shared experiences together. That’s where the rubber hits the road. That’s where identity, character, and purpose are formed and brought to fruition. And…kids need more positive, affirming, faith-filled voices in their lives, which is where family and church partner together. We, church and family, can do more together than either of us could do on our own. So, this last year, we strived to use ourour

21 21

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

time, energy, and resources to help families experience Jesus, connect with others, and be on mission together right where they were; at home.

The Trinity Kids box kicked off in October of 2020 with the launch of “The Story”. The box put kids in the driver’s seat of the experience and invited grown-ups in with a weekly three-part process: watch it (weekly video), do it (activity based on video) and talk about it (family dialogue). Boxes also included a monthly family experience and a memory verse. These boxes helped to keep a weekly rhythm of connection and inspiration, especially for our littlest of littles who had yet to experience church & community through Trinity Kids. We wanted to help families keep their weekly “church” routine and resource them right where they were at home.

Overall, there were 8 Trinity Kids boxes over 8 months (October 2020 - May 2021). That meant 8 opportunities for a shared family experience (ranging from fort building to creating kits for the homeless), verses to memorize together as a family, and Spotify playlists for kids worship themed to what we were talking about that month. In 8 months, there were a total of 153 box subscribers that were given 34 weeks of activities for Preschoolers, K-3’s, and Preteens to do at home and talk about together as a family. We shipped 15 boxes mostly in Western Canada and Ontario. 54 subscribers were not Trinity families.

“It (the Trinity Kids Box) brought us together, forced us to carve out time to spend together as a family that we wouldn’t have spent. It created space for us to have valuable conversations together. It helped me show my children that there are very good and positive people in this world who follow Jesus, helps our children see goodness in these darker times and that their Church is still a fun and safe place, that their Church has never left them and always will be there for them, even in darker times.”

- T R I N I T Y K I D S B OX S U B S C R I B E R

“Thank you so much for this impactful work you are doing. I am so impressed with all of you at Trinity Kids!”

-

OUT

OF

TOW N

TRINITY

KIDS

B OX

SUBSCRIBER

A highlight at Easter was the Bunny Bomb! The Bunny Bomb was an exploding candy box! Yes, it had candy, but it was primarily about celebrating resurrection. It represented joy, surprise, and new life as it sprung open!

Inside the box was a link to a digital family experience called Easter Jam that shared a message of hope that God can take something that is broken and put it back together.

We challenged families to rebuild the Bunny Bomb and pass it on to a neighbour! The feedback from the Bunny Bomb was absolutely phenomenal. We heard from Trinity families, neighbours, and co-workers who couldn’t wait for it again next year. 17 volunteers built 251 Bunny Bombs in just under 3 days. 20 volunteer drivers delivered 227 of them while 25 more went out through the Compassion Meal ministry. 57 Bunny Bombs were re-created by families and passed on (23%). The winning Bunny Bomb travelled to 9 different homes.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

22

“Thanks so much for the awesome Bunny Bomb on Saturday. We weren’t home when you came by, but we had the neighbours all talking about the ‘2 bunnies’ that came by our front door!

Haha what a cool and generous surprise, to find boxes within boxes, all filled with yummy treats!

Thank you, thank you!! What a fantastic idea!

Happy Easter to all of you!”

- BUNNY BOMB RECEIVER

We also hosted 4 drive-thrus as connection points. We wanted to help families with a practical need in a fun way and an excuse to get some face-to-face time with kids and parents! Parents loved that they didn’t have to cook, and kids loved to talk! As we stood by car windows passing out food, there were many “hellos” and meaningful moments of conversation and connection. Some took their food to go, while others would make little mini pods in the parking lot and eat together. Fuelling more than just appetites, we served 314 hamburgers, 224 hot dogs, 116 ice cream sandwiches, and 281 pancakes.

23

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

“It was wonderful to see you and have a little chat, too. I have to say you have been amazing and so supportive through all of this.”

