by Jeff Logsdon, Lead Pastor of Hope City Church
Four years ago our family responded to the prompting to relocate from Southern California to Southern Arizona. I had always said I would never move to Tucson. My parents relocated here some time ago and we had always visited in the summer. Perhaps I would have felt differently if we came during monsoon season, or when it has snowed in Vail?
Since moving to the Greater Vail Area, we have made a number of friends throughout the city of Tucson that have been invaluable to us, opening doors for some incredible opportunities to serve the needs of the people around us. We live in a very dynamic environment that has influence, both locally and nationally. A culture of generosity runs deep within our community, and this culture is having a ripple effect on broader scales.
As many as eight organizations have been sharing their resources to help me start a new church in the 22nd Street Corridor—Hope City Church. This new church is located within a part of the city that is wrought with domestic violence, substance abuse, prostitution, etc. The number of people that have come from all four corners of Tucson to help address these needs have been a huge encouragement to me. Through strategic partnerships we have been able to help nearly 300 families put food on their table each week. And by God’s grace, we have already seen nine foster children safely reunified with their birth families through support groups that have been hosted on our campus. Hope City Church has not officially started, but I can’t wait to see what else we can accomplish together once it does.
In my lifetime, I have seen so many people struggle to get by. We live in a stressful world. We are all real people, struggling through life’s challenges, often feeling very alone. What if there was a better way? It took me many years to believe this because of all the mistakes I have made—and still make, but God really does love us. And He is inviting us into a relationship with Him.
I see bridges being built between what is happening in The Greater Vail Area and what is happening along the 22nd Street Corridor. Hurting people are being encouraged and families are being restored. No matter how difficult things may be, there is hope. This work is greater than any one church, or any one organization can accomplish on its own. It is the cumulative effect of many churches working together and many businesses coming together to positively impact our community, one life at a time! I’m excited for the small part that Hope City Church will get to play in all of this when it opens its doors for the first time on August 12th! www.hopecctucson.com
