Building to reach people for Christ

An engaging Evangelical Free church in a former Pacific Northwest logging town took on an ambitious building project as it outgrew its current facility, calling on volunteer labor to accomplish much of the work.

“Eight or nine years ago, we were a church of about 100, and we now average about 320 people,” said Administrative Pastor and Elder Jim Gaylord with Yacolt Community Church (CC) in Washington state.

The congregation has met on a one-acre site for some 20 years, all the while saving for a new building.

Planning early with land purchase

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Yacolt CC purchased 12 acres about a half mile away in this town of less than 1,700. Christian Investors Financial (CIF) partnered with the congregation on a construction loan to help build a new 25,000 square-foot structure on the front portion of the property.

The CIF loan supplemented a successful capital campaign as project funds flowed in. “We never missed a beat … we kept paying contractors and buying materials,” said Elder Rob Dore, who is also a volunteer on the project. “It’s just been very encouraging for everyone.”

The community was invited to regular workdays to share the construction load. People came. Some joined small groups to engage further. The building has brought about numerous evangelistic opportunities, setting a tone for the ministry, Gaylord explained.

God answered prayers as the project went on. A company with a new bulldozer to test and train on approached the church to do the final grading, which it did at cost. “There were a lot of experiences where prayers were answered,” said Deacon and Project Manager Chris Waters.

The church rallied its members and others in the community to do much of the labor, saving a great deal of expense for the large project. “The worst injury was that Rob had cut his thumb. But it was a good cut,” he said, chuckling.

Near Mount St. Helens, community that needs Christ

With Mount St. Helens 25 miles to the north, Yacolt is 45 minutes from the Portland/Vancouver metro area.

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Dore said it is a bedroom community that is attractive to young families, with smaller, long-established first-time homes.

“It’s really been a great place for the church to kind of meet the needs of those young families that haven’t known the Lord to come to the Lord,” Dore explained.

Yacolt CC has programs that are attractive to families, including children’s cooperatives and mothers’ gatherings, said Waters.

Once completed, the new building will seat more than 450 in the sanctuary, with a balcony. The structure has a gym, which can open additional doors for outreach, he said. Classroom and office spaces are about three times the size of those in the old building.

The new structure is air conditioned, and door security systems are equipped with cameras. Additionally, the building is designed to easily accommodate future additions, Waters said.

Dore said the church consulted with a local ambulance company and the Yacolt Fire Department to equip the church for disaster relief, such as forest fires or a rupture at Mount St. Helens. Showers, laundry and backup generator power are a few of the features the church will have.

“Those ideas, along with the gym, are all part of (answering the question) what can we do to make this facility as user friendly for the community so we can invite people in to hear the gospel?” Dore said.

COVID brought new attendees

The COVID era brought in many new families, Waters explained, so while the church was planning to expand earlier, growth over the last four years was what drove the decision. “We were blessed to have the grounds to start building on,” he said.

Elder and project volunteer Chris Kroll said the church has drawn 400 people on several Sundays. The church has been conservative and diligent financially, he said, saving money and owning its old building along with the site for the new building.

With ministry focus, CIF was preferred loan option

Gaylord said the church struggled with the decision to take out a loan because it has been debt free. There was no consideration given to finding a conventional loan from some other source.

“Truthfully, the only way we were able to (borrow) was to share with the church that by going through CIF, the interest we were paying is actually helping other churches,” Gaylord said. “So, it’s still going towards the Lord’s ministry.”

A large donation allowed the church to pay off its remaining CIF loan balance. The church is planning to move in before Christmas of 2025.

CIF has consulted with hundreds of churches to plan for property related ministry expansions and make impactful investments. Contact us today!