Trailside Community Church

by Pastor Dino Rustin

Greetings from Trailside Community Church in south Sarasota – the Presbytery’s newest (at least in name) congregation!

A little over a year ago, Presbyterian Church of the Covenant found itself at a crossroads during the interim period, and a sense of loss had started to sink in! With a shrinking and aging congregation, where was the hope? Where was the future? When would they cease to exist if they kept going this way? Of course, these are the same frightening questions being asked by many churches throughout the denomination and the church world at large!

At that point, the leadership and the congregation decided they would not succumb to the fears of closure! Instead, they chose to step out in faith and try to reach the community in new, relevant ways! Recognizing that south Sarasota (along Tamiami Trail near the old Sarasota Square Mall) is preparing for a new wave of development that will repopulate the area immediately surrounding the church, the leadership chose to invest its resources aggressively in new staff, new outreach and programs, and much-needed campus renovations! These efforts are intended to build new bridges between the church and the burgeoning community!

Nearly nine months ago, the Session began implementing a new vision process, guided by the desires of the congregation, which was intended to refresh the church and provide for 21st century churchgoer needs and expectations. A key takeaway from these conversations was the desire for a church re-brand that would reintroduce the congregation to the community.

Fully engaged, fully invested, and embracing some experimental ministry, the leadership at the all-new Trailside Community Church have already seen strong growth in this short period! We had a full Sanctuary on Easter, new children and families who attend regularly, a strong weekly Bible study during Lent, and new mission initiatives that stimulated congregational participation.

But it’s not just about the numbers… there is a renewed sense of Holy Spirit-driven participation and energy that is refreshing to long-time members, and has been intriguing to visitors and guests!

On April 19, Trailside launched an innovative, new worship service called Trailside… Outside. We are blessed to have a great outdoor space, designed and maintained by the ROOTS Academy, that is now a new gathering place for worship. The service will start with monthly meetings. The music will be acoustic and modern, there will be food and fellowship, and it will be outdoors! We know we will deal with some of the natural elements (rain, heat, etc.), but ultimately, we want to take advantage of Florida’s amazing year-round weather. The challenge, from day one of the service, is to handle it the same way we handle going to the beach, the pool, the park, concerts, farmer’s markets, sports games, and the like!

We believe the service will appeal to people of all ages and stages of their faith. We are hoping to reach people who love to connect with God in nature, who are looking for a more informal and modern worship service, and who are “busy” on Sunday mornings and use that as an excuse not to go to church.

The congregation and the leadership of Trailside Community Church really deserve a lot of credit for listening to God, taking some serious leaps of faith, and being unwavering in their desire to reach the community in new and exciting ways. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!