In April of 2009, Brian and Allison Conyers moved to Vermont with the hopes of starting a new evangelical church in Vermont. Shortly thereafter, it became clear that the place for them, and the fledgling church, would be the town of Waterbury.
Started under the guidance of the Southern Baptist Convention, Waterbury Mission began in the summer of 2010 as a Bible Study held in the Waterbury Senior Center. On Easter Sunday, 2012, the church officially began their morning worship services in the cafeteria of Thatcher Brook Primary School.
From the very beginning, the church sought to be a blessing to the community through various service projects in support of its wider mission to Reach, Teach and Love the World… like Jesus.
In the early days, the church coordinated volunteer teams from Virginia, North Carolina and Texas to help paint the interior of the Senior Center; build mountain bike trails on Perry Hill; and serve cake and ice cream at the town’s 250th anniversary celebration. Teams also assisted annually each June as the church made their large inflatable obstacle course available for KidsFest in Rusty Parker Park.
The church has accomplished various tasks at Thatcher Brook Primary School including flower bed cleanup, gravel sidewalk construction, painting bookcases for the Children’s Room, and the annual painting of the school's exterior handrails. The church has also partnered with the PTA several times to host playground cleanup days along with post-workday barbecues.
The church has been a regular feature at many of the town’s regular events. From giving away full-size candy bars on Halloween to demonstrate the generosity of God’s Love, to cleaning up trash at the end of the Town’s Not Quite Independence Day Parade to demonstrate God’s selfless service. The church has always been there to serve.
The church also created it’s own highly anticipated annual event… the Back to School Bash which was held from 2011-2015. The “bash” was an opportunity for families with school age children to receive school supplies, play games and have a meal… all free of charge. During those 5 years, the church gave away over 1,000 backpacks full of school supplies, 18 bikes, iPods and gift cards to local establishments and many other prizes. The “bash” ended when a decision was made to help families on a more personal basis.
Through the years, the church has hosted childcare events, block parties, painted the exterior of the town’s recreation and pool buildings, hosted Vacation Bible School annually at Dac Rowe field, taught money management classes and various other Bible studies in town. Recently, the church was involved in coordinating meal deliveries for children during the pandemic.
It’s evident: Waterbury Mission loves Waterbury and in the coming years we continue to look for ways to serve this vibrant and special community while Reaching, Teaching and Loving the World (and Waterbury)… like Jesus.