It was first dreamed about in 2006, but it wasn’t until 2012 that Narwee Baptist Church received development consent to completely redevelop their church and ministry centre. The building had become outdated, exhausted, and inefficient, and work began to turn it into a substantial ministry space that reflected the needs of the community.
Stage one began in 2014, where the church added a second level adjacent to their hall with multiple meeting spaces, renovated the kitchen, and enlarged the creche and playtime spaces. With COVID-19 and 107 days of lockdown holding things up a little for the commencement of stage two works, the church braved 10 months of full-scale construction while still operating church services and ministry activities from the space. There was even a few weeks during the summer months where the church enjoyed “alfresco church” under the stars as the roof was being replaced.
This recent renovation/rebuild enlarged the foyer into a modern meeting space and built seven offices as well as smaller ministry spaces. Church members gave their time to contribute, with architects donating their time and teams responding quickly during a number of flooding events that impacted the worksite.
In 1954, with a fellowship of 15 members, Narwee Baptist Church was set up. Today, close to 70 years later, it is one of the larger Baptist churches in NSW. Steve Welsh, Project Manager from Narwee Baptist Church said, “We simply would not be here to celebrate this achievement without the support of Baptist Financial Services. Thank you for walking alongside us on this project,” Steve said.
“Our deepest thanks goes to our God. He is the one who has grown His work and His church here at Narwee. In many ways, we have just tried to keep up with him!”