Small but Mighty

About 20 people meet for Sunday worship (10:30 am), for service projects, and to care for the church at McKenzie Valley Presbyterian Church (MVPC), just east of Walterville on Hwy 126. This small group of people makes a lot of friends near and far - friends who have become partners in supporting our valley far beyond what 20 people could do alone.

In the past MVPC provided an office for WomenSpace to meet with survivors of domestic trauma as well as a meeting space for Boy Scouts and a preschool. The church continues to provide a space for Alcoholics Anonymous and is always looking for new groups to support.

This networking of friends and partners came into full play in 2020, when MVPC hosted Green Cross, which offers emotional support after traumatic events, for a community presentation at MVPC just weeks after the Holiday Farm Fire. Also in 2020, MVPC developed a plan for counselor-led sessions to help community members process by sharing our stories about the fire. Cascades Presbytery, of which MVPC is a part, offered a partnering grant to cover costs. The Presbytery provided another grant for another mental health professional to run three 6-week support sessions for community fire survivors.

When another area Presbyterian church wanted to send money to help in the recovery effort, MVPC helped direct that money to survivors.

MVPC has supported the rebuild of the Vida McKenzie Community Center by providing a venue for their fund-raising events, including dinners, concerts, bingo, and yard sales. The Sew and So quilters met at MVPC during COVID, as did the Late Bloomers Garden Club occasionally.

Most recently, Cascades Presbytery offered recovery funds for survivors of the January 2024 ice storm, and MVPC helped direct some of that money to a local family (not associated with MVPC) that had suffered significant losses. MVPC welcomes all to come to be part of something bigger than it looks!