For alumnus Chandler Horne, learning bike mechanics is a parallel to learning how to be the church. Horne trains confident bike mechanics and disciples 鈥減eople mechanics鈥 at , a church plant in east Hamilton, that combines bike repair, cycling and ministry.
鈥淲e seek the restoration of people and place alongside the restoration of bikes,鈥 says Horne, a youth ministry and business program graduate. It is鈥攓uite literally鈥攃hurch in a bike shop.
How can we relate to each other in a way that we can become 鈥渕echanics鈥 for each other鈥檚 souls? How can we 鈥渢alk shop鈥 about more than just bikes but about our own lives? These are questions Horne engages daily. Horne was introduced to questions like these at Redeemer.
鈥淚 went to Redeemer not knowing who I was,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 took business courses purely as a way to move forward in a well-rounded way. But, God had his way with me, and I discovered a passion for youth ministry and an affinity with theology.鈥
鈥淲e believe God is into restoring people and culture just like New Hope Community Bikes is into restoring bikes.鈥
Chandler was a regular volunteer at , a bike co-op started by , a Christian Reformed church plant across the road. While he was repairing bikes and rubbing shoulders with those in the community, he began to talk about his faith. This led to invitations to pray for one another. Soon, it grew to full-fledged church services.
These church services, dubbed , are a unique space for the community to ask questions about God. All are welcome, and the congregation is continually drawing in customers from the bike shop. While it may not be traditional, it is holistic. 鈥淲e believe God is into restoring people and culture just like New Hope Community Bikes is into restoring bikes,鈥 says Chandler.
Revitalization, and bike culture, are part of the fabric of east Hamilton. 鈥淭raditionally, there鈥檚 a stigma surrounding the area: it鈥檚 seen as the dirty, industrial underbelly of Hamilton.鈥 Likewise, 鈥楨ast Enders鈥 are seen as the riffraff of the city. Add the brisk gentrification taking place, and you have an equation for hopelessness. But, this is changing, especially with the hospitality and compassion of organizations like New Hope Community Bikes and Restoration Hamilton.
鈥淢ost of the people in the neighbourhood travel on bikes due to the cost of transit or owning a car,鈥 Chandler explains. This commonality brings customers into the shop, and leads to conversations about God at Shop Talks. 鈥淏iking is an activity that nearly everyone can do. For many, it鈥檚 a hobby.鈥 Biking is also, it appears, fertile ground for community, hospitality, growth, and discipleship.
Chandler connects the inspiration for Restoration Hamilton back to his time at school. 鈥淚 would be a different husband today, a different bike mechanic, a different pastor and have a different love for Hamilton if Redeemer was not in my past,鈥 he says. 鈥淚t was an investment that God grew tenfold鈥擱edeemer was worth the cost. Redeemer is where I received my first call to ministry, where I articulated the strengths and weaknesses of my character, where I made friends that still build into my relational equity in Hamilton today, where I honed my ability to learn, and discovered a worldview that shaped the many faculties of life.鈥