Our vision is “We will love as Jesus loves, pursuing God’s peace at the river and at the table.”

Elkhart River

Our creation care emphasis came in 2001. As we were preparing to baptize two people in the Elkhart River, Dave Baer told pastor Doug Kaufman, that the Elkhart Environmental Health Department considers the water of the river to be too dirty for full body contact. Wondering what this meant, Doug learned about E. coli contamination in the river, which is an indication of too much feces from poor septic systems and poor livestock management. He became trained with Hoosier Riverwatch, a volunteer water quality management system throughout Indiana, and leads our River Stewards group.

Our creation care then focused on the Elkhart River, where we baptize new members. It also includes addressing climate change and other issues. We remember that God created all things good, that creation is also marred, and that creation is renewing, and we are invited to be part of that renewal! We have reflected on our production and consumption of food, on our energy use, and on stormwater issues through making rain barrels.

We support the Anabaptist Climate Collaborative, where former pastor Douglas Day Kaufman was the executive director.

Solar Panels

In the Summer of 2013, Benton Mennonite was one of the first congregations to install rooftop solar. Solar energy is one way to reduce fossil fuel consumption, clean our air, and green the world.

Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

We practice “reduce and reuse” in our weekly fellowship meals by not regularly serving with disposal plates, flatware, or styrofoam cups.

We offer ways to participate in recycling:

• Bins for both reusable and regular battery disposal in our foyer
• A bin for recycling clean styrofoam in our foyer
• Paper recycling in our office and foyer
• A bin for recyclable food package items from our weekly carry in meals
• Some members, in their households, use tri-powerrecycling or Ridwell to recycle items not picked up by the local recycling company.

Native Plants

In our recent renovations, we have have added many native trees and shrubs.

Household Hazardous Waste Disposal

Some items cannot be disposed of with regular garbage collection. The Elkhart County Landfill offers a day to drop off hazardous waste on the first Saturday of every month. Visit their website for more information on dropoff times, accepted materials, and location.