Kogarah Storehouse to celebrate 30 years

On Sunday, 11 September, Kogarah Uniting Church will hold a thanksgiving service to mark 30 years of  the Kogarah Storehouse being a force for good in the local community.

The storehouse was an old, disused factory that was transformed into a big space for local community services.

At the time that congregation members were looking for a space, the derelict 100 year old factory on the corner of Gray and Kensington street became available.

Kogarah Uniting Church’s Russell Foxe said that this coincided with the congregation having the funds to purchase the property, having sold two former church buildings.

St George Hospital was steadily growing and by necessity needed to acquire properties around it so it could expand.

Two properties, acquired in 1986, were the former Methodist Church building in Kensington Street together with the former Congregational Church in Gray Street. Both Churches had amalgamated a few years earlier to become Kogarah Uniting Church.

“God had gone before us,” Mr Foxe recalled.

“They needed to sell, we had the money.”

The old building, now with a new mission, reminded someone of the biblical passage Malachi 3:10: “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”

The Storehouse has grown over three decades and now offers a wide range of services, including no-interest loans, domestic violence support, and Christmas Hampers. A wide variety of community groups meet regularly in the space.

According to the most recent Annual Report, the Storehouse provided 8640 Food Parcels in 2021.

The Storehouse’s No Interest Loan Scheme also launched in 2021. The service provides Centrelink clients loans of up to $1500 to pay for medical expenses, emergency home repairs, and fixing broken down appliances.

According to Mr Foxe, the thanksgiving service aims to mark, “What God has done.”

The service will feature a slide show, capturing memories from over the past 30 years.

Rev. Ken Day, who was minister at the time that the Storehouse launched, will preach at the service.

The Thanksgiving Service for Kogarah Storehouse takes place at Kogarah Uniting Church 10am on Sunday, 11 September. There will also be a celebratory dinner on 15 September.

For information on the Storehouse’s services, courses, programs, and community groups go to the website here.