By Debra Donohue
Creating Connection Director Canada West

Last fall I spent several days with the Edmonton congregation during the Canada West Mission Conference. Edmonton leadership had expressed interest in learning more about Creating Connection and the resources available. During my visit we talked about different ideas, tried some out, and had a lot of fun. By November we had set up a Creating Connection Edmonton Meet-up Page to advertise Edmonton events and several different in-person activities were posted. (Meetup.com is a platform we use to advertise Creating Connection activities.)
Soon after that, Edmonton was posting their regular Games Night and Christmas services. Knit-a-Bit (a knit/crochet group) was started and met regularly until April with plans to meet again in the fall. Along with the Community of Christ members, they had a few community members attend, two from the community were regular attendees.

Edmonton also started hosting a Conversation Café that meets twice a month. Discussion has centered around the books ‘Active Hope’ and ‘Drop Dead Healthy’ as well as topics focusing on mental health. Immediately people from the community rsvp’d for these in-person activities. Not everyone showed up every week, but attendance grew, and the conversations were rich and meaningful.

Attendance for Conversation Café has changed dramatically. Where Community of Christ members were initially the majority, now non-members often represent the majority. The Edmonton team made a commitment to support and advertise these events for 6 months to see what would happen, and it’s taken off. And something else has happened!

Church folks are expressing joy and value in their lives because of meeting with this new diverse community. Friendships are developing that are extending beyond the café. Conversation Café attendees who looked uncomfortable in the beginning are now active participants and are expressing how much fun they are having and how much they enjoy the group. Participants are striking up conversations with each other, building new relationships and sharing knowledge and resources.

Our goal in Creating Connection is to reach out to people in our communities and help them discover more—more meaning in their lives, more ways to contribute to their communities, and more ways to experience and share joy. Oh, and I think Community of Christ calls us to do that too!

My next article will be about Chilliwack and their success stories working with Creating Connection.  If you'd like a ZOOM call or a