Aside from providing artists with a place to exhibit their art and experiment with their new styles, the Judson Memorial Church held other social purposes, as well; after Howard Moody became the church’s minister in 1956, he reached out to the community and carried out a number of different actions that would help elevate the power of the Judson Church and would ultimately mend the village. His method of increasing the influence of the church was quite direct: if members of the congregation were unwilling to fill the church pews, Moody himself would go out onto the streets of the parish and tend to them himself. His commitment to the church was admirable, and it was undoubtedly a factor that would lead to the growth in activity of the church in Greenwich Village. However, even more important were Moody’s contributions as a social activist: “Moody founded the Village Aid and Service Center, where drug addicts could receive help, offered abortion counseling, provided shelter for runaways and battered women, and reached out to AIDS victims before such help was readily available elsewhere. Through the 1960s and 1970s, the minister was involved with civil rights demonstrations and anti-war protests.” By doing so much for society, Moody is embodying his idea that all parts of the public should be reached by the church. He did all these things out of genuine kindness, with a true desire to help those who were in need. As a man looking to improve the village and the lives of its inhabitants, Moody did what he could to benefit the villagers and, as a result, helped refine the image of the Judson Memorial Church.