MANSFIELD — Damien Beauford looked out on the grassy field behind the YMCA of North Central Ohio and saw a glimpse of heaven.
Sitting on picnic blankets and in lawn chairs, the audience was diverse. Young and old. Black and white. A family of strangers united by a common faith.
Christians and the faith curious gathered Saturday afternoon for the fourth annual Welcome Home Fest.
Beauford, a local father and owner of the 419 Barbershop, started the event four years ago to unite Christians from across the region and provide a non-traditional opportunity for worship, baptism and evangelism.
Saturday’s event included performances by Caleb & John, Carlie Conner and local talents Charles “Chawa” Williams Jr. and the Ring and Robe worship team.
“It’s a beautiful thing that people can come together,” he said. “The cool thing about our worship team is there are worship members from like nine different churches — so just that collaborative effort.”
While the adults sang, clapping and lifting their hands in prayer, a group of boys tossed a football near the playground. Children visited the face painting station and waved bubble wands. Volunteers from Time to Revive handed out Bibles and prayed with attendees.
Ted Ryan took it all in from his lawn chair.
“It’s wonderful because it gives glory to God and shares the gospel,” he said of the event. “This is a church — people meeting wherever we are, sharing the gospel.”
Timothy Back handed out free slices of pizza, chips and water on behalf of his church, The Bridge Co., which meets Sunday mornings at the YMCA.
“I was down a dark path. (God) turned my life completely around to where I’m not,” Back said.
‘I think some of us are called to spread the gospel outside the four walls of the church’
Welcome Home Fest takes place every year on the Saturday before Labor Day.
Beauford said he felt compelled to create an event that could spread the gospel and the love of Jesus to people who may not attend traditional services.
“What I noticed, just visiting a lot of churches, there’s like a lot of inreach, not a lot of outreach,” he said. “I think some of us are called to spread the gospel outside the four walls of the church.”
Beauford has since built on that momentum, hosting other events through his nonprofit organization, Welcome Home Fest Ohio.
“We have a postgame worship night with the Cleveland Cavaliers. This will be our third year doing that. That’s Nov. 20 this year,” Beauford said. “Then we have The Reunion, which is a young adults event at the beginning of June.”
Beauford said the nonprofit also hosts worship nights throughout the year.
“We’ll do worship nights at different places wherever where we can,” Beauford said. “Just really wherever God sends us.”
