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Themed Children’s Ministry Center Interior Design
“Now more than ever, families (both kids and parents) need to know the love and truth of Jesus. But not just in their heads. They need to experience it. As we remodel our Children’s Ministry, we are focused on one goal: creating a space where both kids and parents can experience the love and truth of Jesus in a tangible way. The new themed environment will help kids see that following Jesus is a lifelong adventure they can start right now. The new design will also create a positive, welcoming experience for parents that will reduce the stress of dropping off and picking up their kids.”
-Vancouver Church Website
Background
Vancouver Church (formerly known as First Church of God), Vancouver WA, is a non-denominational Christian fellowship founded in 1972. This 80,000 sf church currently operates King’s Way Christian Schools, well established in 1996, providing a fully accredited K-12 program. We have recently worked with their building committees on the following project;
Vancouver Church is in the process of developing an exciting new Children’s Ministry Center for their weekend services. The project begins with the remodel of existing church interiors, which currently serve as Sunday school spaces, extended child care operations, and occasional school classrooms use. The Vancouver Church campus is also the home of Kingsway Christian School providing excellent Christian education to students from kindergarten through 12th grade, with both a separate middle school and high school building. Both the church and school are owned and operated under the same administration.
The area to be remodeled occupies approx. 20,000 SF; 12,000 SF on the first floor and 8,000 SF on the second floor. The designated Children’s Ministry Center is accessed by families in two ways; directly from adjacent parking and internally through the existing church facilities. The direct exterior entry from parking, also serves as a secondary church entry access point. “Wayfinding”, both to and through the Children’s Ministry Center is of critical concern.
The church has established a project building committee to guide and direct this important ministry initiative.
Design Theme
The theme developed by the Committee, and first proposed by the Children’s Ministry Pastor, Jan is that of rolling foothills and mountains, natural assets of our great Northwest environment. This rich landscape becomes a progressive metaphor, as a child develops through a personal spiritual journey, from gentle ranch county to challenging alpine terrain. As the students grow they are elevated upwards to alpine base camps, preparing them for lifetime growth ascending always toward the spiritual summit of God’s purpose for their life. As a vehicle to physically represent these themes, the project architect reached back into the design aesthetics of the 1930’s National Parks and Recreation