Being the church in Winnipeg’s Spence neighbourhood

For us at Many Rooms Church Community (MRCC), living in the neighbourhood is a core part of our church’s DNA. We are a network of house churches in the Spence and Daniel McIntyre neighbourhoods in Winnipeg’s core area. We worship and fellowship in our homes and enjoy living within a short walk or drive from each other.

So, what is the neighbourhood like? Well, sometimes our neighbourhood is defined by its problems, like crime, homelessness, drug addiction, and poverty. However, for those of us who have felt called by God to live here, we also witness the beauty he has put in our neighbourhoods.

There is beauty in the great diversity of people God has placed in this area. Walking down Sargent Avenue from Central Park to Arlington Street, you could pass by newcomer youth enjoying a soccer game, numerous Ethiopian and Eritrean-run convenience stores, Vietnamese restaurants, Portuguese sports clubs, African barbershops, Asian nail salons, and even a Mexican taco shop. With a high Indigenous population, as well as international students attending the nearby University of Winnipeg, our neighbourhood has people from all over the globe.

There is also beauty in the relationships that we have seen among neighbours. Some have commented that our neighbourhood can have a small-town feel. Since many folks in our neighbourhood are on EIA or disability assistance, it is not uncommon to find people sitting out on their front porches talking to each other and to those passing by throughout the day.

Kids and adults play broomball at the winter neighbourhood block party. MRCC partners with Spence Neighbourhood Organization to plan block parties twice a year.

One of the ways that MRCC seeks to minister is through housing. Many in our church work at a local property management company providing affordable housing to low-income people in the neighbourhood. Others own rental properties which are rented out to church members and others in the neighbourhood. Still others live in their homes with one or more roommates. Our lives together are strengthened and challenged by these tenant-landlord relationships.

Another way that our church reaches out to the neighbourhood around us is by helping out at our neighbourhood block parties. Twice a year, once in winter and once in summer, folks from MRCC partner with our local neighbourhood organization (Spence Neighbourhood Organization) to make these parties happen. MRCC folks, along with our neighbours, help with planning, set up, baking, as well as volunteering at food tables, and kids’ activities. In the past few years we’ve also been blessed to be joined by students from Steinbach Bible College’s Mission X program to help share the work at our winter party. These parties are a great opportunity for us to meet new neighbours, grow relationships, and help serve our community.

There are other ways that MRCC is involved in our neighbourhood, including with our youth group, and community prayer room, but hopefully this gives our EMC family a snapshot of what life is like in this part of the world, which God so loves!

– Dave Guenther