On June 4, 2023, the youth of Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church (LAPC) in Brooklyn will be leading the third annual Community Walk-A-Thon in nearby Fort Greene Park. The event’s purpose is to raise critically needed funds for LAPC’s Opening Doors Capital Campaign. Our beloved landmark church building – the home and foundation for all our mission activities and community service – is in urgent need of restoration work to maintain its structural integrity.
Founded in 1857, LAPC is a historic church known for its abolitionist roots and continued commitment to social justice. The church’s youth are focused on helping to preserve and strengthen this community asset to be accessible to all for future generations.
LAPC’s Opening Doors Capital Campaign is raising funds for a construction project to address critical structural issues requiring major work on our church building over a two to three year period. The first phase of our $1.1 million initiative started in the fall of 2022 and included masonry work to waterproof and stabilize the front foundation walls and brick piers that support the front façade, narthex, and arch above. The configuration of roof water that spills down onto the front façade (the cause of the deterioration) was redirected and next the front entrance doors will be restored with an ADA compliant ramp added and one door made electronically operable. Future work will include repairing the monumental 1893 Tiffany-stained glass triptych located in the front of the church and restoring the front façade and the 75-foot study tower.
How Does it Work? As a sponsor, you click on a child's name (on the Leaders List on the upper left of this screen), determine how much you will donate, and complete your pledge online. The amount will immediately be added to the "Amount Raised" tally above! Thank you very much!
MORE ABOUT LAPC
& OUR YOUTH
When the Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church was founded in 1857, the issue of slavery dominated the national debate, and the congregation came together with racial progress at the core of its purpose. It continues as a multi-cultural, LGBTQIA-welcoming church family today.
Known from its founding as a “temple of abolition”, LAPC was forever destined to be at the forefront of the social justice struggles of the day. The first woman to preach from a Presbyterian pulpit did so at LAPC in 1872. The church’s second pastor preached a sermon that challenged the religious premise of the expedition of Christopher Columbus. The church was responsible for the opening of mission work in Korea. And today, LAPC continues to serve those in need from the U.S.-Mexico border to the thriving, diverse communities right here in Brooklyn.
The youth of LAPC are an active part of the community.
They meet every Sunday for Sunday School to share their joys and concerns along with a more traditional Sunday School. If the weather allows, they gather in Fort Green Park, which became not only necessary but popular during the pandemic. The youth serve the church through events such as cooking traditional Mexican food for the whole congregation, kicking off the groundbreaking of the Opening Doors work in the fall of 2022, playing in a youth band for the Sunday service and acting as liturgists once a month. Teens of the church started a group to raise funds to support two asylum seekers and many children have volunteered their time and energy for the Walk A Thon these past two years.
The church is proud and excited to see the way our youth are empowered to contribute to us all.