Remote Workshop: An Introduction to Sacred/Civic Placemaking Rev. Daniel Pryfogle

Church spaces sit empty and unused for most of the week. That was true long before Covid, but the pandemic opened our eyes to the incongruity of empty space and pressing community needs. What is church property for? A growing number of congregations have an inspiring answer: church property is for our neighbors.

Across North America, sacred/civic placemakers are turning large parking lots into affordable housing, idle kitchens into commissaries for startup culinary ventures, unused classrooms into mental health centers, and empty sanctuaries into community meeting spaces and performance venues.

In this one-hour workshop with practical theologian and social entrepreneur Daniel Pryfogle, cofounder and CEO of the nonprofit Sympara, hear the good news of churches that have successfully repurposed property for social impact, explore the historic examples and theology of reuse, and learn how sacred/civic placemaking is both missional and financially sustainable. Leave the workshop with ideas and resources to help your church reimagine underutilized property.