A Brief History of Unity Church

The Concept The concept of Unity Church began in 1983, when several families from Prinsburg Christian Reformed Church (now First CRC), expressed an increased interest in organizing a second congregation in the Prinsburg community. The basis for this desire for a second church varied among those interested, from feeling that the church was too large (then 225 families) to the sense that there could be greater spiritual growth in the community with two churches providing more opportunities for member involvement. In October 1983, Larry Baker, Phil Erffmeyer and Mike Mulder decided to approach the consistory of Prinsburg CRC with a request to distribute a questionnaire to determine the interest in a second church.

Discerning the Interest
Rev. Gerald Van Den Berg, pastor of the Prinsburg CRC was approached with the request to meet with the consistory. In providence, Rev. Van Den Berg informed these men that the consistory had become aware of the desire for a second church and that, just the night before, had unanimously decided to distribute a questionnaire. He felt there was no need for those interested in a second church to meet with the consistory to discuss it, so they never did. The consistory distributed the questionnaire with results showing about 50 families interested in a second church.

Signing the Petition
The consistory then proceeded to go ahead with promoting the church’s organization by appointing a committee to formulate a petition for Classis. Once the petition was completed, a meeting was called in December at which time all those interested could sign the petition. 27 families signed the petition at this meeting, and it remained available for the next two Sundays, in which an additional 11 families signed for a total of 38 families. With the endorsement of the Prinsburg CRC consistory, the petition was sent to Classis in March of 1984. Classis unanimously approved the Committee’s recommendation to start a new church.

The Start of a New Church
On Thursday May 3, 1984, 139 members (37 charter families) met in First Prinsburg CRC to organize a congregation. At this meeting the first Council was elected. Those chosen to serve as elder were Phil Erffmeyer, Vern Marcus, Wally Marcus, and Mike Mulder. The selected deacons were Roger Ahrenholz, Bryan De Groot, and Wilson Brouwer. On the following Sunday, May 6, the first worship services were held in the music room of Central Minnesota Christian High School (CMCS) with guest pastor, Dr. James De Jong, former President of Calvin Theological Seminary. For the first two and a half years, we set up and took down the folding chairs in the music room while we met in this temporary place of worship. That summer, seminarian Larry Doornbos and his wife, Linda, served Unity Church.

Calling a Pastor
Within a month after Unity Church was organized, we heard that Dr. Edwin Roels was planning to leave the World Home Bible League, so we invited him to come and meet with our council and congregation. On July 26, 1984, the congregation voted to call Dr. Roels and he accepted the call a week later. We joyfully received the news that our call had been accepted, but we realized we had one slight problem—no parsonage. On August 27 a special congregational meeting was quickly called and voted to build a three-bedroom home on Cedar Avenue at an approximate cost of $91,000. When the Roels arrived in Prinsburg we at least could show them a hole in the ground where the parsonage was to be located! For the next four months they lived on a farm while many volunteers spent hours constructing the new parsonage that was ready for occupancy by the middle of January. With no building, office space was rented in the former Prinsburg State Bank building. One room served as the Pastor’s office, and the other as a meeting room and library.

Laying the Groundwork
Much groundwork was laid during these first years. As a congregation we were challenged to walk in Jesus’ steps—to do as Jesus would do in each and every situation. There was a heavy emphasis placed on reaching out, and discipleship groups were formed with a special challenge to become involved in service projects. A jail ministry was begun; a literature ministry started; daily radio spots aired on station KWLM; the Sunday Evening Club met weekly at the Youth for Christ Building in Willmar; annual outdoor worship services were begun at Robbins Island; we began supporting Pastor Sozi in Uganda; and we became the calling church for Gerry Koning in El Salvador.

The Building
A special congregational meeting was called on June 25, 1986, to consider the proposal to build a new church building. The vote was 60 for and 0 against. After our morning service the next Sunday we walked to the new site and broke ground on the property we had purchased from Gertrude Bulthuis. Our first services in the new building were held on December 14, with the formal dedication and open house taking place the weekend of December 20. The total cost for the new building was $43,000, including furnishings. We had incurred indebtedness of only $110,000 and were able to entirely pay off the mortgage 3 years later.

