We know in the Bible that Jesus called us to serve others. The congregation of Champion City Church takes this very seriously. Having done things like backpack drives, the Laundromat Takeovers, toy drives and Thanksgiving dinners, the church members are continually thinking of new and inventive ways to serve and meet the needs of the community.
“We started an outreach last year called Love The 813,” said Bruce Hall, lead pastor at Champion City Church. “Our goal has three phases. Phase one is to serve our community, as we’re doing right now.”
The church recently sponsored a backpack drive that benefited A Kid’s Place in Brandon. In addition, the members decided to surprise customers at a local laundromat in what they called ‘Laundromat Takeover.’ Recipients were blessed with free clothes washing, drying, laundry detergent, fabric softener, food and drinks.
“Phase two goes back to when I delivered packages for FedEx,” said Hall.
“I noticed how excited my customers got for packages,” he said. “I told my wife, ‘what if we did the same thing, but we got a truck and used it to deliver hope and the love of Jesus?’”
The delivery of ‘love packages’ could range from new warm blankets to hot soup on a chilly evening. In order to do this, Champion City Church is looking to raise money to buy a delivery truck that will be appropriately named ‘Love The 813 Truck.’ Having this truck to be able to make deliveries throughout the year is instrumental to the mission of the church.
“The list of things that we want to do goes on and on because there are so many ways that we plan to deliver love and hope once we get the Love The 813 Truck,” said Hall.
The third phase will happen once Champion City Church has a building.
“We want to call it ‘The Champion Center.’ The Champion Center will be a food pantry, a place to get clothing, job training, pregnancy crisis center, parenting classes and so much more,” he said.
Additionally, one of the things closest to Hall’s heart is the fatherhood legacy classes.
“My father was murdered when I was 5 years old and there has been a lot of learning on the job for myself,” said Hall. “We want to provide a place where fathers who never had a father can come and learn through a support group of men who want to see them become champions in parenting.”
“God gives because He loves,” said Hall. “It was in love that Jesus gave His very life on the cross. Similarly, we give as a church because we realize that we are never more like God the Father, never more like Jesus, than when we give. Through Champion City Church and Love The 813 we plan to impact our community through our love and generosity.”
If people would like to donate, volunteer or get more information, visit www.MyChampCity.com or connect with Champion City Church on social media, including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
