When the young, professional woman relocated to the Chicago area, she knew one of her first goals was to find a church within her own denomination and begin attending as soon as possible. After looking for several months, she came to the Elgin congregation. She was welcomed in and, because that Saturday worship was followed with a meal at the church, she stayed. In fact, as Pastor Gabriel Bardan recalled, "When I left, she was in the kitchen, visiting with members and helping with the dishes."

The signs of a good fit. And this Seventh Day Adventist Church has been a good fit for many over the past year, swelling from 30 to 90, with more waiting to join. The congregation, located on Elgin's east side near Lords Park, is situated on spacious, open land; so spacious, in fact, that the church has been the site of several community-oriented events.

The most recent of these was a health fair which featured health care practitioners from a host of disciplines. Another natural fit.

The Elgin congregation stands as one of 122,000 churches in 204 countries around the globe. Over the course of the past century, it has seen constant growth in its numbers.