Dear Friend of Gower;

Gower Street United Church sits in the heart of downtown St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador and has been for over 200 years, serving our community as it still does today. On a yearly basis thousands of people from our community pass through our doors. It is the focal point for many activities; Sunday Worship Services, feeding our community and outreach activities. It is also there to welcome our congregation and visitors for some of the most important occasions in our lives – our baptisms, weddings and funerals. Our church is available to local community groups, and we host activities such as gatherings for seniors, meetings, concerts and fundraising events for non-profit groups.

Gower has long been an open and accepting congregation as evidenced by our conducting same sex marriages since 2008. However June 8, 2019 was a proud day for Gower as we became the first church on the Island of Newfoundland to receive certification as an Affirming Congregation. The Affirming Ministries Program is a network of primarily United Church ministries that declare themselves to be fully inclusive of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.

Over the years we have developed a reputation for not only being a downtown United Church, but also a strong community partner in times of need. The average daily cost of running Gower Street United Church is close to $1,000 a day and is made up of costs including insurance, heating, light, printing of service materials, maintenance i.e. snow clearing and minor repairs. As you can imagine there are many challenges of maintaining a Heritage building that is more than 100 years old while at the same time ensuring we have adequate funds for the ongoing operation of the Church and our Programs.

Also as a church family we provide significant contributions, averaging almost $40,000 per year, to the United Church Mission and Services fund. This is only made possible by the generosity of friends and members of Gower Street United Church.