WHAT HAPPENED?
In the middle of the night on August 25th, our beloved gym was set on fire and suffered significant damage. As we walked through the wreckage, we couldn’t help but see the memories shining through—the ministry and community that has filled this space over the years. We’ve shared meals, hosted outreach events, offered heat relief, celebrated parties, cheered on competitions, witnessed baptisms, and housed refugees. When this space was entrusted to us, we committed to using it to serve our community, and we’ve definitely done that together.
WHAT’S THE REALITY OF OUR SITUATION?
The gym and adjoining spaces are almost assuredly a total loss based off initial assessment from fire department. We are working with our insurance provider, which will do their own assessment, and fire investigators to navigate liability coverage and what a rebuild process will look like. This will likely take many months to even know what type of financial restitution we can expect and then based off that resolution and timing of financial recovery, a multi-year planning and rebuild process would begin.
To donate towards the Ark Restoration, tap the button below. Before clicking ‘Next’, be sure to select ‘Building Fund’ from the Giving Fund dropdown menu.
The Ark before the fire | Affordable Christmas 2020
WHAT’S THE DAY TO DAY FINANCIAL IMPACT?
These spaces were critical not just for our outward facing mission to the community but also a critical part of our income as we rented these spaces out to schools, sports programs and other businesses and non-profits. Without these spaces there is a major deficit in our budget that we will now need to prayerfully find ways to overcome. Sustainability for inner city churches is always a challenging dynamic to navigate, so while this risk is not a new issue, these circumstances certainly constrain our options and place new burdens on this congregation to overcome. While we did not foresee any of this, God certainly did and He remains faithful and good and we trust in His provision and grace for this church body and this community.
The Ark before the fire | Cots prepared for incoming refugees
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Your prayers for us and our community are life giving, we will keep you all updated as we progress forward so you can join us through this entire process as we see God work miracles in our community.
Your giving will help us sustain the work God has entrusted us with and that our community depends upon. We have provided giving instructions in this post, if you need to talk to us about any logistics or have any additional questions please contact us via email at elders@alhambra.belovedcommunity.family or by phone: (623) 624-1115.