For Sackville United Church, the most meaningful ministry is to make space for others at the table, whatever that space looks like
“We hope that you are well. If you are in need – physically, spiritually, or otherwise – don't hesitate to reach out to us. We are here for you and for each other!”
These opening words to Sackville United Church’s weekly newsletter say much about who this community of faith is. They are not simply a familiar greeting. They are an invitation, a promise and, in many ways, a description of the life of the congregation.
In Sackville, New Brunswick, faith is lived with energy, imagination, and a deep attentiveness to the community around it. It is willing to try something new, listen to its neighbours, and discover where the Spirit may be moving next.
That spirit was visible in 2025 in their 100 Tables project, when the congregation painted its picnic table in Pride colours and brought it into the wider community, including to the Pride Parade in nearby Amherst, Nova Scotia. The table became a colourful and unmistakable invitation: there is room here for you. It was wonderfully simple—a place to sit, rest, talk, gather, or simply be. In a busy downtown setting, surrounded by restaurants with limited seating, the table quietly proclaimed that welcome does not have to be complicated. Sometimes ministry begins with making a little room.
This past spring, the table returned to its place outside the church, edging onto the sidewalk toward one of Sackville’s main intersections. Jennie Del Motte, music director and office administrator, described it as a “colourful, public, intentional, and explicit rainbow of welcome.”
It’s a fitting symbol for a community of faith that continually finds ways to set tables for others.
The brick building the congregation calls home was constructed in 1924, and housed the post office, customs office, and other civic services. From 1963 to 2012, it served as Sackville’s town hall, library, courthouse, and police station. In a creative swap, the previous church building and land were exchanged for the current property. When the congregation moved into the building in 2014, it adopted a home already woven into the life of the community, and it didn’t stop weaving.
On August 2, Sackville United once again welcomed the community for free Pancakes and Prayers as part of the annual Sappyfest Music Festival, preparing more than 500 pancakes for approximately 200 people. It took an abundance of helping hands: people greeting, cooking, making coffee and tea, washing dishes, setting up, cleaning up, sharing griddles, chatting with guests, and encouraging enthusiastic young volunteers.
The event raised money for cystic fibrosis research, and another thing just as great: fellowship. There is something deeply pastoral about a church that understands feeding people as both a practical act of care and a spiritual one—and pancakes are only one expression of that care.
Throughout the year, people find places to belong at Sackville United. From its seniors’ lunch group, to Gay and Golden, which offers safe and supportive fellowship for LGBTQ+ people aged 40 and over, to QS4A, which provides space for younger queer adults to share conversation and community.
There is also the Silent Prayer Circle. For fifteen or twenty minutes each month, people of all ages and walks of life are invited into the sanctuary to sit together in silence and in prayer. It is a recognition that beneath the busyness of everyday life, people carry heaviness, hope, grief, gratitude, and concern. Sometimes the most meaningful ministry is simply creating space for those realities to be held together.
Sackville United is situated in a small university town, where life is constantly changing and new people always arriving. Following an 18-month collaborative ministry pilot, the congregation is now discerning its next chapter and searching for new ministry personnel. The people of Sackville United are leaning into their own leadership, gifts, and relationships, creating belonging for all—a most hopeful priority for this community of faith.
The picnic table outside the church is colourful. The pancakes are plentiful. The calendar is full. The conversations are sometimes joyful, sometimes challenging, and sometimes prayerful. But underneath it all is a simple conviction: there is room for people here. At Sackville United, the table is never just a table. It is an invitation to belonging, a place of nourishment, a sign of justice, and a reminder that faith comes alive when people make room for one another.
—Sharon Ballantyne is a Growth and Stewardship Animator with The United Church of Canada, serving in Atlantic Canada. Jennie Del Mott is music director and office administrator at Sackville United Church, Sackville, New Brunswick.
Check out our Map of 100 Tables to learn more. Interested in organizing 100 Tables at your community of faith? Contact .
The views contained within these blogs are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of The United Church of Canada.