Cornerstone Church (Toledo)

Cornerstone Church

Service at Cornerstone Church Toledo
41°35′10″N 83°39′42″W / 41.58611°N 83.66167°W / 41.58611; -83.66167Coordinates: 41°35′10″N 83°39′42″W / 41.58611°N 83.66167°W / 41.58611; -83.66167
Location Toledo, OH
Country United States
Denomination Nondenominational Christianity
Weekly attendance 3000-4000
Website http://www.cornerstonechurch.us
History
Founded June 1986 (June 1986)
Clergy
Senior pastor(s) Michael Pitts

Cornerstone Church is a non-denominational Church located in Maumee, a suburb of Toledo, Ohio. The Church was founded, and is still pastored by, Michael Pitts and his wife Kathi. Michael Pitts was consecrated as the bishop of the Church in 2009.[1] The Church streams live services on the internet to over 10,000[2][3] and has a 24/7 streaming website devoted to playing media from the Cornerstone Global Network.[4] From 1993-2004 the Church also held services in the historic Eastwood Theater on the Eastside of Toledo. In 2014 the Church repurchased the Theater with the intention of playing family friendly movies and holding weekly services.[5][6]

Church beginnings

The Church started when in June 1986 Michael and Kathi Pitts left Lima, Ohio to start a Church in Toledo. The first service in a rented storefront building drew 35 people. Within 8 years the Church moved 4 times, finally into its present location in Maumee Ohio averaging 4000 members as of 2005. In the past, Cornerstone has also owned two radio stations.[7] As of 2013, the Cornerstone Global Network included 115 Churches around the globe.[8]

Services and building

Cornerstone Church meets on Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings. Thousands of people gather from various backgrounds, representing "All races. All classes. All ages", attending Pentecostal style services. The style flows freely, transitioning from praise and worship into the preaching without a clear schedule or structure, where one of the goals is for thinking people to feel; feeling people to think; and both kinds of people to do something.[2]

Cornerstone's children's ministry, with a 22,000-square-foot wing, has several themed rooms - including a rain forest and a 1950s diner - designed by former Disney employees. In addition there is an NRG Zone, where kids can "burn off energy" playing video games and indoor sports.

The Church has a 2,300-seat main sanctuary and a state-of-the-art, $1.8 million Performing Arts Center that opened in 2003. With seating for 400, the theater offers Christian concerts, dance, recitals, lectures, and more.[9][10]

Conferences and guest speakers

The Church hosts an annual conference in October titled "Heaven On Earth" that has welcomed speakers such as T.D. Jakes, Paula White,[11] Steven Furtick, Tudor Bismark, Sheryl Brady, Ché Ahn, and Samuel Rodriguez.[12] The Church hosts an annual Women's Inspired Conference, with speakers and singers including Nancy Alcorn of Mercy Ministries, Prophetess Jane Hamon, and Lisa Bevere.[13] In 2015, to conclude the Heaven On Earth "Cities Can Be Won" Conference, 10-time Grammy award winner Cece Winans held a night of worship at the Church.[14]

The Church also holds a SKILLS camp for children.[15] Three time Grammy winner Israel Houghton performed a free concert in 2010[16] after recording his "New Season" album at the Church in 2001.[17] In 2013 TV Evangelist Rev. Benny Hinn held a miracle service at the Church.[18][19] To conclude the 2014 Quantum Conference, Cornerstone Church hosted a night of worship with Jesus Culture.[20] Evangelist Morris Cerullo preached at the Church in 2014.[21] In 2002, former two-star Deion Sanders preached on a Thursday night at the Church,[22] speaking often of how discontent he was in life before he converted to Christianity.[23] The Church choir performs externally to the Church building, having been invited to perform at the 8th Annual African American Festival in 2012.[24]

Philanthropy

Cornerstone Church's outreach ministry Heal The World works both locally and globally with various partners, from covering the cost of soup kitchen Thanksgiving meals,[25] to collecting Bibles for US soldiers,[26] to partnering with Mercy Ministries,[27] to hosting the African Children's Choir,[28] and supporting Dr Patricia Bailey-Jones who ministers with Master's Touch Ministry Global.[29] Over the past 20 years of ministry, Cornerstone Church has partnered with, and hosted annual WOWJAMs, a ministry started by Stephen and Linda Tavani aimed at reaching poorer communities around the city by utilizing music, games, dances, and prizes.[30][31]

In 2015 the Church launched a new weeklong summer outreach, named The Volunteer Outreach Week, or more succinctly, VOW. The goal of the event is to partner with local non-profits and add additional support to the work they are doing. In the first year of VOW, more than 350 volunteers were mobilized in 25 different organizations.[32]

