St. Luke’s United Methodist Church today held a ceremonial groundbreaking event for construction of an expansive new $23.5 million Community Center in the Gulfton/Sharpstown area of Southwest Houston, located on its Gethsemane church campus at 6856 Bellaire Blvd.

Attended by St. Luke’s members, leadership teams and staff, non-profit stakeholders (who will soon run their operations in the new facility), and area elected officials, the “turning of the dirt” event signified a new era in the connection between a longstanding area church and the multicultural community it serves., whose residents this trilingual church calls its kin. St. Luke’s Pastors Dr. Tom Pace and Rev. David Horton led the ceremony.

The two-story, 55,000 square-foot Community Center and its grounds will be an identifiable focal point and activity center designed around the interests and needs of one of the most diverse, and underserved, communities in Houston. It will house four nonprofit community organizations. St. Luke’s Gethsemane church will have dedicated, supervised spaces in the Community Center for its youth programming, with ample room for gathering, recreation and fellowship under supervision from mentors and volunteers.

Featured are a community healthcare clinic, the offices and operations of area non-profits, a range of multi-purpose recreational spaces, a full-court gymnasium, a dedicated youth hall, a workforce training and development program, and classrooms and offices. There is ample space for community events, meetings and gatherings year-round. The Gethsemane campus also contains an expansive green area with its adjoining soccer fields.

At a total cost of $23.5 million (to date) St. Luke’s has raised $18 million (77%) in cash and commitments for the project. These gifts, primarily from its church membership, include early lead donations from generous St. Luke’s members, donations from church member family foundations, a $2 million challenge grant from the J. E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation (contingent on all remaining commitments to build the facility being raised by July 12, 2023), and a $250,000 challenge grant from the David Weekley Family Foundation (subject to building construction beginning in 2022.)

All of these gifts are instrumental in making the Community Center a reality. St. Luke’s is now reaching out to community and family foundations with other grant applications to complete the fundraising and meet all commitments.

“St. Luke’s has been highly motivated to create this Community Center,” said Dr. Tom Pace, senior pastor of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, “by our belief and practice that we are here to make a significant difference in our city, not just for ourselves, but for others. This is more than a partnership of service providers. We see our purpose as connecting people, building authentic community and empowering people to work together.”

The partners and programs comprising the new Community Center include:

Legacy Community Healthcare, which identifies unmet needs and gaps in health services, then develops client-centered programs to address those needs. Legacy will open a new healthcare clinic for uninsured and under-insured neighbors, with a focus on teens and young adults.

Houston reVision, the ministry working to break the cycle of isolation among the most profoundly disconnected and gang-at-risk youth through strong mentorship and meaningful programming, will have meeting and office space in the Community Center and will share the gym and recreational area with Gethsemane youth. reVision will also continue its life-changing soccer program for male teens and young adults on the soccer fields adjacent to the Community Center.

PX Project, the 501c3 workforce development training program where the kitchen is the classroom, will have its commercial kitchen, classrooms, counseling spaces and a new café at the Community Center. PX Project is modeled on the extraordinarily successful Liberty’s Kitchen training program in New Orleans.

Connect Community, a social services networking nonprofit organization focused on the Gulfton/Sharpstown area, will be headquartered in the Center.

Additionally, Gethsemane has a partnership with the Small Steps Nurturing Center, a no-tuition, early childhood education program for economically at-risk children ages two and three. Small Steps operates -- and has room to grow -- its Gulfton school in one wing of the Gethsemane church building. As part of its pre-school program, Small Steps also focuses on student and family support, including mental health services, occupational, speech and physical therapy and other proven childhood interventions.

Rev. Horton, lead pastor of St. Luke’s Gethsemane campus church, notes that the development of the new Community Center is based on the “purpose-built communities” concept which has been a model for the work at Gethsemane. “The idea is to focus on a small geographic center with highly impactful programs, particularly geared to the youth of the area, with the goal to create an epicenter of transformation that truly changes lives, incorporating education, wellness and mentoring,” says Horton.

“This youth-driven community space will give us partner organizations the opportunity to work side-by-side with young people and each other,” said Meredith Davis, executive director of PX Project, Inc., one of the nonprofit organizations based in the new facility. “Knowing the young people of Gulfton/Sharpstown will have a safe space that they can see is about and for them, is of highest importance.”

The architect for the new Community Center is Jackson & Ryan Architects. W.S. Bellows Construction Corporation serves as the building contractor. Elected officials who attended the ceremony include U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, TX07; City of Houston Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin; Houston City Councilmember Edward Pollard, District J; and Houston City Councilmember Sallie Alcorn, At Large Position 5.

With additional pledges from foundations, businesses and individuals, it will be possible to meet the campaign’s financial goal and truly transform a community, creating a future full of opportunity for many.

For more information about the Community Center or how to donate, please visit www.stlukestransformed.org.