Trinity United Methodist Church, in Lead, SD, has seen several additions over the years. Pictured is the previous sanctuary, left, and the current sanctuary and bell tower, right. Photos by Dave Stucke, Dakotas UMC.

When you drive by Trinity United Methodist Church in Lead, South Dakota, you see an historic church building that has some additions and right next door you see the Christian Ministry Center, calling out to the community. 

“We are grateful that we have the new space for offices, outreach, and children’s and youth ministry,” says Rev. Peggy Hanson, who serves Trinity UMC. “Even though COVID has slowed down our plans. People are excited about what is happening.”

For several years, Trinity United Methodist Church in Lead, South Dakota dreamed of moving the church offices to the Christian Ministry Center next door. The Christian Ministry Center (CMC) had been purchased by Trinity UMC a few years ago, but part of the space was being rented out.

When the renters left, Hanson and the trustees at Trinity UMC, saw the opportune moment to remodel the CMC. Pastor Peggy sat down with the trustees and other leaders in the congregation to do some visioning for space, discuss the transition process, and map out the funding needed. 

The new office spaces are bright and inviting, with close access to parking.

Two big changes were put into motion. Relocating the church office space to the Christian Ministry Center and renovating the church space, where the offices were located, to create an inviting space for children’s and youth ministry.

The office relocation was tackled first. The front of the CMC was cleaned, painted, new flooring installed, and furnishings upgraded. Now, members of Trinity UMC and the Lead community now have easy access to the office and meeting space in the CMC. The space is vibrant and inviting.

“It is so much more accessible for people. Parking is right out front or to the side of the building. The office, meeting rooms and fellowship hall are used by everyone in the community,” says Hanson.

The Christian Ministry Center also has a large multi-purpose room the church has recently acquired, directly inside the front door.

The children’s and youth ministry at Trinity UMC is thriving and space is needed for the ministry.  Last winter, the youth began renovation to the space where the office was located. The rooms were cleared, cleaned, paint and furnishings were selected and then COVID happened.

Hanson says, “We made progress, but because of COVID, it is a project still in the works. We have some great spaces for younger children, but our youth room is still in the works.”

The goal is to keep moving on the renovation and have the space ready and in full swing by the fall.

Builders Club
None of this would have been possible for Trinity UMC at the current time without receiving a Builders Club grant. Pastor Peggy encouraged members of the Trinity UMC to become involved in Builders Club, not just for their church project, but to support future churches in building projects. She highlighted the benefits for their church and the connections throughout the conference that makes it all possible.

A new meeting room has been built next to the pastor's study.

Since the Dakotas Conference Builders Club was established in 1994, almost $1 million has been collected and granted to churches for their building projects, with the average grant being around $10,000 each quarter. Builders Club, administered by Dakotas United Methodist Foundation, is a partnership among hundreds of people across the Dakotas Conference. Each quarter, a church is selected to support, and a call letter is sent out describing their building project. Donations are then collected for three months and given to the recipient church.

The Builders Club is currently calling for funds to support the United Methodist Church, in De Smet, South Dakota. View the call here.