Location: The Commons
Start Time: Sun 13, Sept. 2015, 9 p.m.
End Time: Thu 10, Sept. 2015, 9:09 a.m.

Just four short years ago, the elders of Parkside Church, led by God’s guidance and grace, presented their vision for Building Into the Next Generation. Among other things, their plan seeks to expand the gospel’s reach in our region by supporting local church plants. In 2012, we were pleased to announce the launch of Parkside Church: Lake County. Now, in 2015, we are pleased to announce that Parkside’s second church plant -- Parkside Church Westside, lead by Pastor Matt McAlvey.

Please join us, along with Parkside Church Westside’s core group, this Sunday, September 13, 2015, during the 6:00pm service for the commissioning of this new church and ordination of Pastor Matt McAlvey, who will lead Parkside Church Westside in Lakewood, Ohio. 

We are blessed and grateful to have this opportunity to partner with Matt, his wife, Beth, and their three children, as they extend our church family and gospel relationships throughout Northeast Ohio.

Ready to Launch!

Parkside Westside will host their first service on Sunday, September 27, at 10:00am at the Garfield Middle School at 13114 Detroit Avenue, in Lakewood, Ohio.

If you would like to help on Sundays or want to learn more about Parkside Church Westside, please contact Rachel at rpeteya@parksidechurch.com. She can tell you where there are areas of need and we would be grateful for your prayers and help. 

The People of Parkside Church Westside

Pastor McAlvey will not be going it all alone. Joining Matt on Cleveland’s west side, is Nate Vogel and his fiancee, Emma. “Nate has served as a pastoral intern at Parkside for past 12 months and will make the transition to Parkside Church Westside,” Pastor McAlvey explains. “He is gifted in many ways, but notably as a musician, so his role will be to lead the praise team on Sundays and also help out with students.”

Lisa Lenhart will assist with children’s ministries as the acting interim director. “One of the big ways that God provided for us most recently was that Lisa Lenhart who is a member here and also helped Scott [Kennedy] with Lake County’s children’s ministry,” notes Matt. “She is coming to help us in the interim to be director for children's ministry which is the biggest ministry that we have and it's arguably one of the more important ones because if you don't have a kids ministry, you're not going to have a church. She's just been tremendous and a willing servant."

Other core team members are Karen and Jeff Port, and Tom and Marge Salopek. Jeff, who is also an elder at Parkside Church Bainbridge, will continue to provide leadership support and guidance to Matt and will oversee the small groups when they become established. 

The Salopkes, who are local to Lakewood, will oversee the new church’s welcoming ministries, and Rachel Peteya will continue to provide vital administrative help to the new church.

“It’s been really encouraging to me to see people gathering together as a help to one another as God’s people called by grace, but ultimately being part of the disciple making process within Lakewood and the neighboring communities,” says Matt. “I’ve been using the phrase, ‘Gathering as God’s people to reach a group of people,’ and God has blessed us with a core team of people who get what we’re essentially trying to do.”

Having served faithfully at Parkside Bainbridge for the past 14 years, Matt feels well-trained and prepared for this new phase of life. While Matt has served at Parkside Bainbridge in many different ways, his first role was as the pastor overseeing youth and then as the director of communications. “It hit me a couple of core team gatherings ago, that what I find myself doing is 50% youth ministry again with adults. 30% of it is communications and 20% of it is the learning curve of understanding what it looks like to be the lead pastor,” says Matt. “While things are very different, everything is so familiar, and that is a testimony and affirmation to what we've been committed to here [at Parkside Bainbridge].”

How You Can Pray

As Matt and his family prepare for this next phase of life, they ask for your prayers:

• For God’s grace as precious friendships and relationships change and new ones begin.
  
  
• For His help as we make the physical transition next summer when we move to the west side.
  
  
• For Him to use us in helping people become committed followers of Jesus Christ.