- T R I N I T Y K I D S FA M I LY

In May 2021, we shifted our attention to running Summer Stuff in the midst of changing restrictions. We hosted four age specific weeks of camp for ages 3 - grade 5. We had 180 participants and 30-35 volunteers each week. One highlight of Summer Stuff was partnering with NextGen and launch of the first ever SLP (Student Leadership Program) experience! Through Summer Stuff we’ve seen kids and students get plugged into Trinity and a growing relationship with Jesus. We got to plan the fun and set up parents to win at home.

“I just wanted to say you guys did such a fantastic job with the Bible camp this summer. I had two kids in it…they had the most fun at your camp.

Every day since it finished they have asked about Bible camp and when they can go back again. So just wanted to say thank you and your team for doing a great job. My kids cannot wait for next summer’s Bible camp.”

- S U M M E R S T U F F FA M I LY

Boggle is a loveable puppet who helps Preschoolers learn God’s Word and story! Grade School re-introduced the Midweek Show, which is a zany, live podcast style show with some fun, creative Bible storytelling, and fun challenges to take on at home! Remember to like, share, and subscribe!

“You guys, we love watching what you do. It’s so funny and engaging.”

- T R I N I T Y K I D S O N L I N E FA M I LY

Now we’re in person and our volunteer team is STACKED and STOKED to be partnering with families to write the best possible story for them. We’ve created a safe place for kids and families to grow in their love for Jesus, others and living with purpose and mission. Every Sunday morning we do church and every Wednesday we produce a midweek video with the sole purpose of helping every parent win at home. We want every Preschooler to learn about God’s love and meet God’s family, and every Grade School kid to discover who Jesus is and who He’s created them to be by giving them a place to belong and a leader who believes in them.

“We started following Trinity with the boxes… Now we’re here in person, and loving it. Thank you.”

- T R I N I T Y K I D S B OX S U B S C R I B E R

We’ve continued to produce weekly videos on YouTube for families who have kids in both Preschool & Grade School. In July we introduced Boggle for Preschoolers!

& FA M I LY

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

24

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

25

NextGen Youth The past 12 months have been incredible to witness and humbling to experience. God has moved mountains even when it seems that everything in this season is fighting against us. It can be difficult to remember that we are in the business of making an eternal impact when sitting in a room with grade 6 boys as they crush you in a dog pile.

God gently reminded me of this verse from 1 Corinthians earlier this fall. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Our responsibility is the “seen” work of preparing the soil and planting the seeds. God is always at work in the unseen.

In early 2021 the Youth ministries were subject to tightened restrictions on in-person gatherings. Our ministries were able to continue meeting in small group formats, thanks to our dedicated leadership community of small group volunteers. Because of their faithfulness and commitment to our students, we retained 30% of our regular attendance to our midweek programming. Knowing the toll of the season, our programming reduced to 3 weeks on, 1 week off to allow the rest needed for our volunteers who, even with their own struggles through COVID, continued to journey alongside our students. Our volunteer retention from 2020 to 2021 is 89%. This fall we added 7 new volunteers to the team, an increase of 26%.

“Volunteering as an HSY youth leader has been life changing. Mentoring youth while receiving the Word of God myself and working alongside invested, passionate ministry leaders is incredibly meaningful. One of my new grade 11 girls recently said to me, “I was really surprised to learn that youth leaders aren’t paid and you are all volunteers. It’s amazing that you spend so much time with us. It’s inspiring.” I told her, “What’s good in me is Jesus.” I see His goodness in the staff, fellow leaders, and the complicated, quirky, loveable, sometimes stinky, beautiful youth. HSY is a very life affirming place to serve.”

- JENNY SERGEANT (A HIGH SCHOOL YO U T H L E A D E R )

With the cancellation of our 2020 fall retreat and the increasing sense of need for students to know and experience that we are all in this together, the Youth team created WIRED, an entirely virtual retreat experience in March. Our goal was to infuse hope for the future and allow students to experience the presence of God in their homes. Our theme was that we were created on purpose, for a purpose.

WIRED hosted 60 students over 3 sessions with 25 volunteers leading breakout rooms, facilitating small group discussion, and leading worship. During a season where it was increasingly difficult to stay positive when all our interactions were online, WIRED allowed students and leaders to connect over shared experiences. We watched God use this time of baking, TikTok dances, hair tying, video editing, and laughter during the Late Late Late Show (to name just a few), to re-establish community and bring hope into dark places.

