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Show Churches Utilize Chartered Buses To Swell Crowd PHILADELPHIA. PA. - As a means of swelling attendance, 13 Philadelphia churches are engaged In a novel experiment of providing provid-ing "portal-to-pew" transportation services. The program Involves buses chartered char-tered by churches to make scheduled sched-uled stops at pre-arranged street corners to pick up parishioners, carrying them to church and then returning them home after services. serv-ices. The 15 churches hire from one to four buses regularly every Sunday. Clergymen admit they are prepared to "cater" to members as a means of maintaining and increasing attendance. at-tendance. Attendance at Holmesburg Methodist Meth-odist church hos been boosted 30 to 40 per cent In the year the church has used chartered buses. Historic Gloria Dei (Old Swedes) Protestant Episcopal church, situated situ-ated in a neighborhood formerly residential but now entirely commercial, com-mercial, also has resorted to char-I char-I tered buses. Old Swedes bus riders pay a minimum mini-mum of 10 cents a ride, with "the sky the limit." On a rainy Sunday, one grateful parishioner slipped the driver a $10 bill. Church ofTlclals agree that the transportation problem Is more pressing now than ever and that it affects all denominations. Many families have moved from the old neighborhood, yet still desire to attend their old church. In other cases, public transportation Is not available to residents of outlying areas and new residential districts. |