CHINA GROVE — Sometimes, when the going gets tough, you have to think outside the box.

Rev. Jeff Topinka began preaching at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in China Grove earlier this year. Attendance had been waning, and the more than a century-old church’s revenue was down.

To sustain the ministry, Topinka and other church leaders began exploring possible revenue outlets.

“We have to start thinking more like a business,” Topinka said.

The formal church building is located at 326 N. Main Street, but directly south of it is a structure formerly called the education building, which housed a fellowship hall. On the second floor of the building were twelve 300-square-foot classrooms.

As Topinka and other church leaders explored possibilities, they developed a three-pronged approach: to develop a coffee shop or other hangout space, find tenants for the second floor and remodel the fellowship hall.

Instead of tackling those goals individually, they hit the ground running on all three at once.

Now open upon entry into the building is The Connection, a coffee shop that leaves judgment at the door and welcomes all. There are food and drinks along with China-Grove-specific keepsakes.

China Grove Rotary Club President Michael Moon has been instrumental in the renovations.

“The bones were so good,” Moon said. “The building has just not been updated in so long. We did not have to tear walls down or anything crazy.”

They found a perfect tenant for the second floor in Thrive Day School, which serves students on the autism spectrum.

Thrive Day School started in 2018 at a small dance studio in south Charlotte out of a vision and a passion to help children with exceptional needs and their families.

In 2021, Thrive expanded to Concord. In 2022, at the request of several families, Thrive launched operations in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Now, the school in China Grove marks its latest campus.

“When we started discussion on the school, our conversation with the church and council is that it was an incredible ministry,” Topinka said. “It serves an incredible need.”

The final prong was the fellowship renovation, which is nearly complete.

“The idea behind the assembly hall is to market that as a rental,” Topinka said. By creating a space that could serve as an event location, the building, which only infrequently served church and area organizations for meetings, might see an uptick in usage.

“We have to make it attractive with a marketing angle,” Topinka said.

The space will include a prepping area for caterers to come in, as well as an open floor plan and a raised stage for performances, speeches etc.

Topinka said that he wants to see the church become more of a central piece within China Grove as a physical space where people want to spend time.

“In understanding our faith, everything comes from a community perspective,” Topinka said. “What can we do to engage the community?”

That engagement began back during China Grove’s annual Farmers Day festival.

“We thought, why not hit the ground running?” Topinka said. “I have a lot of musician friends and said, ‘Let’s open up this building, let’s advertise, let’s put a thing out front.’ We had five bands playing throughout the day. It was like an ecumenical jam fest.”

Decorations in the coffee shop pay homage to Farmers Day with shirts from the event dating back to the ’80s. Moon said that anything meaningfully connected to China Grove is welcome.

“Bring me anything about the town that you want to preserve,” Moon said. “We want to honor that legacy as we grow.”

He pointed to the building as a reflection of that.

“Once you rip a 60-year-old floor out, you can’t bring it back,” Moon said. “This is preserving the heritage of the building. I think everything we have done has tried to honor that. There was a lot of quality in the craftsmanship of this building.”

Where once it was linked to the church’s physical location, the building now officially has its own street address. The building is listed at 320 N. Main Street, China Grove.

The coffee shop will be open on Fridays from 1-4 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and Sundays from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.