“Hi. I just wanted to give a big thank you for all the individuals involved in the Wired Youth Retreat. It was obvious so much work went into it and our kids loved it. We could feel God’s presence the whole weekend and all through the retreat and our home. Thank you.

It meant a lot during this time. Feeling blessed .”

- K I M WA R D M A N

equipping the next generation

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

During the summer months our focus shifted to day camps. New this year was a partner initiative between the Kids and Youth ministries. Our goal was twofold, to bridge the gap between students who were highly invested in our Kids ministries but not yet connected to Youth, and for the Youth team to lean into a more intentional discipleship program with students who wanted to go deeper in their faith. Middle and high school students who were volunteering at day camps were signed up for the Servant Leadership Program (SLP). The result of the Kids and Youth team collaborating on summer day camps was 35 grade 6 students attending our kickoff night, and a new level of ownership from our SLP students to invest and shape culture as peer leaders. Our SLPs have been contributing to digital teaching by sharing their stories and stepping up during Youth nights to lead.

The new fall season offered an opportunity to re-establish the community and culture of our midweek connections.

Knowing many students have felt disconnected over the pandemic, we focused on one of our NextGen values of “cultivating communities of belonging”, knowing it would meet a significant need for NextGen families. This drove our team to take advantage of the opportunity COVID has brought to try new ways of engaging with students so that our regular attendees could experience deeper spiritual transformation, and that those new to us would discover Trinity Youth to be a place where they are safe, known, loved, and belong.

As churches across Canada began re-opening their doors, attendance has been in the 30-50% range. However, the attendance for our Youth kickoff night in September brought in 108% compared to our historical average. We have witnessed a 10% increase in consistent attendees the following weeks of fall, and a record setting number of registrations for our fall retreat during the first week of registration opening. Our retreat venue’s capacity limit is 130 attendees. After 2 weeks of open registration, we are now sold out with 35 volunteers attending, 85 registered students and 11 on the waitlist.

Because Trinity promoted the retreat, I was privileged to meet Evie. Evie is raising her granddaughter who we’ll call Johnny. Johnny is struggling with his mental health, coping

26

with an abusive parent, the loss of the other, identifies as transgender, and wants nothing to do with God. Evie saw the retreat opportunity through Trinity’s social media channels and asked Johnny if he was interested in going.

To her shock, he said yes, so Evie reached out:

“…I feel like Trinity is non-judgmental, but I’m just worried she will not fit in…” “She is just searching and needs to know God loves her and that there are other people in this world that can be non-judgmental, besides grandma.” “A very confused 14-year-old child. I really feel it would be good for her to meet other teenagers, just hanging out with grandma (me) is not good. Thanks, Evie”

After a few discussions, and an encouragement to come out and experience midweek Youth, Johnny is now registered for the retreat and came to our “bring a friend” night. Evie kept us in the loop on how he’s doing:

“Thought I’d let you know how much I appreciate everything you and Marissa did to help me make Johnny comfortable last night. Most fun my child has had in years. Special thanks to James as well and all the other kids who made Johnny feel like maybe he was a likeable person after all. I refrained from saying I told you so, lol. He wants to come back next week even though I made it clear religion will come into play. What an answer to years of prayers”

The challenge of this season has been God blessing us with so many students who are hungry for connection and to experience relationship with a God who radically loves them with the struggle of building capacity limits, and lack of sufficient volunteer numbers. Our current volunteer leadership team has taken on more responsibility to fill the gaps needed with this influx of students. Every week, and outside of our midweek nights, this leadership community embodies our value of “we pass the baton.” There is a critical need for more adult mentors to invest in the next

27

generation at this level, but we know that God is preparing their hearts to step up and serve. We are humbled by the work of the Holy Spirit over this past year; how He has used our gifts to build His kingdom and used our gaps to strengthen our faith and trust in Him. We live each day in excited expectation of where He is leading and how He is shaping the future of the church.

Forever forward.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

28

Core Value

We Are Better Together We are known for what we are for, not what we are against. We seek to shine God’s light and love rather than bring condemnation and judgment. We strive to focus on our common mission and core biblical beliefs.

