Community Updates

Good evening Calvary Family,

The health and safety of everyone that enters Calvary Community Church continues to be our top priority for the Calvary leadership.  In response to the rapidly changing government policies to safeguard everyone, our team has been carefully and prayerfully monitoring the evolving COVID-19 (Coronavirus) situation and will continue to take proactive approaches to keep our community healthy and safe. To that end, we feel the safest course of action is to cancel all public attendance to our services beginning Sunday, March 15.

We will be working closely with local health authorities to determine when we will resume services again.
Our plan will be to provide an online experience that will build community and keep us connected, and my prayer is that it will make us even stronger as a church family!

Please pray for those affected by the virus.  Prayer is powerful, and our God is a Prayer answering God , and the perfect source of comfort  in times of trouble.

Be encouraged the promise of God still stand.  He will never leave us or forsake us.

In His Service,

Cecil Henry

On January 19, Calvary connected with our community at our MLK Helping Hands Service Day event.  We had free clothing giveaway and snacks.  This event was made possible by partnering with the Crown Heights Youth Initiative.

On November 23, Calvary Community Church invites you to our annual Thanksgiving Dinner.  We have been serving the Crown Heights Community delicious Thanksgiving meals for over 10 years free of charge.  

Partner with us in two ways as we begin to prepare for approximately 400 meals distribution:

Donate Funds for dinners – Approximately $5 per dinner (Donate online with Givelify)

Volunteer to help serve our community in various areas (email us)

Let us work together to serve our community.  Together we can make a difference this holiday season!

As some of you have heard Pastor Cecil Henry’s wife, Minister Gerda Henry, passed away Friday, September 27th. 

Pastor Henry wanted me to share the details of the home going services below. In lieu of flowers, donations to charities important to his wife; would be greatly appreciated.

Donations should be made to: Crown Heights Youth Initiative located in Brooklyn, NY where they will distribute the funds to programs which aim to improve the lives of women, and the underserved diverse children in Crown Heights Brooklyn (www.crownheightsyouthinitiative.org)

Pastor Henry and family are so grateful to everyone who has called, texted and sent gifts of support during this difficult time.

Examples of charities include:

• Crown Heights Youth Initiative Leadership Camps
• Crown Heights Youth Initiative Scholarships
• Trinity Hall School (all girls school)
• NYU Langone Hospital
• Rachel’s Joy

Many have inquired the details of the home going service. The details are listed below.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Viewing: 5pm – 7pm

Funeral Services: 7pm – 10pm

Calvary Cathedral of Praise, 45 East 8th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11218

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Interment: 10am – 11am

PineLawn Memorial Park, 2030 Wellwood Avenue, Farmingdale, NY 11735

*** NOTE: The procession will depart from Calvary Community Church

1575 St. Johns Place, Brooklyn, NY 11213 at 9:00am EST

Henry Family (Stephanie Smith)

Summer is an important time for our youth and at Calvary, we believe that ministering to them during this time is a great way to show the love of Jesus Christ.  Due to our belief in catering to our youth’s spiritual and physical needs, we host several events every summer to cater to these needs.

This year, City Fest was held on June 16^th, 2018. Cityfest Basketball Outreach is a basketball tournament that we host each year in collaboration with Evangel Assembly of God of Ringgold, VA. Every year, the youth of the community come out for a day of music, food, basketball and fun activities as we use that day to minister to them as well.

Adventure Week held July 23 – 27 is one of the most important events that we hold at our church. It is a week-long vacation Bible School for the children of our church and our community. At the end of Adventure Week, we give away school supplies to the youth so that they are prepared for the school year. Through this week, we help hundreds of kids through giving and evangelism.

To kick off the 2018-2019 school year, Calvary hosted two events to encourage and cover our church and community youth. As the new school year begins, we believe that the youth need guidance and prayer as they fully settle into whatever the next steps of their lives are whether it be a new grade, college, or the work world. 

Our youth ministry BLAZE hosted a Youth Explosion on September 7^th, 2018.  BLAZE Youth Explosion was a great night of drama, worship, and encouragement by the youth for the youth. Children of all ages and neighborhood churches came out to experience the event. There were drama performances and special guests who performed Christian rap songs for the youth. Due to the increase in suicide in our country particularly among the youth, the message centered around suicide prevention. We believe that the gospel can help save the youth of our country and therefore, we presented it in a way that the youth could relate.
*Special thanks to the guest artists who made the event wonderful and to the youth of Calvary who led the event.

Back To School Sunday was held on September 9^th, 2018 and every year, we hold a Back To School service for the youth in our church. During the service, we pray for our youth before they go back to school because today’s society is more dangerous than it’s ever been. Our children have to face things that children in past generations never encountered. So, we have made a tradition out of praying for God’s protection over their lives before the school year starts. Our Sunday message addresses the everyday challenges that our youth may face at school and how to handle them.

As we grow as a church, we hope to continue to find innovative ways to encourage and connect with our church and community youth.

Here at Calvary, we believe in community outreach. However, we believe in evangelizing outside of our church walls and doing our part to impact the world outside of our community as well. We achieve our goal of reaching the community both locally and globally by partnering with ministries in Brooklyn and across the world that are ministering to people hundreds and even thousands of miles away.

