Imagine hauling 8,000 pounds (3,629 kilos) of fresh food a week through basement windows.
That’s what Isaiah 58 Ministries in St. Louis, MO was doing when it was operating from Compton Heights Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) (CHCC)’s former building.
But with our help, the non-profit agency will soon be able to meet the needs of low-income individuals in its neighborhood from a facility that’s a better fit for its staff, services—and most importantly—its clients.
Nourishing community for almost 60 years
In 1968, four local congregations from the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada, United Church of Christ, and Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) denominations started the 4 Church Association, which would eventually become Isaiah 58 Ministries. While it has always been ecumenical, from its inception the cooperative ministry has been housed at CHCC—that is, until it realized that it had outgrown the church basement and needed to find its own place.
For years, if people wanted to use Isaiah 58 Ministries’ low-barrier food pantry, clothing closet, or other outreach programs, they would have to walk down a flight of stairs, which prevented many of those with physical disabilities or limited mobility from entering the lower level of CHCC. Then they were required to wait in a hallway for their name to be called. If it rained, there wasn’t enough room inside to accommodate them, and their only shelter was retractable awnings outside the building. In 2024, the organization opened its long-awaited shower ministry, but patrons only had access to one shower.
As for the staff, getting around wasn’t much easier. Without a loading dock, they had to move donations through the basement windows, down the hallway, and into the pantry—all before guests arrived. Even then, there wasn’t enough space in the 10,000-square-foot basement to store large quantities of food.
“We’ve always made it work,” says Rev. Brenda Booth, Isaiah 58 Ministries’ Executive Director. “But I wanted something that worked for us.”
Isaiah 58 Ministries’ next chapter
Three years ago, when CHCC was undergoing a visioning process, they reached out to our Building and Capital Services Advisor Jim Michel to review the facility. In conversations with him, they explored the idea of the CHCC faith community nesting within Isaiah 58 Ministries, since the latter had more assets and donors. So, Jim traveled to Missouri and conducted a Building Evaluation to see if creating more room in the existing building might be possible. In the end, CHCC decided not to invert its relationship with Isaiah 58 Ministries and instead, made the difficult decision to sell its building. During this time of discernment, Brenda went on sabbatical for three months to research how other services hubs functioned.
In 2024, she restarted the partnership with Jim, this time with plans to take a different direction. They began to discuss what it would look like if Isaiah 58 Ministries had a place to call its own and were to repurpose it to fit its needs. It wasn’t just the lack of space that Brenda was considering.
“While we wanted to support the church and appreciated all that it had done for us, we are ultimately here for our neighbors and the community,” explains Brenda. “In the last two decades, the area around us has changed. It has gone from having 60% of its population being people of color to 30%. Our clients must travel further to get to us. I asked myself, ‘why are we here?’”
Isaiah 58 Ministries serves families living at or below the poverty line in four different zip codes; neighborhoods that are quickly transitioning into higher economic statuses. The two zip codes that it sees the most traffic from are two miles south of CHCC’s former location, where gentrification has pushed residents to.
So, Brenda began the process of looking for a facility that was located amid the communities that she and her coworkers were serving. Jim gave her advice on what to look for in buildings and she created a list of priorities that would guide her and her team’s search, including enough space to do their current ministry and to grow, parking, easy access, and green space. Last winter, Brenda and Jim deliberated on funding, conducting a feasibility study, reviewing potential donors, and putting together a capital fundraising campaign team.
“Jim assured me that we could do this and guided me through what we needed to do,” Brenda recalls. “Every time I reached out to him, he was always very quick to respond.”
Creating a heart and hub for the community
After looking at approximately 20 different potential new locations, Brenda and her colleagues settled on a former wedding dress gallery situated right in the middle of the communities that Isaiah 58 Ministries serves. With a square footage of 39,000 feet on three levels, a freight elevator, and a loading dock, this building was just what they were looking for. Our building purchase loan enabled them to buy the facility and get started on figuring out the layout of their new home. They plan to dedicate the ground floor to the ministry’s services and install a walk-in cooler and freezer as well as a reception area with a hospitality counter. For the first floor, they envision the clothing room and food pantry and for the 2nd, three to four showers, a community space, offices, classrooms, and a teaching kitchen. There’s even room in the facility for other like-minded missions to move in.
As for the financial planning, while our funding support of Isaiah 58 Ministries includes a capital campaign to pay off their loan—a process that many of the organizations that partner with us do—the campaign itself is not adhering to the typical timeline. With CHCC’s building being sold shortly, Isaiah 58 Ministries has not had the luxury of conducting a campaign five years in advance of a building purchase. CHCC is now renting space in the former Holy Family Catholic Church and Isaiah 58 Ministries has until November to vacate the basement.
The goal of the current fundraising campaign, Answering the Call, is to raise US $3.5 million (CA $4.8 million) to complete three phases:
From L to R: Associate Regional Minister for Mid-America Rev. David Woodard, Isaiah 58 Director Rev. Brenda Booth, Building and Capital Services Advisor Jim Michel, and National Benevolent Association President and CEO Mark Anderson
- Purchase a new building to increase their service capacity
- Renovate and upgrade their new building
- Furnish it with necessary equipment
So far, 50% of the total cost of the building purchase loan has been raised. Without congregants to rely on for gifts, Isaiah 58 Ministries is seeing them come from individual donors, local foundations, and state and federal grants instead. According to Brenda, the response so far has been good—which was evident at the “groundbreaking” celebration on February 24 of this year, where Isaiah 58 Ministries was joined by hundreds of volunteers, civic leaders, and longtime friends.
“This partnership shows how we’re shifting. While we continue to work with congregations and organizations, we’re looking at their facilities differently than we have in the past,” reflects Jim. “We’re asking questions like, ‘how do they affect the neighborhood and the community?’ It’s something that we’re going to see more of in the future.”
Currently, Isaiah 58 Ministries is on the second phase of its campaign and continues to work with us. Our next step together is a renovation loan to build out the facility for its food and clothing ministries, as well as to install a passenger elevator.
“It’s good to know that we are partners in this journey and it’s not just a transactional relationship,” concludes Brenda. “Disciples Church Extension Fund is a partner that believes in the transformational power of the Church.”
Is your ministry considering a project that’s never been done before? We can help fund it. Contact your regional Advisor today.