29

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Interior Health Vaccination Clinic In January, Interior Heath approached us with a pandemic response plan and our posture was to be part of the solution.

We felt that this would be an opportunity to serve our community practically, spiritually and emotionally. We also quickly realized that in order for us to do this well, we would need a large number of volunteers. After putting out the call, over 250 people responded. This included groups from Trinity, Rotary Club, Kelowna General Hospital, UBCO students, high school students and people who went through the clinic. A tremendous response to say the least.

One thing that impressed me right off the top was when one of the nurse team leads, Rhonda Wigglesworth, insisted that the volunteers be a part of the daily morning team huddle. This totally aligned with one of our core values, “we are all in the same boat.”

Another highlight was the sign “Hope Begins Here” displayed at the east entrance and the display of hearts filled with rolls of toilet paper in the south lobby. Thanks to the Arts team, this proved to be a huge success as thousands of pictures were taken as our guests passed through. When we work together as teams, we are truly “better together”.

As time went on, the response from the community was tremendous. Random people would drop off Timmy’s, Starbucks and other gift cards, over 100 chocolate bars were delivered, Okanagan Chateau made, packaged and delivered cookies, Hawthorn Park and Orchard Manor delivered notes of thanks and cookies, Okanagan Valley Wines returned with wine jellies, jams and chocolate.

Then came the cool email from Tim Horton’s regional marketing manager, Ben Yip:

“We had some of our local franchisees go through the temp vax clinic at your church and they were very impressed at how smooth everything was.

We would like to donate some coffee and donuts to IH staff and volunteers as a small token of appreciation.”

- B E N Y I P - T I M H O R TA N ’ S M A N A G E R

We were definitely having an impact on our community.

Then, personal stories started flooding in…

“So I’ve been hearing what a fabulous job everyone’s been doing at the vaccination clinic, and I thought they were all exaggerating. But when I went to get mine done on Wednesday, I realized people were not kidding…my appointment was at 2:20 PM, I got there at 2:05 PM and I was seated to get vaccinated at 2:08 PM! Couldn’t believe it went so smoothly. I knew the nurse giving me the shot too so that was cool. I literally could not believe how cheerful all the volunteers were. It must be exhausting to be so happy all the time! I was so touched. I thanked everyone that would let me thank them!!”

- VA C C I N E R E C I P I E N T

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

“I got my vaccine done with my 15-year-old daughter on Monday and I was blown away by how happy and helpful the volunteers were at the clinic. The nurse that gave me the shot said that Trinity provides these volunteers and it felt like we were walking into Disneyland with how helpful and amazing these volunteers were.

We even got cinnamon buns after we got our vaccine to celebrate.”

- VA C C I N E

RECIPIENT

“I came for my vaccination. It was the first time I had been inside Trinity. I was so impressed with how great the experience was and how much fun the volunteers seemed to be having that I asked one of the volunteers how to get involved. I had my first shift today and am so happy you have been able to include me! It is great to be a part of something bigger than myself and with such a great leader and team!

Thank you!”

-

CLINIC

VO LU N T E R

-

UBC

MEDICAL

STUDENT

“We wish to thank you and everyone at Trinity Church for your love and remarkable efforts during this crisis. No matter the calamity, Kelowna can count on Trinity to be at the forefront of recovery. We feel blessed that Trinity Church serves our community.”

- A N DY

Some of the challenges we faced were: over 30 calls a day about clinic times, which vaccine was being administered, location, adding extra hours which meant adding extra volunteers, protesters, long lineups, and pulling Mr. Bean.

(Yes, people were very upset that we stopped showing Mr. Bean as something to watch for their 15-minute postvaccination wait.) Reason being, they were staying longer than 15 minutes to watch the entire episode. Another big challenge was the heat and smoke. This was the hottest

30

summer on record; 53 days above 30 degrees. The last 4 days of June were above 40 degrees, and June 27th was the hottest day on record at 45.7 degrees. This proved to be very challenging for our outdoor volunteers but in true fashion, they pushed through and continued to serve in these extreme conditions.

