Services at First Baptist Church have additional meaning for Eva Edmands.
Edmands, 72, is a full-time volunteer and administrative assistant who works from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at the church, 1330 Kasold Drive. She's there on Sunday, too, for worship.
Edmands is a coordinator for the church's senior programs and takes turns staffing the church food pantry.
"I cannot see joining a church just to sit in a pew every Sunday," Edmands said. "I have so many opportunities to serve, and I've been able to realize my potential here."
Many Lawrence churches strive to minister to the needs of seniors like Edmands by creating a range of special groups, activities and volunteer duties that target their interests and abilities. It's an arrangement that benefits both the seniors and the churches themselves.
"Senior adults are the backbone of volunteerism at the church," said the Rev. Lewis Hinshaw, associate pastor at Plymouth Congregational Church, 925 Vt. "They help publish the monthly newsletter, make sure weekly bulletins get prepared for Sunday, run the plant sales and garage sales and mentor in our confirmation program. They touch our lives everywhere."
Plymouth's seniors do much to enrich the life of the church.
"The thing I find neat about them is that they have a long-term, deep commitment to the congregation," Hinshaw said. "They bring memory, history and the wisdom of years of experience. It's just a major contribution to what we do."
Visits, clubs and trips
St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, 1234 Ky., is dedicated to reaching out to meet the spiritual needs of its seniors while also offering practical support in their daily lives.
Church members regularly visit parishioners who live in retirement centers or nursing homes, and bring communion to those who are homebound.
A number of church members have trained with the Interfaith Caring About Neighbors program and are available to visit elderly people who need help with household tasks.
The church's altar society group organizes gatherings for older parishioners, and seniors can volunteer their services at the church.
Spending time with the church's seniors is a highlight of the Rev. Charles Polifka's busy schedule.
"I love working with those people who are elderly. They're just so wonderful in their spirituality," said Polifka, St. John's senior pastor. "They teach me so much about patience, especially the ones who are homebound. They are the ones who really minister to me."
Lawrence Baptist Temple, 3201 W. 31st St., just started a group that is open to any senior in the community.
Called the Sonshine Club, the group meets at 10:30 a.m. Tuesdays at the church for a brief service, followed by a variety of potlucks, day trips and longer outings.
The group targets those who are 55 years old and above. The church encourages people to bring along friends, relatives and neighbors in that age range.
"The purpose is to reach out to this group of people who are sometimes forgotten. Activities for them on a weekly basis are lacking in the community," the Rev. Gary Myer said. "Some people withdraw into a shell after they retire. This will be a way of bringing them out and getting them more active."
Social circles
There's no shortage of programs for people who are 50 years old and above at First Baptist Church.
A group called the Keenagers meets monthly to hear church and community speakers.
There are frequent trips for seniors to sites in and around Lawrence and, for the second year in a row, a group will attend a weeklong chautauqua in October at the denomination's conference center in Green Lake, Wis.
The Silver Tones, a recently formed choir of senior adults who enjoy singing, provide music at Sunday worship services and special occasions.
"Our senior adult ministry is ministry to senior adults but it's also ministry by senior adults," said the Rev. Sandy Walton, First Baptist's associate pastor and director of music ministry. "Some people need more care and things done for them; others are wanting to use their newfound free time to give and to serve others. We're developing outlets for them."
That's fine with Edmands, a First Baptist member since 1999.
"All my needs are being met here, spiritually and otherwise," she said. "I can put all my talents to use. After I retired, I made up my mind I wasn't going to sit around and watch TV or play bridge. A lot of people here feel the same way."
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