Peace in the 'prayground' Hill United pastor creates toddler space
For the Rev. Leigh Benish, pastor of Hill United Presbyterian Church, 501 Second St., it's a balancing act.
Fidgety, squirming or fussy children can be a distraction during a Sunday worship service.
But since the church doesn't have a staffed nursery, a parent must remove the child and himself to a remote church basement nursery, depriving them both of the service's benefits.
“That's the old, old model, and we did it at this church for a long time,” said Benish. “But research is showing pulling children out of worship leads to an increase of not being involved with church as an adult.”
Benish's solution, which she unveiled in February, is the “prayground,” a 15- by-20-foot play area set up in the overflow area on the left side of the church's sanctuary.
Equipped with a cushy cartoon character seats and a shelf of quiet toys, books, puzzles and coloring supplies, the prayground is a space where children and parents can retreat to without being cut off from the service.
The furnishings and toys were paid for from a memorial gift to the church, she said.
There are chairs and a pew along the wall for the parents to sit, or they are welcome to join their children on the rug.
“It's intended for younger children, ideally preschool age or younger and their families” she said. “Families can sit together. The children have room to wiggle, and the adults can focus more on the worship service.”
“I got the idea from a pastor colleague of mine at a church in Minnesota,” Bernish said. “She started it at her church and it kind of took off from there.”
Still, the expectation remains that if a child is being disruptive they would still be removed altogether from the sanctuary.Benish said some Sundays there are four children or so in the prayground area and some Sundays there are none.The idea is that by the time a child turns 4 he is able to sit quietly during an hourlong service including a 15-minute sermon.And that way, it's not uncommon for some of the church to rub off as the child is exposed to the worship service.“It depends on the child,” said Benish. “But my 4-year-old son, Gabriel, I heard him reciting the Lord's Prayer at home which he hadn't done before. He learned the prayer just because he was exposed to it in the sanctuary space.”The pastor said the parents of young children really appreciate the church's creation of a play area.“Kids have a hard time sitting still. The prayground makes them feel welcome and more willing to bring their family to church,” she said.Elean Heist, the church secretary and financial secretary, said that while her stepchildren were too old for the prayground, “I was really, really excited when I was told they were going to do this.”“There is no space for kids to play or worship in the sanctuary,' said Heist. “And pew wrangling and head banging can be disruptive to us all.”
