Church is a home away from home.
By: Audrey Levine
Editor’s note: Matters of Faith is an occasional series focusing on religion and faith in the South Brunswick community.
The service paused and the congregants stepped out of their pews.
They walked around the sanctuary, shaking hands and greeting friends and strangers before returning to their seats and continuing their prayers at Christ the King Church on Route 27 on Feb. 18.
"This is like a second home because everyone is really friendly," said Susan Brkal, who, along with her husband, Sam, helped found the congregation in 1961. "The main thing we like here is the good people."
Gretchen Harvey, who has been a member of the church for eight years, said everyone is accepting, no matter their background.
"There is diversity, but everyone is here for a common cause," she said.
Ms. Brkal said the church services were initially held in Franklin Park School before the Route 27 location was dedicated in 1964.
"The service then had 40 people," she said.
Despite ups and downs in membership over the years, the congregation has now swelled to include 300 baptized members, or roughly 120 families, according to the Rev. Fred Schott.
"A lot of the growth is younger families," said the Rev. Schott, who has been the church’s regular pastor since 1997. For six years before that he filled in on Sundays after the previous pastor left the church. "The congregation has grown a lot over the last five or six years."
With the increase in membership, the building has become too small to hold everyone inside comfortably, said church Council President Gladysrose Rusch.
Ms. Rusch said the church offers three services, one on Saturday nights and two on Sunday mornings, in order to accommodate all congregants.
To help accommodate the growth, the church is planning a $1.2 million expansion project. Of that, $400,000 will be covered by donations and gifts from the congregation. The remainder will be covered through the denomination’s Mission Development Fund, which gives loans for church expansion the Rev. Schott said. The church will pay the fund back much like a loan, he said.
Ms. Rusch’s husband, Darwin, who also serves as the church’s building project manager, said the church hopes to break ground on the addition in April. According to the plans, he said, the new sanctuary will hold 163 people, whereas the current area can only seat 80 comfortably. The existing sanctuary will then be used as classrooms.
Mr. Rusch said the addition will also house new offices for the pastor and secretary; new bathrooms; a small kitchen; and an all-purpose room. A bigger parking lot also will be built.
"We have 4,000 square feet now," Ms. Rusch said. "We want to double it."
Also contributing to the renovation project is Sal Tinagero, who joined the church in summer 2006 and will do some electrical work. He said the family feel of the church was what convinced him to join.
"You are not just a face in the crowd here," he said. "Everyone is family."
Mr. Tinagero said he gets the most enjoyment out of helping the church, which is what prompted him to volunteer to help with the expansion.
"I also worked with the church for Habitat for Humanity in Trenton," he said. "I wired a house by myself."
In addition to Habitat for Humanity, and the renovation project, the Rev. Schott said there are many different groups in the church in which people can participate, including a quilting group.
The church also hosts two flea markets each year in which it rents space to vendors and invite people to peruse the items.
Ms. Harvey said there are also many offerings for the children in the congregation, including bowling and skiing trips.
The church also provides its youngsters with religious guidance. The Rev. Schott said there are about 30 children who regularly attend Sunday School for about 45 minutes each week.
The Rev. Schott said the congregation stands out from others in the area because it is one of the newer ones in Kendall Park. In addition, he said the liturgies are different each week, sometimes more jazzy and other times with a more traditional sound.
"We can have four different types of music in a month," he said. "It’s not the same thing every Sunday and the congregation is open to this."
Mr. Rusch said that although he and his wife live in Brick, about an hour from the church, he is still glad to be a member because of the warmth of the community and the friendships among the people.
"The people make the church stand out," Ms. Rusch said. "They are special."

