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Trinity church transformation a spark to area

The announcement that the congregation of Trinity Presbyterian Church will be exiting the building its called home for 5-plus decades is a sad one.

As much as we encourage improvement throughout our communities, we also hate to see established parts of it disappear.

The good news, though, is that it’s not exactly a sad ending.

Yes, Trinity Presbyterian as it is now – the church on the hill near East Liverpool High School – will be closing.

But, not only will the congregation continue to worship, there’s also a new use in the works for the church building.

It’s one of those “win-win” situations we hear about.

Trinity will become The Community & Learning Center, an endeavour of the newly-formed HHH Foundation – led by community-minded individuals Charles Lang, Stephen Cooper and Michael Parkes.

HHH pays homage to Homer Laughlin China, the former Harker Pottery, and the late Hans Hacker.

The Trinity congregation, meanwhile will continue to conduct services at the church for the next two years as it explores its next move – either merging with another congregation or relocating to another site.

The combination of these giving individuals and the giving Trinity congregation has made this venture possible. It’s these types of people who make a difference in our small community; a spark for an area in need of a positive outlook.

The size of the church and its financial obligation no longer make the facility a viable option for the Trinity faithful. It must have been an incredibly tough decision to make, and one, we’re sure, they sought divine direction.

And the decision to donate the facility and its eight acres of land to the HHH Foundation is a selfless act for the church. They need to be commended.

Much like the organizers behind the idea, we, too, can visualize a community center buzzing with activity – including a place for teens to “hang out” thus perhaps ending the “there’s nothing to do around here” mentality of our youth.

It will take work. There’s no doubt. And it will take help – from all of us.

Volunteers will be needed to operate the facility. And, of course, we, as a community, need to use the facility as it is intended – for dinners, meetings, concerts, etc.

We love the idea that events that went elsewhere now have another option to stay home.

The announcement also comes at a time when many irons already are in the fire for the city of East Liverpool – New Castle School of Trade, Market Street Lofts, and Velfera Auto Designs come to mind.

It’s an exciting time as the proposed community center adds to the positive prospects of our community’s future.

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