New Life for Port Hedland Church
The Uniting Church in Port Hedland is being refreshed and made ready for a worshipping community to breathe new life into the buildings!
Although the history of the Uniting Church presence in Port Hedland pre-dates Union, taking us back to both the Presbyterian Australian Inland Mission (AIM) and the Federal Methodist Inland Mission (FMIM), construction of the current Uniting Church worship centre in Port Hedland was completed in September 1976.
Over many years the congregation in Port Hedland has played a significant role in the life of the remote Pilbara community. However, as the congregation changed in recent years, by 2018 the doors were closed on the church building, and from then until now was left unused and in somewhat disrepair due to the lack of congregation presence.
The Pilbara towns of Port and South Hedland are home to a diverse multicultural community of people. People come from many places to work and live in the bustling mining and port town. For the last couple of years, a group of Fijian families, referred to as the Port Hedland Fijian Fellowship, were meeting in members’ homes for Sunday worship, prayer meetings and bible studies. As their group continued to grow they began gathering for worship services in a room at South Hedland Lotteries House. Most families were members of the Methodist Church in Fiji, and joined the Uniting Church when they arrived in Australia.
Rev David Jackson, Frontier Services Bush Chaplain in the Pilbara Patrol, connected with this vibrant group in early 2024 and began to visit regularly during his Patrol in the area, providing spiritual and pastoral support to the Fellowship. During this time David has been walking alongside the Fellowship as they explored the possibility of formally becoming part of the Uniting Church, and in potentially using the church property in Port Hedland.
As these pathways were explored, work was being undertaken between the various areas of the church with responsibility for property and ministry.
At the November 2024 Presbytery of WA meeting the Port Hedland Fijian Fellowship was officially recognised as the Hedland Fijian Faith Community of the Uniting Church in Australia!
At the time of writing, the Hedland Fijian Uniting Church community, supported by Rev David Jackson, and the Synod and Presbytery, are preparing the building for an official re-opening. Refurbishment of the property is currently underway, – assisted by a grant from the Future Mission Fund, with regular busy bees taking place, and with local companies working on required maintenance and ensuring building compliance.
Rev Jackson said, “I have been overwhelmed and humbled by the support this endeavor has received from the Presbytery and Synod. They have caught the vision that the Fijian Faith Community has for their community and they have made this possible. Lora Brown recently visited from the Synod to check the scope of works and the Fijian community embraced her visit with enthusiasm, feasting her in. Their hospitality is second to none. That hospitality extended the entire long weekend.”
The official opening is planned to take place on Saturday 28 June 2025. Celebrations will include a Church Dedication service followed by morning tea at the Church, and then a traditional Fijian ceremony and feast to follow at Gratwick Hall, Port Hedland.
Tevita Naroba, the Hedland Fijian Uniting Church council secretary said
“For the Hedland Fijian Faith Community, membership in the Uniting Church represents an exciting journey that connects them with their heritage while embracing new opportunities.”
We wish our most northern Uniting Church WA family every blessing as they journey together as the hands and feet of God in this place.
Story by Wendy Hendry, first published in the April 2025 edition of Revive magazine.
