June 30thLeaders with a vision at Warden Underground
Susan (not her real name) struggled in school and her grades showed it! She just couldn’t seem to figure it out. No matter what she did when she added up 2 + 2, somehow, the answer was always 5 – at least that is what it seemed like. It always was so hard.
In a small Scarborough neighbourhood, a group of people from Warden Underground meets regularly on Monday night to help Susan and others from the neighbourhood who are struggling academically. “I remember when Susan came in to tell us that she was receiving marks of 80% and 90% and didn’t need tutoring anymore,” says Jordan Thoms, pastor at Warden Underground. “She wouldn’t talk about her marks and her struggles before, so to see her now speak openly and confidently was great.”
Warden Underground meet together regularly as church. Primarily focused on young adults and youth, they find unique ways of pouring God’s love on the neighbourhood around them. Jordan Thoms and Jon Folkeringa lead the group who meet at the Warden Woods Community Centre.
Along with the weekly tutoring sessions, they also have a Tuesday drop-in program, Wednesday men’s accountability group, taught by Jordan, and Thursday church. “The majority of the people who come out to our church are not actually committed Christians yet,” Jordan says. “They are interested and seeking and most have voiced the desire for God in their life, but it hasn’t become real to a number of them yet.”
"I look at the difference in the community from when I first started until now and see that God is here, restoring and reconciling things. It has been a slow grind but God is doing amazing things.”
Each Thursday for church, Warden Underground gather for a light meal or snacks and conversation. “There is a lot of dialogue,” says Jordan. “If the youth have questions or disagree about something they heard in our message, they have the opportunity to ask those questions.”
Their neighbourhood is important to Warden Underground. They ran a three-year program of music, supported by a professional producer and musician so that those who wished to learn how to create, record and release their own music had the opportunity. They also ran a biblically based employment program that matched business owners and program participants in a mentor relationship. They conducted mock interviews, taught resumé writing and the mentors opened their professional networks to those in the program. All nine participants graduated. Movie nights, sports activities and talent showcases were all a part of their summer programming. It ended with a community barbeque where two local youth asked Jordan to baptize them. They publicly committed their lives to living as Jesus taught, with the neighbourhood looking on.
“There is a hunger within the community for the truth and for God,” says Jordan. “There always has been, which is why I felt called to the community. I look at the difference in the community from when I first started until now and see that God is here, restoring and reconciling things. It has been a slow grind but God is doing amazing things.”
Warden Underground officially became an MCEC congregation with provisional membership in April 2020. “I’m very thankful for how you have blessed us and how you have resourced us. I’m thankful for the trust you have in us and have given to us,” says Jordan. “You have been really great and we want it to be a two-way street. We want to build stronger relationships with MCEC as a whole.”
You can reach them to welcome them at Warden Underground – Connect City, Pastor Jordan Thoms, jordan@connectministries.org.