A church will be moving into the old Clover Lanes building.
Pastor Joseph Fynn-Sackey from The Church of Pentecost Canada will be moving his flock over from Newton and plans to hold services in Cloverdale beginning in September.
“We’re holding our church services in a smaller facility now and we’ve outgrown the space,” Fynn-Sackey told the Cloverdale Reporter. “We were looking for a bigger place and the Clover Lanes location will serve our purposes very well. We will have enough space for worship services, our youth, and our children.”
Currently Fynn-Sackey holds his services in a building on 84 Avenue near 122A Street, but is excited about making the move to Cloverdale.
“Everything is still in the planning stages, but we want to do community outreach.”
He said one form of outreach will include a youth development centre that will aim to help young people in the Cloverdale area.
And he’s hoping the outreach goes both ways.
SEE ALSO: End of an era: Clover Lanes closes for good
“That’s our prayer, that the community embraces us too,” Fynn-Sackey said. “The bowling alley was there for 72 years, and we’re mindful of that and what it meant to the community, so as we get to know the community, we also hope the community will reach out to us.”
He said they want to provide space for community initiatives, but what form that takes will be determined later.
A few weeks ago Clover Lanes closed their doors for good.
Jonah Cunningham, the manager/mechanic, announced on Facebook May 1 the Cloverdale bowling alley was shutting its doors after 72 years in operation.
“It’s with a sad heart that we announce that we are closing our doors forever,” Cunningham wrote. “We will miss all of you and hope you are keeping safe. Thank you for all the awesome memories!!!”
Cunningham told the Reporter, “It’s bittersweet because I have a lot of good memories there and so do a lot of other people,” he said. “I grew up around bowling. I grew up with the game. To see another alley close, it’s really sad.”
Clover Lanes opened at its current location in 1949 in a purpose-built centre.
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Fynn-Sackey said while the church will be new to the area, many of his members are familiar with Cloverdale.
“We have a lot of members from Surrey and Langley, so it will be closer for some people.”
He also hopes to partner with other groups in Cloverdale so the church can help as best as they can.
“Our church is here to spread the Good News and it’s our hope to help the community and to become a part of the community.”
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