The Building for Hope program guides congregations through a journey of repurposing their underutilized facilities and other physical assets – in order to advance each congregation’s mission.

The program is a response to the epidemic of underutilized church facilities across the US: by reorienting these spaces, congregations and their surrounding communities are equipped to flourish.

The vision of Building for Hope is to create a movement of sustained revitalization through creative, community-based uses of underutilized church facilities. Building for Hope will help congregations see the space they inhabit in their neighborhoods as sacred spaces that should be utilized for the best and highest good for the glory of God and the blessing of others.

Building for Hope is a two-year program for churches and their leadership funded by The Lilly Endowment Inc. Each participating congregation is represented by a pastor and up to two lay leaders from each congregation. The first year of the program includes three multi-day in-person meetings in Alexandria, Virginia spaced out over spring, summer, and fall. These in-person gatherings will meet at the Common Good, a nonprofit center created by Old Town Community Church as part of their own process to reorient their underutilized space for congregational and community flourishing. Cohorts learn and participate together in their first year and receive follow-up consultation and implementation coaching in their second year.

The program includes a faculty of practitioners, pastors, and experts to educate and support participants on this journey, as well as an established curriculum from Rooted Good, an organization focused on helping churches reimagine their assets to impact local communities and glorify God.

Aside from travel to and from gatherings, all costs of the program are covered for congregations accepted into the two-year program, thanks to funding from Lilly Endowment Inc.

Building for Hope

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