Photo Courtesy Of David Jasper
A new Southern Baptist Convention church plant, Calvary Church, is meeting at Kids Community College (KCC) Southeast in Riverview.
The church gathers on Tuesday nights at 7 p.m. at KCC, which is located at 11519 McMullen Road.
Calvary Church pastor David Jasper said he saw the need for churches to reach the Riverview community and felt God calling him to plant a church in the area. After several months of praying and receiving godly counsel from fellow pastors, he submitted to God for the task of becoming a church plant pastor.
Calvary received financial startup funds from the Florida Baptist Convention in 2015, is part of the Tampa Bay Baptist Association and is affiliated with Converge, a movement of over 1,300 churches working to help people meet, know and follow Jesus.
Jasper served 20 years in the U.S. Navy before being honorably discharged in 2005. He served as men’s ministry director at Riverview’s Simmons Loop Baptist Church in 2011 and 2012. While at Simmons Loop, he planned and directed the church’s first Royal Ambassadors’ two-week summer camp, with 21 boys participating. He also conducted a leadership conference featuring New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary professors and local ministers, and led an annual marriage retreat that grew from four couples to more than 30 couples in its fifth year.
Jasper next served as executive pastor of The View Church from 2013 to 2015. There he implemented a small group strategy that saw the church’s morning Bible study grow from two members to 15. During Jasper’s tenure The View experienced four baptisms, its first in at least three years.
Jasper and Calvary Church, which has baptized three people, see the importance of giving back to the community. They support LifeCare Network through baby supply drives and attending the annual LifeCare Gala. For the past two years, Calvary has partnered with KCC Southeast to provide Thanksgiving dinner boxes and Christmas gift cards from Walmart to families identified by the school in need of assistance. Calvary also provides monthly meals for KCC’s teachers and staff.
Visit its website at www.riverviewcalvary.org or email riverviewcalvary@gmail.com.
