Christus Victor Lutheran Church
"It All Began in Parkwood"
In the sixties, Durham was in the beginning of a major transition from a tobacco-manufacturing town to a science and technology phenomena centered in the Research Triangle Park. At this same time the Lutheran Church in American (LCA) identified Durham as a good area for domestic mission development. There were already Lutheran Churches in the northern and central areas of the city, but no Lutheran presence in the southern part of the county. The LCA decided to center a new mission around the Parkwood community, just ten miles from downtown and a few miles from the Research Triangle Park (RTP). There was already an influx of employees from RTP to the Parkwood community.
The Rev. Floyd Sides began his work as a Lutheran mission developer in this community in June 1966, with assistance of LCA Mission Board. The Board purchased a house on Radcliff Circle for a parsonage and selected a building site for a future church on 2.48 acres of land on Highway 54 diagonally across from the Triangle Hardware store, which is the present location of the church. A location outside of Parkwood was chosen to serve the larger Durham community. Rev. Sides began contacting families in the Parkwood community who might be interested in starting a new church. A planning committee was formed for the "Research Triangle" mission with emphasis on development, evangelism and education.
The committee adopted the tentative name of Christus Victor Lutheran Church and arranged to rent Parkwood Elementary School on Sunday mornings at a cost of $15 a day. Worship services began on September 11, 1966. Attendance that first month averaged 34 adults and 23 children. The group opened a charter for signatures and 14 families became the first signers of the charter.
In late 1967 with 23 families, the congregation met in the school to adopt a constitution and form a Church council to lead the new congregation. Services continued in the Parkwood School until the dedication of the new church building in 1970. With financial support from the LCA, the church remained in mission status several years.
The church is a liturgical ELCA congregation currently under the pastoral care of Pastor James Huffman. The 20-foot altar and the baptismal font are the prominent features of the sanctuary and communion is offered twice each Sunday. Communion and Baptism are the two sacraments of this church. The church is home to 125 families, two Sunday worship services, six Sunday School classes, Vacation Bible School, WELCA (women's group), Men's group, Quilters and Boy Scout troops. The Church is led by a nine-member Council; assisted by six Boards - Worship, Christian Education, Outreach, Parish Life, Property and Resource. Evangelism and social ministry still remain important missions of the church. This past year the Quilters made 31 quilts for Lutheran World Relief (LWR). The Outreach Board assembled 100 health kits for Haiti, assembled 75 school kits for LWR, took part in the Durham Crop Walk, prepared dinners for Lutheran Duke students, collected $400 in household goods for the Center for Abused Women, collected 740 pounds of food for Urban Ministries of Durham, collected 60 Christmas gifts for residents of Murdoch Center, and collected 200 pairs of socks for residents of the Durham Rescue Mission and the Good Samaritan Inn and presented the Living Nativity for the Durham community with 30+ church members participating and 200 cars going through. This mission started with Parkwood families, with early worship services held in the Parkwood Elementary School and grew in its service to the entire Durham community.
Written by Judy Meade