The Next 40 Capital Campaign
One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. - Psalm 145:4
From the Pastor's Desk
Dear Chapel Family and Friends,
God has provided our church with an amazing opportunity. In 2023 we celebrated forty years of making disciples who know His joy and change His world. In addition to rejoicing over what God has done, we have also been looking forward to what he will do over the next forty years. It is my joy to announce the launch of a special capital campaign focused on transforming the lives of the next generation through an exciting expansion to our building.
A desire to reach the next generation with the Gospel has always been a central focus of our church. God has blessed our efforts but youth today are facing unique challenges. In Jim Davis and Michael Graham’s recent book The Great Dechurching, they make the case that “we are currently experiencing the largest and fastest religious shift in US history. It is greater than the First and Second Great Awakening and every revival in our country combined… but in the opposite direction.” In other words, over the past twenty years, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of people attending church and a marked increase, especially among younger generations, of people who claim no religious affiliation.
And yet, by God’s grace, our church is growing and young men and women are coming to faith and maturing in their walks with the Lord through our ministry to children and youth. We want to see this continue. Please prayerfully consider joining us in this campaign so that our building can facilitate strategic ministry that will continue to make disciples for generations to come.
May God bless you abundantly as you consider joining us in this significant venture.
In Christ,
Garrett Spitz
Lead Pastor
Peninsula Community Chapel
God has provided our church with an amazing opportunity. In 2023 we celebrated forty years of making disciples who know His joy and change His world. In addition to rejoicing over what God has done, we have also been looking forward to what he will do over the next forty years. It is my joy to announce the launch of a special capital campaign focused on transforming the lives of the next generation through an exciting expansion to our building.
A desire to reach the next generation with the Gospel has always been a central focus of our church. God has blessed our efforts but youth today are facing unique challenges. In Jim Davis and Michael Graham’s recent book The Great Dechurching, they make the case that “we are currently experiencing the largest and fastest religious shift in US history. It is greater than the First and Second Great Awakening and every revival in our country combined… but in the opposite direction.” In other words, over the past twenty years, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of people attending church and a marked increase, especially among younger generations, of people who claim no religious affiliation.
And yet, by God’s grace, our church is growing and young men and women are coming to faith and maturing in their walks with the Lord through our ministry to children and youth. We want to see this continue. Please prayerfully consider joining us in this campaign so that our building can facilitate strategic ministry that will continue to make disciples for generations to come.
May God bless you abundantly as you consider joining us in this significant venture.
In Christ,
Garrett Spitz
Lead Pastor
Peninsula Community Chapel
What God Is Doing
Our church is growing
The growth is happening among every age demographic and contributing to a rich intergenerational diversity for our church. At the same time, we are experiencing especially significant growth in our youth ministry. God has blessed us with a great team of staff and volunteer leaders who are effectively making disciples of the next generation and teens are inviting their friends. While our facility can accommodate continued growth in various areas, we are simply running out of space for our youth ministry. They currently have one dedicated room for High School students (Room 208) and another room for Middle School students (Room 206/207) that doubles as an academic classroom for Summit Christian Academy during the week. Our staff who invest in youth have also made do for many years now with limited and shared office space. This has made it challenging for them to engage in lesson preparation and also to have the privacy to counsel a teen or talk with parents about sensitive matters that can sometimes come up. Summit Christian Academy, which is a ministry of our church, is also effectively discipling the next generation on how to discern truth, articulate their faith, and serve others to the glory of Jesus Christ. Their student body, which is made up of youth from a variety of churches, is growing. While Summit has put our modular buildings to great use as classrooms and offices for these past seventeen years, they are now well beyond their standard life-expectancy and need to be retired.
"We appreciate how emotionally healthy the leadership and volunteers are in how they approach youth ministry. They present the faith and model how to walk it out in practical ways. They are meeting kids where they are and helping to shepherd them to where God wants to bring them. It’s very exciting to be a part of."
RANDY KROCK - Parent
"We appreciate how emotionally healthy the leadership and volunteers are in how they approach youth ministry. They present the faith and model how to walk it out in practical ways. They are meeting kids where they are and helping to shepherd them to where God wants to bring them. It’s very exciting to be a part of."
RANDY KROCK - Parent
What God Has Done
Our facility Story
1983
The Chapel becomes an established independent church and begins having services at the Holiday Inn in Newport News.
1986
We move to the Ramada Inn on Rt. 17, meet in an banquet room or the Inn Place bar, with baptisms in the hot tub. The core group solidifies and experiences growth.
1989
The Chapel moves into rented commercial space located near the Hilton area of Newport News. The space had previously been a movie theater and a fitness center. Here we learn more about how to grow new ministries like Summit Christian Academy, how to cope with adversity through two fires, and how to view a facility as a ministry tool.
2000
Finally, the Chapel moves into a facility, designed for ministry, that it owns. This leads to rapid growth and expanding ministries.
2007
Extra parking is added along with modular classrooms to accommodate this growth.
2010
More classrooms, a cafe, a kitchen, and a gymnasium are added.
"We have been incredibly blessed by PSM and the impact it has had on our oldest son. He came to saving faith and was baptized two summers ago after going on the EY2S trip with the youth. Experiencing that week of service and prayer in community with others his age had a profound impact on him and his excitement about the gospel. Since then, PSM has provided a community for him and his peers. They are beginning to invite others from their school and are forming a community of trust and belonging. It’s incredible to see."
Jamie Kuehni | Parent
"This year we have seen our teenage daughter’s faith blossom. Under the incredible guidance of the PSM staff and leaders, she made a public decision to place her faith in Jesus Christ. We also have three younger children being shepherded in KidzMin and look forward to them participating in PSM in a few years. We are excited to witness the growing faith of our children alongside the PSM staff and leaders who are sharing the truth of God’s Word with them. We are so grateful for the men and women who regularly minister to our kids in beautiful and fruitful ways."
Todd & Haley Campbell | Parents
Where God Is Leading
A Two Story Addition
A two story addition to the back of our building would accommodate growth and would also serve as a strategic advancement in how our building can function as a tool to help us make disciples for generations to come. This addition has been part of our master plan for the facility for many years and in January of 2024, our church membership affirmed that now was the time to pursue it.
First Floor Plan
The first floor is primarily designed to meet the needs of Summit Christian Academy (SCA) but will also serve the broader ministries of the Chapel as well. It will provide Summit with what they need to improve the quality of the educational experience that they offer to disciple the next generation to love God with their minds. It will also provide more flexible space for Discipleship Classes, ministry meetings, and KidzMin growth. Handicap accessible individual bathrooms will also help us to be a more accessible church to those with varied needs.
Second Floor Plan
The second floor is primarily designed to meet the needs of our growing student ministry and staff team. It will provide our youth with a dedicated space that has been designed just for them so that they can continue to find a place to belong, believe, become disciples, and be used by God.
"Right now the youth spaces in the 200 hallway are bursting at the seams with so many kids attending on Sunday mornings. The building expansion will give Peninsula Student Ministries (PSM) a dedicated space for both High School and Middle School students to spread out so the ministry can continue to grow."