The Block - A Forgotten Building. A Redemptive Story.
Innovative Mission begins with listening—to God, to the community, and to the opportunities He places before us.
For New Hope Church in Lebanon, Oregon, that listening led to an unexpected ministry. What was once a long-forgotten restaurant has become The Block—a welcoming space for middle and high school students to gather, build friendships, and experience a safe place to belong.
Lead Pastor Mike Tucci shares how this vision came to life.
New Hope Church started the PEAK process in 2022. Through the process we were able to identify the resources God had brought to New Hope. As part of the process we identified three main issues facing Lebanon, they were Drug addiction/recovery, homelessness, and the breakdown of the family structure (generally, more specifically there was no place for kids to go in Lebanon). As we looked at what some of the other churches and ministries were already doing in Lebanon we decided that we would try to find a way to minister to the kids with no place to go in town to just hang out in a safe place.
Our core team began to pray about what this might look like, since we are on the North edge of town we are not within walking distance of town, or any of the schools. Our process was to discern whether or not we should try to establish some kind of after school program at the church, or if we needed to begin to think and pray about a facility in town. We realized that the in town option would be the most ideal. Around that same time there was a legacy gift that came into the church from a previous congregant who had passed away. I met with the family to share this ministry idea, they were excited that their family’s gift might be able to help provide for this ministry.
We put together a small team to begin to look at real estate in town. There was an old restaurant that had been vacant for 17 years. The building and grounds were neglected. THe parking lot had thick green moss covering it, the power and water had been shut off for years, the building was written off as “a dump” “a total loss” and basically just a forgotten space.
When I walked into it the first time with the team to look at it, we were all carrying flashlights. It was as if the last people there who were operating the restaurant had just walked out and locked the door behind them. There were still salt and pepper shakers full, tables, chairs, and even the soda fountain with all the syrup still attached. There were menus in the hostess booth with prices reflecting the time when the restaurant was in operation. There was a smell of mildew, dust and moisture. As we stood in that space that evening I was so excited. This was it! I had a sense that this was the place God had for us to establish this ministry. The “bones were good”. We began having conversations with the congregation about purchasing the building. There was some hesitancy due to the reputation of the building, but we soon came to the conclusion that we would enter into negotiations to purchase the building. I really got the sense that God was writing this cool redemptive narrative, taking a building that was forgotten and written off, and redeeming it into a place to bring the love of Jesus to a group that had been forgotten and written off..
When we had purchased the building we completely gutted it. Did a complete remodel including a new roof, and a new look for the building inside and outside. This work caused quite a stir in the community. People were excited about what was going to be coming into the space. Our volunteers were visited multiple times per day with people walking by asking about the plans for the building. There was overwhelming excitement about what we were putting in.
The Block is a place for kids 6-12 grade to come in and enjoy a place to gather with friends, play games, and have snacks and drinks at no charge. We have an area that is set up like a living room, with couches and soft chairs for visiting. We have another area with a coffee shop feel with regular tables and chairs. Kids can do homework, visit, play board games, puzzles, and artwork. There is a separate room that has four tv’s on the wall, two are set up with a playstation, two are set up with an Xbox.
Fast forward to our grand opening. We had a BBQ and an open house for the entire community. Around 300 people came in that day in the four hours we were open. There was so much excitement from everyone about the Block, and the plans for the ministry there. We opened two days later for kids. The first day there were kids that came in and were blown away by the space. We kept hearing questions like, “what is this”, “Why are you doing this”, “It’s free?” This has continued, we are seeing 20-25 kids per day coming into the Block. We have been having some awesome conversations with these kids that we would have likely not had the opportunity to spend time with. We have referred to The Block as “Our contribution to the community”.
As we continue to develop this ministry we see God’s hand on it. It’s been great to adapt to what the kids are looking for. We have seen our volunteers learn and grow. They are doing a great job of adapting and allowing the kids to teach them things about their world (ie. games, conversation topics, even some “lingo” that they were unfamiliar with). Some of our long-term goals are to build connections with the families of the kids that are coming in, in order to help bring the love of Christ to them as well. I’ll share an email that we received from one of the parents whose child has been coming in:
Hello,
I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you.
When I came in today, my son had fallen asleep on the couch while other kids were visiting. They were making grilled cheese sandwiches, having coffee, using the cappuccino machine, grabbing snacks, playing video games—just enjoying being together in such a comfortable, welcoming space. What really stood out to me was how kind and friendly the kids and staff were, and how natural it all felt.
My son absolutely loves this program, and seeing him feel safe and relaxed meant more to me than I can easily put into words. As a parent, it brings such peace of mind to know there is a place where he can spend time with peers, supported by a wonderful group of caring adults.
I am truly grateful that this space exists, and I just wanted to say thank you for all that you do to make it possible.
There is so much more to say, this story is developing daily, and God is at work. We are excited not only about the Block but about the possibility of more innovative ministries in the future.
-Mike Tucci , Lead Pastor at New Hope Church
