Small Church, Big Faith

By Robyn Meurkson

“If we had to do it all over again, I would not change a thing,” said 64-year-old Edward “Teddy” Hembekides, the director and pastor of Triton University Fellowship.

Located in River Grove, Illinois, just two blocks east of Triton College’s main campus, Triton University Bible Fellowship (Triton UBF) has been home to Triton College students and River Grove residents since the early 1990’s. There are just a few non-denominational and denominational Christian house churches planted in and around the Chicagoland area. But what makes Triton UBF so unique is the dedication and sacrifice it took to open one family’s home.

A house that was formerly owned by Hembekides, also known as the “Bible House” is opened to members and non-members who can conduct and participate in worship services, Bible studies, and Bible meetings.

Hembekides bought the house in late November of 1989. He and his wife Liz first moved into the single-family home in their early thirties while dedicating their time as full-time ministerial servants at Chicago University Bible Fellowship. During his time at Chicago UBF, Hembekides along with four other Chicago UBF families joined the mission to transform what was then Hembekides’ single-family home into a house church.

“We lived in a two-story house with two bedrooms and two bathrooms,” Hembekides said. “In order for us to build the church, we had to get a permit from the village to make the changes, and begin the work process. Within several months, we created a large enough space to have Bible studies with a few people who gathered here to study and pray.”

Midwest University Bible Fellowship additionally provided funding and personal loans for the new house church. The goal was to build more space and more rooms within a five-to-six-week time frame.

“I remember five rooms in total. There was a bedroom and a bathroom on the top floor… There was another bedroom, a kitchen, and living room space that used to be in place of the main floor,” said Hembekides.

Kevin Jesmer, 52, is a former elder at Triton UBF and was one of the first families to partake in renovating Hembekides’ old home.

“The old wood from the ceiling was so weak that several volunteers had to install a large thick rod to hold it in place,” said Jesmer.

New wood blocks had to be installed to support the levels of floors and ceilings for safety measures. Hembekides had to borrow more funds and hire professionals to complete the tasks many church members could not succeed in.

“We had to be super careful tearing down things,” Hembekides said. “There were pipes under the house that were connected to the main pipes under the residential streets. We had to hire professionals to help with this problem.”

Throughout the renovation, the main floor was now a large open space. The kitchen became smaller with the boiler room adjacent. Electricians had installed and rerouted new electrical wires and light switches, and the bathrooms were reconstructed and relocated to the back end of the house making them accessible for people with disabilities.

The Bible House not only served a purpose for church services, but for Triton students as well. On Triton’s campus, Triton UBF hosted a club called the Triton Bible Club, which was made known for students to become acquainted with God respectively through fun activities, fellowshipping, and one-on-one Bible studies. The Bible House provided a safe haven for students seeking to find peace in their lives through the Bible and through God.

Jamilyn Donato, 37, a former Triton College student has served in the ministry for almost ten years. “I love the ideas of the Bible House. It’s a way to make others feel welcome and feel right at home,” said Donato.

Due to its small structure, the Bible House can only hold a maximum of 75 individuals. If more, they are then relocated to the church’s garage where they can partake in Sunday’s sermon shown from a small television screen.

“I have served in the ministry for about seven years, and sometimes accommodated the people who attended our service in the garage. Sometimes we had an overflow of 10 to 15 people who had a hard time moving around. When it was hot, there was no air conditioning, and when it was cold, there was no heat. Sometimes we can’t have service in the garage because of that reason,” said Bamidele Taiwo, one of the members at Triton UBF.

Overflow or not, the church has a home in River Grove and plans to stay there. “People have repeatedly advised and asked me to move to a bigger place, and we have had no desire to do so at all. It’s not just the neighborhood that’s wonderful, it is so close to the college that we serve. It’s mostly the simplicity and humbleness of the church that has kept it at a place so many people can consider to be like home,” said Hembekides.

Katherine “Ruth” Perez, 39, is one of the ministerial servants at Triton UBF--occasionally leading the Children’s Bible Fellowship (CBF) in the church’s garage.

“We sometimes have so many children joining us for activities. We are considering closing the garage for good. Things can fall, people can trip, but we are lucky to have such a small space to worship. No matter where we worship, God is with us wherever we go,” said Perez.

There has been so much life at Triton UBF that a few members within the congregation have begun to start their own house church. In 2008, Kevin Jesmer along with his wife Julie left Triton UBF to pursue his own house church in Dekalb, Illinois, specifically to Northern Illinois University (NIU) students.

“In 1998, there were signs that maybe a house church should be started at NIU. There were two students who studied at NIU. Julie was taking classes at NIU. We prayed and felt that it was the right time to move out to DeKalb. I got a job as a nurse, and my wife Julie commuted. We bought a small two-bedroom home, and began to invite people to have Bible study in our home. We immediately started to have Sunday worship services in our own living room. This went on week after week for 14-years,” said Jesmer.

Jesmer believes that it doesn’t take a large building with stained glass windows and pews to worship God.

“Such close relationships occurred at Triton UBF, and the connections lasted for a long time. The fruit that was born is also in our kids. They have been blessed by Triton UBF’s house church experience. The fruit is seen in our own lives,” said Jesmer.

This article can be found in my latest design magazine the Elbow Room!