In the summer of 2015 the Eastwood Theater Campus commenced a partnership with Lucas County Feed The Children. This partnership was part of the Summer Meal Partners of North West Ohio which had the distinct goal of ensuring no child was hungry over the summer months away from school. Toledo Public Schools have programs during the academic year that offer free meals to students. The free meals were supplemented with wholesome activities during the afternoons as an alternative to the children walking throughout the neighborhoods unsupervised.[33]

As a result of meeting with the Mayor of Toledo Paula Hicks-Hudson in early 2016, Bishop Pitts learned that several city pools had remained closed throughout the three summers prior due to lack of city funding. This conversation coincided with the release of the city's annual budget for 2016, and confirmation that six pools would remain closed without the support and sponsorship from benevolent third parties. As a result, in the Spring of 2016, Pitts pledged $52,000 to open Navarre Pool, on the East Side of Toledo, on behalf of Cornerstone Church. The pool is blocks from the Eastwood Campus, in East Toledo.[34] In addition to opening the pool, Cornerstone provided the funding to open Savage Park Splash Pad in the inner city of Toledo. Both the pool and splash pad were opened with the intention of running Summer programs and activities, as well as adding additional sites to the Summer Meal Program partnership.[35]

See also

List of the largest Protestant churches in the United States

References

  1. ↑ Yonke, David (26 July 2014). "Cornerstone's pastor elevated to higher rank". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  2. 1 2 Burris, Keith. "Cornerstone Church and its leader are the real deal". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  3. ↑ "Cornerstone Live". Cornerstone Church. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  4. ↑ "Cornerstone Global Network". Cornerstone Global. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  5. ↑ Cornett, Wendy (July 2014). "Historic Eastwood Theater reborn as site for Cornerstone Church and family-friendly movies". First Local Toledo. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  6. ↑ Barger, TK. "Eastwood Theater to host Cornerstone Church revival". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  7. ↑ Yonke, David (26 November 2005). "Rev. Pitts, wife included among power shifters". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  8. ↑ Yonke, David (7 September 2013). "Pitts presses on with outreaches from Toledo to Zimbabwe". Toledo Faith and Values. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  9. ↑ Editor, Religion (8 July 2006). "Summer Tours". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  10. ↑ Tarjanyi, Judy. "Churches, especially progressive ones, go for top sound systems". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  11. ↑ "Jakes, White to speak at Cornerstone". Toledo Blade. 3 October 2009. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  12. ↑ "Cornerstone Church slates One Blood conference". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  13. ↑ Yonke, David. "Church Offering More to Women". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  14. ↑ Pearson, Mike. "Gospel music keeps 10-time Grammy winner strong in faith". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  15. ↑ "Cornerstone Church offering 8 SKILLS camps from July 17–21". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  16. ↑ "3-time Grammy winner slates free Toledo concert". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  17. ↑ "Worship CD Recorded In Toledo". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  18. ↑ Barger, TK (14 September 2013). "Touching lives: Pastor Benny Hinn's ‘healing tour’ stops in Toledo". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  19. ↑ Yonke, David. "Hinn preaches salvation, prosperity in ‘miracle service’". Toledo Faith and Values. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  20. ↑ Faith, Education. "Cornerstone Church presents 15th Annual Conference Quantum 2014". Holy Toledo Magazine. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  21. ↑ Staff, Blade. "Offerings". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  22. ↑ Emmons, Donald. "High Life Didn't Satisfy Sanders". Toledo Blade.
  23. ↑ Yonke, David. "Sanders Finds Peace In God's Game Plan". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  24. ↑ Mullen, Roneisha. "African American Festival kicks off Friday". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  25. ↑ McKinnon, Julie. "Toledo charity lost its leader but not her spirit". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  26. ↑ Yonke, David. "Churches equip U.S. soldiers with Bibles". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  27. ↑ "Cornerstone Toledo Youth Visit Mercy Ministries Today". Mercy Ministries. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  28. ↑ Sander, Logan. "Music for Life: African Children’s Choir to perform at Cornerstone Church on Dec. 12.". Toledo Free Press. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  29. ↑ Krolak, Karen. "Doing good to heal the world". First Local Toledo. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  30. ↑ "Local church to sponsor benefit for city's needy". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  31. ↑ Staff, Blade. "Cornerstone Brings Ministry Program". Toledo Blade. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  32. ↑ Staff, WTOL. "Cornerstone Church giving back to the community". Toledo News Now. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  33. ↑ Staff, WTOL. "Cornerstone Church along with Lucas County Feed the Children Providing Summer Lunches". Toledo News Now. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  34. ↑ LINDSTROM AND ROSENKRANS, LAUREN AND NOLAN (March 26, 2016). "Church commits to funding Navarre Pool". The Toledo Blade. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
  35. ↑ Hormann, Bill. "Pools to open despite being short money".

External links

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