A long, long-awaited, hoped-for, prayed-for, yearned-for moment finally arrived March 10 and 11, when Mid-Town Parish UMC in Philadelphia received its modular, pre-fabricated buildings that will soon become its new church facility. The structures came crawling in on huge flatbed trucks with police escorts and flashing lights. As they came into view of waiting members and dear friends of the historic congregation, joyous cheers, hallelujahs and applause erupted.
They had waited 11 years, since they had to evacuate the former, aged, decaying church building, which finally sank under the weight of irreparable water damage. “What becomes of a dream deferred?” Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes wrote, asking a question that no doubt has many answers. For this faithful people of God, a hope-filled faith that God will always deliver is the answer.
“For the last twelve years my church (Mid-Town Parish) has been praying and raising money to rebuild after our previous building was demolished due to structural damage” wrote new Council on Ministries chairwoman Tamara Wims, for whom this is a beloved spiritual home for her family. “We have been worshiping in a recreation center since 2004. We watched as large trucks brought in modular structures and placed them on our land. We will soon be back in our own church for worship and ministry!”
View some of Tamara’s photos of the congregation waiting and welcoming the first of the two deliveries, and also read Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Jason Nark’s uplifting story about this long-awaited moment of joy.
