Debbie leads a women’s hiking group to share her love of the outdoors with others. The group meets each Tuesday when the weather is nice and offers an opportunity to hike, fellowship, and enjoy God’s nature together. Debbie is thankful for Hope and all the opportunities to get involved and meet new friends.

Something Rob and Debbie both love about Hope is that it attracts a wide range of people of different ages and backgrounds — especially kids and young families! They’re excited to see how the church rises as a beacon of hope in the community after the new multipurpose building is finished. They hope the added space will draw more people from the surrounding neighborhoods in to enjoy the welcoming community that initially attracted them to Hope... and has kept them coming back ever since!

Brad and Betsy have both faithfully served at Hope from the start. They’ve been involved in countless ways and are always willing to lend a helping hand. Betsy’s kind, loving spirit has been the heartbeat of Hope Kids and Vacation Bible School since the beginning. Brad’s insights as a part of the Design and Construction Team have contributed to making Hope the warm, welcoming gathering space it is today.

When asked about her involvement with Hope Kids and Vacation Bible School, Betsy said, “It’s such a joy to see a church truly fulfill its mission of reaching the next generation. If I can help a child with their faith walk, nothing is more important than that. It is of eternal value.”

Betsy also says watching her daughter, Jessica Hansen, lead Hope Kids feels like a full circle moment. “It’s a blessing to do ministry with her,” she says. She’s also excited to watch her granddaughter, Johanna, and all the little ones at Hope grow up, get involved, and become the next rising generation of leaders!

When asked about his favorite memories at Hope, Brad reminisced about watching the community volunteer their time and efforts to build the barn and renovate the Hope House. He’s also excited about the new building and kitchen rapidly rising from the ground to provide additional space for Hope Kids, the wedding ministry, and church events, like picnics.

“We’re bursting at the seams, and we’ll be able to do so much more with a bigger space,” said Betsy. “Not only will we be able to better serve our Hope family, but we’ll also be able to reach more of the community.”

Brad and Betsy are looking forward to retirement in the next few years when they can be even more involved at Hope. “We feel like we’re getting older… but getting better!” said Betsy. “We want to be involved in our community as much as possible.

Eventually, Ryen attended Hope worship celebrations with his mom, but he’d slip out as soon as possible. However, over the last year, something shifted. “I started stepping into the community of Hope,” Ryen said. “I used to sit in the back with my mom, but now I sit in the front with all my friends. I’ve built strong relationships with people here, and it’s made a huge difference.”

Major turning points for Ryen included joining Hope’s High School Missional Community, helping with Vacation Bible School (VBS), and the young adult mission trip to Compton. “VBS was where I really started to feel connected. Being around the kids and the leaders, seeing how God was working in their lives — it was incredible. I realized how important it is to put others above myself.”

Ryan credits leaders like Carlo, Austin, and Caleb for helping him step into leadership roles within the junior high ministry. “They’ve been a huge influence in my life, especially as I’ve started leading junior high kids. When the opportunity to lead came up, I knew it was where I needed to be.”

In addition to his involvement at Hope, Ryen is studying at Grand Canyon University with the goal of becoming a physical therapist. He believes his faith journey has made his calling clearer. “This past summer really highlighted the gifts God’s given me — being personable, uplifting others, and bringing energy to the people around me. That’s what I want to carry into my career in physical therapy.”

When asked what he’s learned from serving and connecting with others, Ryen said, “It’s amazing how helping others can become second nature. I don’t even think about it anymore — it’s just what I love to do. Being in a community of like-minded followers of Jesus has changed how I act, how I talk, and how I think. It’s life-changing.”

Looking ahead, Ryen is excited to continue serving and growing within the Hope community. “I’m so grateful my mom kept inviting me to church! Hope has been such a blessing to me, and I know God has great things ahead!”

After Hope purchased its current building, Dave stepped up to help with the landscaping. With over 30 years of landscaping experience, he designed the water features in the backyard and helped with the overall layout of the property. The most meaningful project to Dave, however, is the prayer garden in the side yard he was inspired to create in honor of his late mother. Dave’s mom always enjoyed coming to Hope and felt welcomed and loved like extended family.

Dave continues to use his God-given skills in landscaping at Hope as he serves on the Design & Construction Team for the Building Hope campaign. He is one of 11 church members who make up the team.

“The Hope expansion project has many church members using their talents, and that’s what inspires me continually,” Dave said. “Seeing their love for the Lord just encourages me to do more and help out in any way I can.”

Meanwhile, Gayla has been serving with Hope Kids and can’t wait for the new multipurpose building! “Oh, I’m excited,” Gayla said. “The little area we have is just not big enough for these kids. Larger classrooms and play areas will be so nice, with space to grow and to do so much more.”

