Alvin M. Keeling 
The church is one of many churches in the town and is well established at the heart of the community both for religious purposes and as a hub of local society.
Like all groups coming together for any purpose, services have been affected by the pandemic and although regular Sunday morning worship has returned to the church, it takes time to restore other elements of the religious calendar. .
Alternatives like Tuesday Community and Sunday night folk and religious music-focused worship are returning, but are still regaining their pre-covid stature. The church also hosts Oasis Coffee Mornings every Tuesday, where visitors are welcome to come for coffee, chat, or enjoy a quiet space.
However, the church, which has been an integral part of Kirkbymoorside for over two centuries, offers so much more and is a hub that provides accommodation for many groups and societies, providing a familiar setting for many varied activities.
These range from the Women’s Institute to Rainbows and Brownies, a parent and toddler club and a slimming group, which met before the restrictions were imposed.
But church members are also involved in the wider community and have recently introduced a community fridge service, providing free food that would otherwise be likely to go to waste due to short best-before dates.
It works on the simple basis of allowing people to pick up donated food from local stores once a week, meaning it will be used rather than going to landfill.
The service is hugely popular, and donor-provided supplies usually run out quickly.
Kirkbymoorside Community Fridge was established in November 2020 and is part of the Ryedale Fridges Network.
No referral is needed for those wishing to use it and since it has been running over 13 tons of food have been saved from going to landfill.
The church is also looking forward to welcoming a branch of the new Ryedale Foodbank.
Reverend Penny Worth said: “Another group is Next Steps, for people who are very lonely or have mental health issues.
“They meet and do different activities; they can walk around, do crafts, or sit and chat.
“It helps bring people back to seeing other people. We are very happy to have them,” she said.
“We are a practical building. It was recently renovated, has a nice kitchen and lots of space. We share this with Churches Together in Kirkbymoorside for things like Lenten lunches. We welcome things because we have the catering facilities.
“We’re very keen to welcome any kind of community and be ‘that place’ where people can come and be welcomed.”
