People who already have a well-developed affinity for specialty coffee and good conversation will find yet another venue for enjoying themselves when The Lamb's Coffee House opens Wednesday night at Northgate Presbyterian Church.

The brainchild of the Rev. Patrice Cheasty-Miller, the church-sponsored coffee house came to Durham several years ago when she was pastor at St. Paul United Methodist, 2700 N. Roxboro Road. The Presbyterian church at 2504 N. Roxboro Road is a new location for the Lamb's Coffee House. However, the coffee house at St. Paul has been renamed The Sacred Grounds Coffee House and is still in operation.

Providing new space for the coffee house, described by the Northgate church as "a hospitality ministry," is just another example of how this small church with a large building is reaching out to the community. Already it has a long list of groups that use its building on a regular basis.

For many years, Meals on Wheels was located at the church, moving only after the new senior center opened recently in downtown.

Deborah Knott, ministerial intern from Duke Divinity School, said this week that the coffee house will begin by offering a space for informal gathering and coffee drinking to groups already meeting in the building. On Wednesday night, for example, a discussion group from the church and community that meets weekly may drop in between 6 and 9 p.m.

"We will be learning as we go," Knott said. "Patrice and some of the volunteers already know how to make [the specialty coffees].

"We will start out with a simple menu and add more as we go along."

A pricing list called "suggested donations" will be posted.

Knott said the church has both theological and pragmatic reasons for providing space for the coffee house.

It is a conscious effort to be hospitable as well as a way of serving the community's needs, she said.

Right now, The Lamb's Coffee House will be open from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Friday.

The Sacred Grounds Coffee House at St. Paul United Methodist is open on Wednesday and Thursday nights. It places emphasis on live music, offering a venue to area musical groups that perform there on Saturday nights from 8 to 10 p.m.

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Veterans will be honored Sunday during the 11 a.m. worship service at St. Paul United Methodist Church, 2700 N. Roxboro Road.

The service will include pledges to the American flag, the Christian flag and the Bible, as well as tributes to living and dead veterans.

Those now serving will be honored, too. Guest trumpeter Michael Johnson will assist in the service.

New members will be received into the church. Visitors are welcome.

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A small group of young professionals, who were members of a Durham church that closed last year, has begun a new ministry called "Brother2Brother."

"Six or eight of us stayed in touch after the church closed," said Beth Phillips, who is a professor in the school of nursing at Duke University. "B2B is a small group trying to reach out to youth in east Durham."

The ministry has set an open house on June 3 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at its location in the Mineral Springs Shopping Center at 3747 Wake Forest Highway.

The focus is not on evangelism, Phillips said, but on character building.

"Our mission is to inspire, encourage and empower young men and women to be examples of high ethical and moral standards through various activities that teach and promote spiritual and physical health and wholeness," Phillips said.

"The purpose of Brother2Brother Ministries is to be an example, illustrate that character matters. We are motivated by our faith in God and desire to do his will. We all feel driven to reach out to kids."

The ministry is not affiliated with any church.

Gatherings with youth are held on the first Friday of each month, and attendance has ranged from six or seven to a high of 30 youths. The ministry has not put an age range on its work, but has had youths from six to 15 years old. "We don't want to turn anyone away," she said.

During the First Friday events, informational topics pertinent to character building are shared.

Some of the recent topics have been peer pressure, study skills, communication, drug awareness, new vocabulary words, progress in school and even manners and etiquette.

The ministry is planning a six-week summer tutoring program planned for youth to help them review academic subjects and prepare them for the upcoming school year.

Further information is available by attending the open house next Saturday or by calling the ministry's office Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 596-3817.

The office is staffed by volunteers.