The Ministry of Gifted Pastors
Over the course of her history, God has faithfully blessed Unity with gifted pastors to lead this ministry. Following the service of Larry Doornbos that first summer, Dr. Roels served Unity until 1987, when he became the president of Reformed Bible College in Grand Rapids, MI. Within a year, God again provided for Unity by bringing Rev. Harley Faber to Unity for three years. In 1991, a call was extended to Dr. Dean Deppe. Initially, the Deppes felt led to stay in Ohio. But shortly after declining the call, the Deppe’s contacted Unity and shared their desire to reconsider the call. The call was re-extended and the Deppe’s arrived in 1992. The summer before the Deppes arrived, seminarian George Rowaan and his family served for 10 weeks. Dr. Deppe ministered among us for six years before accepting the call to teach New Testament at Calvin Theological Seminary, in Grand Rapids, MI. During the interim, the congregation enjoyed the ministry of Rev. Ken Geire, a retired Methodist minister, who served among us for six months. It was during Pastor Ken’s time with us that a call was extended to Rev. Steve Zwart. Pastor Steve accepted the call and arrived in December 1998. God uniquely gifted each of these men in such a way to be a blessing to this ministry. Each one has left God’s mark in this place through their lives lived and ministry completed in this place. We thank God for all the people who have faithfully served this church and pray God’s Spirit continue to rest on them as they continue to minister in the name of Jesus.

The Vision 2000 Process
Beginning in September 1999 and continuing until April 2001, Unity Church conducted Vision 2000, a study that assessed our current ministry and identified our purpose and vision through a series of meetings and visioning groups. The focus was on what we wanted to achieve, preserve, and avoid. Out of this visioning process came many great ideas and goals for the future of Unity Church. Among these needs and goals expressed were the need to expand our staffing and the need to expand our facility.

The Internship Program
In the fall of 2001, Unity decided to address staffing issues, as well as provide a place of learning for students going into ministry, by agreeing to host an intern for a year. Mark Pluimer, a native to the area, served as the first intern. After completing his internship, he returned to Calvin Seminary to complete his final year of studies, and then took the call to serve as Associate Pastor of Brookfield CRC in Wisconsin. Unity decided to continue with the internship program and in 2002, another Minnesota native, Mike Wagenman, and his family, moved to Prinsburg to serve as an intern. After completing his internship, Mike took the call to serve as Senior Pastor of First CRC in St. Thomas, Ontario. In the fall of 2003, Unity hired a third intern, Jeff Fisher. Jeff was completing his seminary education through this internship.

Moving to Multi-Staff Ministry
After Jeff completed his internship, the church took another step of faith by hiring Jeff as Pastor of Spiritual Formation. The following summer, in July of 2004, Pastor Jeff was united in marriage to his wife, Wendy (Tinklenberg), who was also a recent graduate of Calvin Seminary. After much consideration, the Council and congregation decided to commission her to the position of Pastor of Congregational Life. While both of these associate positions are part time, together they meet many of the ministry needs and goals of Unity Church. Jeff and Wendy provide a wealth of wisdom, insight, and compassion for our Unity Church family.

Expanding Ministry through Expanding the Building

In the Spring of 2001, the Council appointed a Facility Study Team to research and compile a building project that would best suit the needs of the ministry of Unity Church. That December, the FST proposed a two-phase building project, which was brought to the congregation for feedback in June 2002. After considering the feedback received from the first proposal, the FST brought a second proposal to the Council in November. This proposal addressed the concerns raised about the first one and eliminated the 2-phase plan. There were some concerns about the flow and sight lines of this proposal, so in March 2003, the FST brought a third proposal to the Council. This plan included a new sanctuary and the conversion of the old sanctuary into a social area.

At the congregational meeting in June 2003, the congregation voted to approve the concept of expanding the building by ratifying the Council’s decision to engage in a building, remodeling, and addition project. A month later, the Building Finance Ministry Team was appointed by the Council to guide the financial arrangements for future building expansion and a building plan, budget and financing package proposal was approved by the Council. This plan was presented to the congregation in January 2004, and while it achieved a majority vote, it did not meet the 2/3 majority required by the Council. The plan was again reworked by the FST and a fourth proposal was brought to the Council in September 2004, which was unanimously approved. This proposal was brought to the congregation in October and on October 31, 2004 Unity Church voted by an 80% majority to expand the current facility using this fourth plan. Fundraising efforts soon began after the project was approved with the goal that $500,000 would be raised by December 31, 2005 and $200,000 would be pledged for the next three years. This building expansion will nearly double the size of the current church facility and provide much more room for the expanding ministry of Unity Church to grow in God’s grace.

Unity Church has continued to be a place to belong and a place to become. We are always striving to be a body of Spirit-filled believers who are rooted in God’s Word, growing in God’s grace, and committed to reaching others for Jesus Christ. May the Lord continue to pour out his blessings on this ministry as we seek to give him all the glory!