Our History
Our Story Begins in the Late 1990s
On the near west side of Cleveland, Trinity Lutheran Church experienced tremendous growth through the moving of God’s Spirit under the leadership of our founders. It was a diverse church, where homeless and suburban folks worshipped together and learned from each other. The question that got us rolling – If God can turn around one old, dead church, why couldn’t He do the same in other churches in other neighborhoods?
Late 1990s - 2003
Office folks and homeless people began meeting downtown on Tuesdays over lunch for "Food for Thought," where they shared a meal and discussed what it meant to be a disciple of Jesus. This was led by Rev. Jeff Johnson, one of our founders, who was then serving as the pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood. The objective was to meet the city's people however and wherever they were.
The church launched a capital campaign to build a ministry center on its campus to support its growth and outreach. The campaign was called, ‘Building Hope in the City.’
First tutoring program held, which became our “flagship” ministry
August 11, 2003 – BHITC officially established as a 501(c) 3
2005
Influx of cross-cultural opportunities, including several families of African refugees showing up on the church’s doorsteps, proclaiming their faith in Jesus and asking if they could worship there.
Programs launched to support these refugee families, including English as a Second Language (ESL), family mentoring and youth tutoring
Our leadership began meeting with urban pastors to share their learning
We began to partner with and beyond the Lutheran church
2008-2011
BHITC’s staff grows, programs evolve as the organization becomes more established.
2012-2017
First five-year strategic plan begins called ‘Harvesting God’s Promise,’ which raised $1.2 million, allowing us to greatly increase staffing and do the following:
Launch The Hope Center for Refugees and Immigrants in 2015, expand its legal services and purchase the building in 2018
Open Common Threads Thrift in Fairview Park, a social enterprise, in 2016
Begin renovating homes and offering affordable housing through Good Neighbors & Co. in 2016
Support six urban church plants with funding and coaching
Leadership identifies Clark-Fulton and Stockyards (CFSY) neighborhoods as an “alignment zone” for its work
2018-Present
Full and growing staff, programs reflect the culmination of relationships, lessons learned and God’s vision for the people of Cleveland. We are excited for what’s next!
Our Executive Director and other Cleveland church planters become certified Deans of the Evangel Urban Church Planting School, an arm of World Impact, Inc.
Our staff continues to grow and a Community Development team is formed in 2019
Common Threads Fairview Park expands and opens furniture space in 2019
BHITC relocates its headquarters and Community Development offices to CFSY in 2020
Common Threads Brook Park opens in 2020
LIFT (Leaders in Faith Together) launches in 2021
Renovare Music joins BHITC for a one year residency in 2022
Added Peripeti Home to our social enterprise family in 2022
Micro-farm begins a W. 58th Church of God
The Flourish Campaign Launches in 2022
