Proposed community center hopes to show Greene residents ‘The Way’
A new community center is coming to Greene County with the intent of providing a safe and friendly environment for people of all ages.
The Way Community Center of Greene County will be located at 208 West High St. in Waynesburg, adjacent to First Baptist Church, and will be free and open to anyone.
In 2019, First Baptist purchased the property that once housed the former Belko Foods grocery store for $400,000. At the time, Jonathan Johnson was the church moderator and is now the chairperson of The Way, an independent nonprofit formed in June 2022.
“We had always talked about purchasing the building if we had a chance,” he said. “Fortunately, at that time we had the resources to do it. We saw some other examples of churches in the community building family life centers that hadn’t really seen an impact in the church or the community. We started to think a little differently about how we could utilize this building.”
Fundraising for renovation costs of $2.4 million for the 15,424-square-foot building began in the spring of 2021. Another $2 million will be needed for completion, which Johnson hopes will occur by the beginning of next year.
Plans include a full-time staff plus volunteers to create a consistent, loving and safe environment to build long-term relationships. Programming will be geared to areas such as self-worth, substance abuse, food insecurity and neglect.
The center intends to offer group recreational activities, mentoring programs, flexible child care, a STEAM after-school program, preschool and a technology hub. The center could also serve as an alternative to punishment where youths could be sent for after-school programming.
Partnerships with a number of groups and organizations will help connect those who use the facility with the community.
“We want to come alongside our schools to help support them by providing services they may not be able to or are beyond their scope,” Johnson said. “We see a lot of breakdown between school and home, and we hope The Way can position itself in between those two where kids can walk in seven days a week if they need something, give them opportunities they may not otherwise have.”
A gymnasium, five classrooms, a multipurpose room, WiFi and a cafe are among amenities planned. The words “Welcome Home” will be prominently featured throughout the facility because that’s the atmosphere that those involved want to create.
“That’s what we want it to be,” Johnson said. “We want to value, equip and connect people. We want to value each person and their unique contribution to our community. Not only the people, but the entities who are already invested here and are trying to make it a better place.”
Many names were discussed for the mission before settling on “The Way.”
“It almost made too much sense,” Johnson said. “Because it was born out of the church, we thought, ‘The Way,’ as being Jesus is the way, the truth and the light, the way we do things. It’s bigger than just a word.”
It also happens to be located in “Way-nesburg.”
“You can fit it into any conversation about how we want this county or community to be, the way we want to change lives,” said board member Jared Edgreen.
The Way grew out of the former Coalition for a Brighter Greene volunteer organization, of which Johnson and Edgreen were members.
“We decided we needed to broaden our vision and broaden our mission,” Edgreen explained. “With the First Baptist Church purchasing this building and giving it to the community, that gave the coalition the outlet to say we have a brick-and-mortar location that’s open to the community where everyone is welcome, and it will be a great place to be without monthly dues.”
Anyone interested in volunteering or donating or getting involved in some way can do so at thewaygc.org.