Airport Chapels By Doreen Pendgracs
(this story appeared in the Spring, 2010 issue of Going Places Magazine)
You’re running for your flight, hurrying through security, changing currency, or grabbing a quick bite or drink before you board the plane. Often we don’t even think about the additional services that may be available at the airports we travel through. We may be so stressed, distracted or hurried, that most times we won’t even notice anything without neon or in-your-face signage.
This holds true for most airport chapels. They are generally tucked away in a quiet corner and only found by those in the know.
I’ve walked by the non-descript door of the Winnipeg Airport Chapel many times. It is only because I know the man behind the door that I entered. The chapel is the size of a large living room. The walls are beige. The furnishings are modest and dated -- probably the same plain chairs from when it opened in 1983. There are a few nature posters on the walls. It is quiet and serene. No music. No windows. No distractions. One airport employee is there, resting in a quiet place of solitude. And then I see Ron Muir’s welcoming face.
Muir, an elderly man with a quiet demeanor, is Senior Chaplain at the airport chapel of the James Richardson International Airport in Winnipeg. He has been volunteering twice weekly at the chapel for about eight years after retiring from his car repair business. Quite the transition from auto mechanic to chaplain! I asked Muir how this came to be.
“ I had a life threatening illness at the age of 18 and the doctors thought I wouldn’t make it. I pulled through, and ever since then, have felt the importance of Jesus in my life.”
His deep religious conviction encouraged Muir to spend the remainder of his life as a member of The Gideons International – the group responsible for ensuring each of us Canadian school children got a free bible. When he sold his car repair shop, he felt becoming a chaplain at the airport chapel was a natural fit and complemented his role as a Gideon.
Winnipeg has a total of 10 chaplains and is a busy chapel, serving about 35 people every day of the year, or more than 12,000 annually. As it, and the country’s other airport chapels, is administered under guidance from the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada, chaplains at the airport chapels must be followers of the Christian faith. But the chapels are inter-faith, non-denominational and intended to serve everyone, whether you’re a devout follower of any faith, an atheist or an agnostic.
“We don’t preach and don’t even bring up the subject of religion unless someone asks a question related to it,” says Muir. “We’re just here to listen, to help and to provide any information that we can.” In 2008, the Winnipeg airport chapel gave out nearly 4,000 pamphlets, more than 400 bibles and other assorted literature to those seeking help.
Typical visitors to Winnipeg’s airport chapel are 35 years of age and older, and an equal number of men and women. They come for numerous reasons. Many come seeking advice on coping with life’s troubles such as the loss of a loved one, addictions, depression and marital affairs. “We have a lot of people coming here because of marital problems,” says Muir. “They always come in alone, asking for my opinion. I refuse to give it until and unless the other partner comes in as well. You can’t give advice based on one-sided information.”
And in today’s troubled world, Muir says many visitors are also looking for parenting advice. “A lot of people have trouble with their children and are seeking guidance. We do what we can to give them independent advice,” says Muir, who has been married for 50 years and raised four sons with his wife, Gwen.
Often people who may be well known in their communities will come to the chapel because no one will recognize them there. “We had one fellow from Oklahoma who specifically came to the Winnipeg chapel because he wished to remain anonymous and was seeking impartial advice,” says Muir. “It was prior to his fourth marriage. He was broke after paying off his previous wives, and he wasn’t sure whether he should go ahead with it. He left for his return flight after about an hour of being with us and we never heard whether he went ahead with the wedding or not.”
The chapel used to perform weddings onsite, but has chosen to discontinue this practice. They do, however, perform memorial services. “We often get people stopping in who are on their way to a funeral or to be with a dying loved one,” says Muir. “They often just come for a safe, non-judging place to cry.”
Airport chapels are occasionally asked to perform other services. “We had a few airport chaplains officiate special services at the Halifax airport following the crash at Peggy’s Cove,” says Tom Kartzmark, Senior Chaplain at Ottawa International Airport. “And I was asked to do a special service at Ottawa International Airport in response to 9/11.”
Kartzmark says that although each airport chapel works autonomously and develops their own schedules and programming in accordance with local needs, they are for the most part, very similar. “Chaplaincy work generally is quiet, personal interactions, thereby having low profiles,” he says. “The facilities themselves are secondary and of less importance than the chaplain’s ability to offer counseling and support to those who need it.”
It was interesting to read the variety of comments written by visitors to the Winnipeg chapel. Most were very positive, and simply expressed thanks for the fact that the chapel was there, as it can become a place of solace for someone filled with fear. “There was a fellow who was scared to death as he was on the hit list of a well-known gang. I called the police and they knew of him and said they would watch him until he got on his plane and was on his way to safety,” says Muir.
There have been some other fascinating visitors to the chapel. “A gentleman came to the chapel asking for Russian literature,” says Muir. “We didn’t have any at the time, but he could also speak French so we were able to help him. It turns out he was from Franz Josef Land, Russia – a place with only 90 inhabitants.” The Winnipeg chapel now has a limited amount of bible scriptures in 25 languages – including Russian.
Muir points to places marked on the world map and also tells me of a fellow from Kenya who had come in around the time of the mass murders there. “It was about three years ago. He was the father of seven children and was so distraught about the state of affairs in his homeland. But he returned, and is now helping to get a democratic government going there.”
It is clear to me that life-changing moments can occur within the walls of this small and modest room. Perhaps the serene environment and the straight talk help people make good, guided decisions.
Funded exclusively by donations, if you visit the Winnipeg airport chapel (or any other airport chapel) and you like what you see or are helped in some way, return the act of kindness and help keep the chapel going by making an offering. There are many who will benefit from your generosity, and lord knows … we all need a little help or comforting from time to time – whether at home or half way round the world.
To better meet its needs, the Winnipeg airport is currently undergoing a major expansion and the chapel will be moving to its new home in the brand new terminal building sometime in 2010. Although details are presently unavailable, the new location is expected to give the chapel slightly more space than it has in its current location, which only has comfortable seating for 20. And there are days when that space is fully utilized.
“One day it was like the United Nations in here,” says Muir. We had people from Jerusalem and Lebanon, some Muslims, and people from Nunavut all at the same time! It was really something.”
In addition to bibles provided by the Gideons and a variety of Christian literature provided by Radio Bible Class in the US, the chapel has a copy of the Coran (also called Koran or Qur’an) as well as a compass so that Muslim visitors can accurately face northeast when praying.
The Winnipeg airport chapel is open round the clock to offer you a place of quiet and comfort, and is staffed by a volunteer chaplain on a rotating basis from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. on weekdays and is also open on Saturday mornings.
Other Airport Chapels In Canada:
You will find airport chapels in each terminal at Pearson International Airport, Toronto, ON.
There are also chapels at the international airports in Halifax, NS, St. John’s, NL, Montreal, QC, Ottawa, ON, Thunder Bay, ON, Calgary, AB, Edmonton, AB and Richmond, BC.
There is hope to open additional chapels but local volunteers are needed. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer chaplain, contact Tom Kartzmark, senior chaplain in Ottawa at (613) 248-2019 or visit: http://www.airportchapel.ca/pg/2
Internationally:
There are 177 airport chapels in more than 40 countries around the world. For a complete listing, go to:
http://www.airportchapel.de/international/index.php?content=address_list
