Vitality: St. Andrew Presbyterian, East Iowa City, Iowa

“Church is service,” says Thomas Hartley, Interim Director of Children’s and Family Ministry at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Iowa City, Iowa. In that spirit, the church “embodies,” the Matthew 25 Vision of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, according to Rev. W. Robert Martin III, Pastor and Head of Staff of the church that has recently relocated to a new facility designed to help the church interact with its community. Recent initiatives have focused on issues such as food insecurity and mental health, particularly among children impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The church works to engage its children and youth in outreach programs just like adults. Martin says that it is all about expanding the “relational kingdom of God that Jesus was challenging us to embrace and embody.” See more about St. Andrew in the video, above. Learn more about the Matthew 25 Vision at pcusa.org/Matthew25