Dave and Gayla’s grandson has been a part of Hope Kids over the past few years. Gayla said she’s always wanted her grandchildren to feel God’s love, and Hope has provided that for her grandson moreover. “I love seeing his happy face and him so energetic with the Lord — it’s awesome,” Gayla said. “I can see him being so loving and caring with others here at home and in our neighborhood.”

When asked about their future, Dave and Gayla both said they feel they are serving where God has called them. How grateful we are for their generosity and faithfulnes

Summer Team is no different. Casey has been a part of Summer Team since the beginning and says her consistent involvement has helped her grow personally and spiritually. “I think getting close with a group of likeminded people who want to serve and love each other well is attractive to anyone — that is the appeal of Summer Team. I’ve learned that God will teach you so much if you stay consistent and have a heart to serve.”

While Casey has a heart for the Hope community, she also has a passion for international missions. This summer, she had the opportunity to go on a life-changing mission trip to Ecuador with one of her professors and a group of students and alumni from Grand Canyon University to offer free English classes to the community.

“It was eye-opening to experience a new culture — it was something I have never done before. Everyone in Ecuador was so joyful and hospitable. Seeing how kind people were to us and each other was special.

In the future, Casey dreams of living in a third-world country with limited access to the Gospel long enough to build deep, lasting relationships with the community. She’s also looking forward to continuing to serve with her fiancé, Caleb. The two were engaged this past September!

When asked what she learned from her time in Ecuador, Casey said, “God taught me how to love people different from me. You can see joy, kindness, and the Holy Spirit in someone without understanding them. Love transcends every language.”

Several months later, in March 2023, Livia met Paul on campus at GCU (completely unaware her husband had met him several months earlier). Paul gave Livia his business card and a voucher to Elevate Coffee Company. When she came home and told Luke about her encounter, he was surprised — this was the same person he had met last fall!

Luke grew up as a missionary in Africa, and Luke and Livia have traveled worldwide on trips with Youth With A Mission (YWAM). They actually met on a mission trip in Mexico! Because of their passion for ministry, finding a church that supported community was important to them.

Luke and Livia joined the Young Couples Community in August 2023 before ever attending a worship service. They both appreciate that Hope fosters community. They love getting to know others in the church in a real, authentic way by meeting to eat and experience life together.

Luke and Livia have felt supported by the Young Couples and Growing Families Communities before and after becoming parents to their daughter, Zaniya, this past June. Livia was touched by how willing people were to help. “Davilyn organized a baby shower for us, and Emma, Steve, Ian, and Lexi jumped in to help. Brittany started a Meal Train for us after Zaniya was born, and people just brought us meals. It was so nice. I’m not used to people being so friendly and helpful,” she said.

Luke said, “We really appreciate our community. They helped us a lot when we had our baby and when we moved apartments right after she was born. We once needed a dolly to move a fridge, and one of our friends dropped everything to bring us one. We don’t have any family nearby, so it means a lot.”

“I’ve been able to watch all these kids grow up, and now, I get to watch them rise up and lead students who are also leading and giving back,” said Michael. “It’s really neat for me to look at people like Austin, who was kind of a ‘punk’ kid, and now here he is, ten years later, investing in so many people and fully committed to Hope’s mission.”

Michael moved back to Phoenix after graduating college and continued to pour into youth through Wyldlife, a Young Life ministry for junior high students. He met Brittany while leading Norterra Canyon Wyldlife in 2014. After her experience with Young Life and starting college at Grand Canyon University in 2016, she felt drawn to find a Christian church. Michael’s invitation to Hope came at no better time!

The two began dating in 2017 and were married soon after in October 2019.

“We were both serving and doing what we loved, and it was one of those things where you look to your left and look to your right, and you see who’s in it with you — that really was our love story,” said Michael.

Michael and Brittany have been serving as a couple since. They continued to lead Wyldlife until 2021, have been a part of Hope’s Staff Team, and have been a part of the leadership teams for the Young Couples and Young Families Communities. As a couple, they’re both still passionate about building relationships with youth, young adults, and young families in their community.

“I feel like serving and experiencing life-on-life ministry with people is kind of in the DNA of our relationship,” said Brittany. “It’s what initially brought us together.”

Michael and Brittany have found support through Hope and its community of parents during this new season, as their daughter, Ember, is one of several babies who has recently joined the Hope Family. “We haven’t been a church with lots of babies around before, so it’s been a fun and refreshing season,” said Michael.

“It’s been sweet how God has brought so many moms with babies really close to Ember’s age into my life,” said Brittany. “I feel like God brought this group of parents together to be able to encourage each other, and also to reach out to other families in the church and community.”

Moving forward in ministry, Michael and Brittany’s dream is to bring hope to their new neighborhood, which they moved to in July 2023.

“We’d like to bring Hope’s values and way of doing ministry out into our neighborhood,” said Brittany. “To build a tight-knit community where our kids will be able to walk to each other’s houses and the parents can just drop in at any time — having the opportunity to do life-on-life ministry like that is really powerful.”