1. Rachel’s Joy Maternity House – In an effort to help address social needs, we partner with Brooklyn based organizations such as Rachel’s Joy Maternity House. This organization helps young unwed mothers who need assistance. Realizing that it is not enough to just tell a young woman not to abort her child, Rachel’s Joy is committed to helping her during her time of greatest need.
2. Anchor House, Inc. – Anchor House is a Faith-based Intensive Residential Treatment program Licensed by OASAS (Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services). Located in Brooklyn, Anchor House helps men and women with substance abuse disorders return to their families as healthy, productive, and self-sufficient members of their communities empowered to reach their destiny.  
3. New York School of Urban Ministry (NYSUM) – One of our core values is to grow larger through Evangelism so we support The New York School of Urban Ministry. NYSUM hosts, trains, and deploys over 5,000 youth and adults for urban ministry each year by partnering with inner city pastors and churches in New York City.  Their students learn about inner-city ministry at the grassroots through diverse, cross-cultural, “hands-on” outreaches to Muslims, Jews, the homeless, abused women, the disabled, terminally ill, and those victimized by natural disasters.
4. Elim Fellowship – In upstate New York, Lima, we support Elim Fellowship. Their mission is to raise up a new generation of spiritual leaders to have a global impact through world missions. Elim Fellowship exists to strengthen the leader, to equip the church and, to reach the world.
5. United Church – We partnered with Pastor Adam Martino to plant United Church in Richmond, VA and helped him and his wife Leslie in their quest to help the Richmond community find God, find community and, find purpose. 
6. Jews for Jesus – We support organizations like Jews for Jesus who engage Jewish people with the gospel and equip them to follow Jesus and inspire others to do the same. Their staff is active internationally in 13 countries and 24 cities.
7. Rehema Home, Nairobi – Our network expands to Africa through Rehema Home, Nairobi in Kenya. For more than 100 children, half of whom are HIV positive, Rehema Home serves as more than an orphanage but, a home. 
8. Isaka Memorial Foundation (IMF) – Our support of the Isaka Memorial Foundation helps ensure that orphans and vulnerable children (OVCs) with AIDS have access to essential services in economically depressed communities. IMF currently supports Nyamila Community Center, which is managed and run by a local committee and a paid Manager from the community. The Center is located in Siaya district which is 20 miles from Lake Victoria, near the port city of Kisumu, Nyanza province, Kenya. The services include: education, medical care, nutrition, and food security, water, sanitation and. income generating activities for economic empowerment. 
9. World Outreach Ministries – In Asia, we partner with World Outreach Ministries to support the House of Refuge Home for Girls in India. World Outreach Ministries presently cares for 375 girls at the House of Refuge Home for Girls I and II (Orissa, India).
10. New Hope Outreach Ministry – In the Caribbean, we support New Hope Outreach Ministry founded by Evangelist Harry Ramkissoon in Trinidad. This ministry is dedicated to meeting the needs of the underprivileged and less fortunate in Trinidad while leading them to Christ. They are currently in touch with over 550 families. As a result, many have found Christ as their Savior.

We believe that through our many partnerships, we are bridging the gap across the world.

On August 7, 2018, Pastor Henry received several awards from the 77th Precinct Community Council for his exemplary leadership and positive impact on the local community.  His participation in community activities such as National Night Out Against Crime is a testament to his commitment to serve the community.  

Here At Calvary Community Church, we believe in the power of ministry. We believe that this is how the church grows and therefore we have many ministries that cater to the needs of everyone in our church home and the community. Our ministries hold many events that serve to create fellowship among the church family and serve the community.

Women’s Ministry:

Every year, the women’s ministry holds a Mother/Daughter Brunch and hosts other events like Culture Night celebrating our diverse community. The monthly meetings that the ministry holds on Fridays called Sisters to Sisters is the heart and soul of the women’s ministry. Sisters to Sisters offers a safe & positive environment for women to connect and talk about sensitive topics such as Health, Mental Wellness and, Finance.

Cityfest Basketball Outreach:

Cityfest Basketball Outreach is a basketball tournament that we host each year in collaboration with Evangel Assembly of God of Ringgold, VA. Every year, the youth of the community come out for a day of music, food, basketball and fun activities as we use that day to minister to them as well.

July 4th BBQ:

Every Independence Day, all ministries combine to host our annual July 4th BBQ to engage our community while celebrating our country’s independence. This is one of our church’s longest standing traditions. 

Men’s Outreach:

The Men’s group host an annual men’s retreat and monthly fellowship breakfasts open to the community and congregation. These are very important ways in which the men of our church fellowship with one another.

B.L.A.Z.E. Annual Youth Explosion:

B.L.A.Z.E. collaborates with local churches to engage the youth in our communities through entertainment (music, dance, rap, mime etc.) at our Annual Youth Explosion.

Thanksgiving Dinner and Outreach:

Every Thanksgiving, Calvary’s ministries collaborate with NYSUM (New York School of Urban Ministry) to bring hope for the holidays through our annual Thanksgiving Dinner and outreach. 200- 300 people are served annually and coats are distributed to help keep many warm for the winter season.

Christmas Program and Giveaway:

Every Christmas season, The Junior Church and Nursery ministry host our annual Christmas program and Giveaway featuring our youth and their perspective of Christmas.  At this event, clothes and toys are given away, as well.

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace. 1 Peter 4:10