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Hope Center Covenant to Celebrate 25 Years
PLEASANT HILL, CA (December 13, 2002) - Hope Center Covenant Church will
celebrate 25 years of ministry in January with a number of events.
From January 10-12, the church will host a conference called "Setting Your
Heart Free" that will focus on personal growth. On January 31, the church
will host a 6:30 p.m. 25th anniversary dinner at Pleasant Hill Community
Center, which is located near the church.
Hope Center was founded with the assistance of Hillside Covenant Church in
nearby Walnut Creek and pastors Jim Persson, Jonathan Brown and Lon
Allison. Persson and Allison both eventually served as directors of the
Department of Church Growth and Evangelism of the Evangelical Covenant
Church. The church had its first worship service
in a rented movie theater on January 15, 1978, and became an official
Covenant church a year later at the denomination's Annual Meeting.
The church gained a reputation for its unique setting and for its extensive
use of drama and media tools. The high energy "Sunday worship celebrations"
caught on and the congregation had 350 in attendance within one year.
Within five years, the church had a worship attendance of 750 and produced
its own radio show on Sunday mornings. Two of the core group of 12 who
helped start the church, Tom and Karen Patitucci, are still playing major
roles in worship and drama for the church.
Hope Center has made inroads in other interesting ways. Community theater
programs such as Ebenezer and The Lion, Witch, and the
Wardrobe have brought thousands to church who might not otherwise
attend a Sunday worship service. A Sunday school program met in a local ice
cream parlor.
The current congregation under senior pastor Dean Honnette has an average
worship attendance of 550. For more information about the church and
upcoming events, call
church staff at 925-685-4673 or email the church at
hopecenter@hopecenter.cc.
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