Our food services team also had a great response from our nurses and the community. They not only served well, but they were also receiving special orders for their ever-famous cinnamon buns!

Then there was the surprise visit from Dr. Bonnie Henry.

It was said that she heard about the efficiency of the clinic at Trinity, and she wanted to see firsthand what that looked like.

I would like to conclude with Ben’s story. He was one of our parking team volunteers. After receiving his first dose, he sent me this email:

“Hello, I am not particularly religious. Actually, I don’t believe in God, if that’s okay to say. But I do believe that service to humanity is the best work of life. Trinity is the leader at community service.

Your church has given remarkable contributions to our community and those around us. May I join your community involvement without being religious?”

- BEN

31

Ben served regularly for 5 months, filled in for extra shifts, and has asked if he could continue to serve at other events such as Christmas services and possibly church services.

God has begun a good work here. Who knows what’s around the corner for Ben. My prayer is that we continue to be a part of his life journey.

So after 176 days, 1468 hours, well over 230,000 people through our doors, although grueling at times the clinic has proven to be a huge win. The response from the nursing staff and the community has been tremendous! I am so grateful that I had the privilege to serve with such a great volunteer team. I know that there’s a bigger picture to this story, and I look forward to seeing that story unfold in the years to come.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

32

Core Value

We Boycott Boycotts We are known for what we are for, not what we are against. We seek to shine God’s light and love rather than bring condemnation and judgment. We strive to focus on our common mission and core biblical beliefs.

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

33

Compassion Meals Compassion Meals was part of last Ministry Year - 20202021. The initiative began with just under 40 weekly meals being prepped and picked up by some Trinity Staff on March 19th, 2020 in response to possible lay-offs. When we were asked to begin leading this ministry, we reached out to frontline workers and teachers who we knew were struggling with balancing their children’s home learning with the increased demands of their professions. The hope was that not having to plan and prep this one free meal each week would relieve some of the stress they were enduring.

The response from teachers, RCMP, and medical staff was enormous. Without asking, they sent photos of their time together, notes and cards of appreciation – lots responded with donations. Here are some quotes:

“...We have had so much pushback from families during this season. When I look back at the pandemic, years from now, I will remember the love you have shown us and will forever choose to remember your act of kindness during this time.”

-

NORTH

GLENMORE

E L E M N TA R Y

Deliveries quickly grew to more schools, frontline workers, and people who were laid off or struggling with health.

As the pandemic ensued, we realized there was more of a need for those who were already isolated due to chronic health issues. The pandemic made things much worse for them. As first responders and teachers began to find their routines, the shift was made to delivering to those in isolation.

Due to social bubble restrictions, homecare workers, volunteers and housekeepers were not able to visit these folks in need for many months. This new demographic we were delivering to was excited for Thursdays...the only day some saw another human – the only day some received a nourishing meal – the only day someone simply loved them without asking for anything in return. Many waited by the window, watching for that familiar face. Some had new prayer requests, while others could not wait to share their answer to prayer. The stories were humbling.

At the height of the ministry, we had over 50 volunteers delivering almost 550 weekly meals, across 15 routes from Lake Country to Glenrosa in West Kelowna.

T E AC H E R

“Just wanted to say a big THANK YOU to you and Darren and all of your team for your compassion and care to those in our community.

The meals have been much appreciated at my office when we are juggling so much during this difficult time, and a few of the members have even been able to pay it forward in different ways as they can.”

- RCMP CIVILIAN MEMBER ON BEHALF OF REGULAR MEMBERS

“My friend gets compassion meals. She called me to tell me how her delivery driver has been so wonderful! My friend is very old, has physical limitations, and is very lonely. Her family does not visit her. But her delivery driver stops long enough to visit, even pray with her. It blessed my friend so much when he asked if he could pray with and for her. She was so moved by that intentional gesture of connection and care for her, she could not wait to tell me. It might be a small meal but it is a big deal to her because of the person she sees every week when she is so lonely.”

- TRINITY MEMBER

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

“Thank you for thinking of me. Makes me think that something bigger and higher is happening around me and it’s important to feel that hope because I have felt very alone.”

