Oak Brook church gives to the world through Spirit Village

Oak Brook church gives to the world through Spirit Village

December 6, 2010
By STEVE SCHERING Contributor'
The Doings

Gift giving took on a new meaning at Christ Church of Oak Brook's Spirit Village.

Church members and non-members gathered at Christ Church in the Spirit Village, a Dickens era village set up in the Fellowship Halls. Visitors donned top hats and dresses while walking through the buildings, which served as the village's hotel, book shoppe, general store, toy shoppe and towne hall.

Costumed shopkeepers provided cards from various missionaries around the world seeking help this holiday season. Visitors could pick up the cards and donate toward the charity, for themselves or in the name of a friend or relative.

“You can get a relationship with the missionaries instead of just writing checks,” Bobbi Dean of Bolingbrook said. Dean and her husband Bob have attended Spirit Village since it began more than a decade ago.

“It's a great opportunity for people to satisfy their desire to serve a mission or missionary,” Bob Dean said. “You can help people you think are more in need.”

Nate Klinger of Elmhurst served as emcee of the village, while his wife Jennifer and son Wade, 3, looked on.

“It's been a way for us to connect with the whole community,” Nate Klinger said. “Rather than going to Best Buy, we are giving these people gifts they need. It's giving in a different way.”

The village also featured face painters, balloon animals, a petting zoo, live music entertainment and a luncheon. This year's petting zoo had an alligator and snake and was the scene of a Spirit Village miracle years ago.

“Three years ago, we had a live birth at Spirit Village,” Coordinator Lynn Larson said. “A sheep gave birth on stage to a lamb.”

The village had more than 120 volunteers who were busy setting up the buildings Friday night. The event raises money for people in Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, South America, the United States and Mexico and raised more than $160,000 last year.

One of the beneficiaries of the church's generosity is Project Angel Tree, which provides gifts for the children of incarcerated parents.

“Sometimes it may be the only gift those children will get,” Diane Calabrese of Oak Brook said. “We've collected 400 gifts for 200 children and response has been excellent every year.”

Greg Nyczak of Hinsdale said his son Stephen grew up at Spirit Village. Stephen, now 20, is away at college preparing for finals, but Nyczak remembers one story that reveals what Spirit Village is all about.

“My son had to write what was the best gift he ever received for a school project,” Nyczak said. “He said the best gift he ever got was when he donated money to help bring a water filter to an African village through Spirit Village. He wrote that on his own and it was a wonderful moment as a parent.”