Maggie Peckford, with her husband and three young children, began attending Williamsburg (Ont.) CRC in spring 2024. In the fall of 2025 she joined its inaugural hospitality committee and says the church has been very receptive to hearing her perspective as a newcomer.
“I was the churchgoer that as soon as the service was over went right out the door,” Peckford recently told The Banner. But when a council member invited her to help start a hospitality committee, she said, “I like that it gave me the opportunity to do more.”
With a theme verse of Romans 15:7, “Welcome one another, therefore, as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God” (RSV), one of the committee’s four goals is to create and support opportunities for informal connection beyond Sunday worship. “Potlucks are our safe bet,” said Peckford, who described slowly introducing other elements to increase connection within the long-running potluck format. At Christmas they included a time for singing carols. February’s theme was a soup and chili competition. And at the church’s March 22 potluck, called “Prepare the Way Brunch,” congregants were asked to bring a breakfast-like dish instead of a typical casserole, and pack their favorite board game.
“We brought board games into it for people like me who find it hard to engage in conversation,” Peckford said. She said because of that, and because the church council took its turn in doing the potluck cleanup so most members could linger over games, she “got to connect with someone I normally wouldn’t have” over a game of Quirkle.
Another goal, to “assist in welcoming visitors and newcomers and helping them feel included in the life of the church” is helped by having Peckford’s “fresh take” perspective. At one of the early meetings of the five-person committee, it was noticed that despite hosting potlucks every three or four months, the church didn’t have any high chairs. The hospitality committee quickly purchased four of them to have on hand.
Peckford said about a third of the congregation attended the March 22 potluck. Next year they are considering adding a worship element, similar to the caroling at the Christmas potluck.