The connection between participants and their drivers was incredible. Our volunteers loved it as much as our participants did. One volunteer wanted to inspire others with this feedback:

“I had a very tough week. I was very emotional

by Thursday and was fretting over how I was going to deliver meals and be happy and upbeat.

God washed those feelings of worry away as soon as my first delivery opened her front door to receive the meal. We had a nice visit and I immediately carried on feeling better at each stop.

In fact, my last gentleman had a birthday cupcake waiting for him to be delivered with his meal. He was so appreciative of the gesture and as I was leaving, I told him my gift to him was I was NOT singing Happy Birthday because I didn’t want the neighbourhood stray cats to circle his house wondering what the horrible noise was! We had a good laugh and I got back into the vehicle feeling calmer than I had all week. I am learning to appreciate this so much as much as I fulfill a need every other Thursday. As I talk to these people and deliver a meal to them, God is using them to help me too. He has a purpose for each and every one of us.”

Our volunteer team was absolutely amazing!

As restrictions loosened, those in need were able to have their homecare workers and housekeepers in their homes again and their need for a free weekly meal lessened. Our volunteers also were able to start travelling to finally see their families again. We could see Compassion Meals

34

coming to a beautiful, timely close. We delivered the final meals on February 25, 2021.

Over 20,000 meals were prepped and packaged over the 49 weeks Compassion Meals existed. We stay in contact with some of these folks even today. Two volunteers who had nothing to do with church prior to Compassion Meals have helped with other initiatives. Our prayer is that they see Jesus’ love for them and they will hunger to join His Body.

We stay connected with some participants who asked us to.

The children of three families attended summer camps, and a number have been following us online. Darren and I are truly thankful for allowing us this opportunity to be a part of such an amazing ministry for our community!

A final quote from a participant:

“I’ve been spreading the good news about the generosity of Trinity, using your program as a great example. I love the way Trinity reaches out to hurting people the way Jesus did. Thank you for helping me!”

35

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

36

Capital Renewal After one and half years of planning, a year on pause due to COVID, one self-igniting sprinkler head, an insurance claim, and now a capital renewal initiative – the auditorium is currently being re-fitted with: • • • • • • • • • •

A new sprinkler system New carpet throughout the auditorium and lobby Reengineering of the HVAC system New entrance vestibules Theater seating LED house lights New stage & acoustical treatment Permanent baptism tanks Main floor washrooms (currently on pause) New online production rooms (currently on pause)

As the scope of the project has increased due to materials, labour costs and addressing previous building deficiencies, escalating costs may inhibit completion of the main floor washrooms and online production rooms. The spaces that will be restored will create an inspirational space that will serve our church and city for years to come.

You can find more information and ways to give over at renewal.trinitychurchkelowna.ca.

renewal in our church, & beyond.

37

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Core Value

We Are All In The Same Boat We are all on a journey of transformation.

And, none of us have arrived. We celebrate momentum over destination and inspire through grace rather than shame.

“To the Trinity Leadership Team and Trinity Church Family, Thank-you so much for all the support you’ve given us over the past number of years. Henri Nouwen wrote “Anyone who willingly enters into the pain of a stranger is truly a remarkable person”. I feel this quote applies here in two ways: First, it illustrates well what our KGH and Interior Health teams do every shift. At the same time, the challenges of our roles, exacerbated by COVID, has time and time again taken us to the limit of who we are and what we do.

Our teams are digging deep and they are remarkable.

in this season of crisis, and helped us offer better care to our patients. Through beverage cards and grocery cards for patients and clients, in sponsoring beverage and snack days at the Perking Lot for our staff (such a meaningful gesture), and in collaborating with Interior Health on other initiatives, you’ve shown yourself to be remarkable.

Thank-you for your camaraderie, teamwork, and your prayers. We love working with your leadership team and by extension, with you. May God bless you in this time and in the new year to come.”

Sincerely,

Second, this is where you come in. You’ve entered into our lives and made them better. Through your support, you’ve strengthened us, let us know that we’re not alone

- D E R E K K O C H , S P I R I T U A L H E A LT H P R ACT I T I O N E R , KG H

39

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TRINITY CHURCH | ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

40

connect@trinitykelowna.ca trinitychurchkelowna.ca