SCHENECTADY — Dan Butterworth isn’t particularly religious, and when asked to describe his faith, he says it’s “all over the map.”

But on Sundays, he can be found at First Reformed Church in Schenectady’s Stockade, listening to the sermon, talking to parishioners and signing them up for volunteer projects.

As one of First Reformed’s new Missioners, Butterworth oversees the daily operations of Schenectady’s Damien Center, a community center that serves people with HIV/AIDS. He is employed by the Schenectady Inner City Ministry, but his position is funded by First Reformed Church.

Launched in March, the Missioner program represents a unique collaboration between one of the Capital Region’s oldest churches and the nonprofit organizations in its own backyard. Another Missioner, the Rev. Art Hudak, was recently hired to serve as coordinator of the City Mission’s Third Way program; he will promote positive relationships between downtown businesses and government agencies and people in need. The church plans to fund a total of four Missioners.

The idea, according to the Rev. Bill Levering, the senior pastor at First Reformed, is to connect church members with local nonprofit organizations and put them to work. The church has long supported these organizations financially but wanted to do something more active and hands-on.

“We wanted to be more engaged in the community than we were,” Levering said. “We’ve been generous in our benevolence to the community in terms of writing grants. But we wanted to do more than write a check. We wanted a closer connection with communities of need.”

Two on a mission

That connection will be established with the help of Hudak and Butterworth, who were both hired in April. They do not have to be members of First Reformed, but they are expected to be at church on Sundays, interacting with members, talking about their work at the Damien Center and City Mission of Schenectady and getting members to be part of it.

The Damien Center, which is run by the Schenectady Inner City Ministry, has been around for about 15 years and recently moved to a new spot on the campus of St. George’s Episcopal Church on North Ferry Street in Schenectady. The new Damien Center is about twice the size as the old facility, and Butterworth says he plans to expand the services it provides, offering more programs in life skills, nutrition and fitness. He spends half the day at the SICM office and half the day at the Damien Center, cooking and interacting with guests.

Evangelizing is not encouraged; Butterworth and Hudak are supposed to try to meet the needs of their clients without imposing any particular set of beliefs upon them. “It’s about providing reassurance and comfort and hope,” Butterworth said.

“Art and Dan are like chaplains,” Levering said. “They minister to people, but they are able to meet people where they are.”

For Butterworth, who attended a progressive church much like First Reformed while growing up, his Missioner work is his first church experience in years. After he was hired, Levering told him, “For better or worse, you married into a community, and I hope that’s what you wanted.” Butterworth, who previously worked as a research analyst for the Magellan Foundation in Latham and is completing his master’s degree in philosophy at the University at Albany, says it is what he wanted.

“In a day and age with the Internet and cellphones, people don’t connect with their neighbors,” Butterworth said. “I was looking to be of service and part of something bigger than myself.” He added, “It’s nice to be in a spiritual community again.”

worshipful work

Hudak’s story is much different. He was the minister of the Woodlawn Reformed Church in Schenectady for about 25 years until 2006, when he was arrested for entering a woman’s home and stealing about $10,000 worth of clothing and jewelry. He was sentenced to three years of probation and entered a rehab program for alcoholism. Now he is interacting with business owners and City Mission clients, trying to get merchants and clients to work together to revitalize the downtown. He has brought City Mission clients to worship at First Reformed; he also picks up elderly churchgoers who need assistance getting to services. He is recruiting members of First Reformed to help tend a community garden at the YWCA.

“I was ready to get back to work after an extensive recovery,” Hudak said. He, too, has enjoyed connecting with the First Reformed church family. “When I walk in the door, I worship,” he said. “I don’t have to get up and preach, and that’s good. To be able to worship is a gift. ... For me to be able to bring people to worship is a gift.”

The church expects to fund two other Missioner positions through First Reformed’s Covenant Fund, which supports the church’s mission and outreach initiatives. The investment per Missioner is about $40,000, which covers salary and benefits.

In February, First Reformed hired the Rev. Stacey Midge to serve as the church’s mission, outreach and youth ministries coordinator. She spends half her time in the community, interacting with local non-profit organizations and connecting with Schenectady residents. The Missioner program, Midge said, will take the church’s community outreach to another level.

“People from First Reformed have been out there [volunteering as individuals], but we had not been doing a lot as a congregation,” Midge said. “We wanted to do more together. ... There are a lot of challenges in the community, and we’re uniquely positioned to offer hope and transformation and improve the quality of life.”

church involvement

Many nonprofit organizations were originally established and supported by churches, but over the years, as they began to receive more support from government agencies, those ties faded. A recent church newsletter described this trend. “Beginning in the 1950s, the separation of social services from particular churches seemed like a good idea. It encouraged cooperation and delivered needed services efficiently. Unfortunately, it created a certain ghetto of low-income services separated from spiritual communities. It was easier to think of the poor as ‘them’ when they were served ‘over there.’ The needs, conditions and stories of the poor got further and further away from the consciousness of church folks.”

The Missioner program, Levering said, is all about rebuilding those ties. “We’re a church with many resources,” he said. “Our best resource is people. Relationships are more important than doctrine.”