It All Began in a Barn...
In 1973, a small group of families attending Kentwood and Woodview Christian Churches formed a new church in Rockford, Michigan. The congregation first met in a Rockford Junior High building and identified themselves as Rockford Christian Church. Upon the purchase of 40 acres of farmland (including a 100 year old barn) the church was renamed as Bella Vista Christian Church because of its proximity to Lake Bella Vista and fast-growing neighborhoods.
On Easter Sunday 1975, about 75 people worshipped for the first time in what affectionately became known as “The Barn.” That fall, Pastor Craig Fox became the first full-time leader of the congregation. The Barn enjoyed rapid growth with 450 people attending two morning services. Consequently, 36 more acres were purchased and plans for construction of “a bigger barn” began. In the fall of 1978, the first expansion of facilities was completed including a larger auditorium, a gymnasium with adjoining kitchen, classrooms, and offices. Early in 1979, over 1200 people were in attendance to worship and children’s programs.
By 1980, the church leadership had decided to leave the Christian Church denomination and become a non-denominational church with the name of Bella Vista Church. In the fall of 1981, John Frye became the church’s second teaching pastor in its short history. The congregation began to expand its ministries through multiple-staff leaders and volunteers as they began to plan for reaching people who were unchurched and for addressing the spiritual needs of people in cross-cultural settings. Sadly, the original “barn” became too costly to maintain and was removed in 1989. After the completion of a large educational wing in the early 90’s, the church experienced rapid growth. They soon adopted a three-service format and served a growing congregation of 1,000 adults and 400 children and teens throughout the middle to late 90’s. A Student Center was added in 1998 to meet the demands of a growing children and student population.
In 2005, Teaching Pastor John Frye, resigned after more than 23 years of faithful service and pursued a cross-cultural equipping ministry with young Ukrainian pastors. Following effective transitional leadership by Dale Dalman and Tim Cosby, in 2007 Mark Debowski was confirmed in the role of Bella Vista Church’s new Lead Pastor. With a clear vision, unified leadership teams, and a recommitment to their core values, the church is courageously and prayerfully following Christ’s command to love God and love People. |
