Showing God’s love to children with disabilities

During the pandemic, a passionate team of volunteers at Calvary Church created a program called Calvary Champions. The heart behind this initiative was simple: to show God’s love to kids with disabilities of any kind.

Calvary Champions church ministry is overseen by professionals in the disability field, and has a 1:1 ratio with every child who attends the Sunday-morning program. 

Mel, a school chaplain at two local special schools who calls Calvary Church home, says helping families of special-needs children connect and experience ‘community’ is crucial. 

And she was blown away by her church family’s vision to make this happen.

“Champions Club is amazing. It’s one room in the church, but it’s impacted the whole culture. It’s made our church family more thoughtful and accommodating for those with special needs, and helped us see that each of us are fearfully and wonderfully made,” says Mel.

“As a chaplain, I see parents in survival mode all the time. Because they have children with endless appointments and medical needs, their families are often under financial strain and extreme stress. But the biggest thing I hear in my role is the isolation these families face,” says Mel.

“They can’t always take their children out for dinner, or to church, because their children don’t fit into the programs. This is why we started ‘Calvary Champions’. Church is a place where everyone belongs.”

Chaplaincy, and the many SU ministries that exist across Australia, are about bringing communities together, to give more opportunities for children, young people and their families to discover life.

Through faithful supporters like you, and the churches and community organisations we work alongside, this vision is becoming a reality. Thank you for coming on the journey.