Better Together

Friends,

In March we shared that our rent increased significantly by 127%.  Despite our best efforts to negotiate with the new landlord, they were not willing to lower the monthly rent.  This increase in rent raised concerns among our leadership about the financial impact it will have on our ability to continue quality ministry and sustain the church beyond 2024 with our current giving levels. In this time our leadership team explored alternative options and solutions on Sunday, April 7 we shared our decision.  

As we continue on our journey of faith together, CITM is moving to a new location and intending to merge with another like-minded church, Engage Newark Church. This marks a significant milestone in our collective mission to serve our community.

Here are the key details about our move and potential merger:

• We will be moving to a church building, Christian Endeavor UMC, located in Newark on Londondale Parkway near OSU-N.  This location is 3.5 miles north of our current location. Pastor Dave Warner of Engage Newark has been appointed as the pastor of Christian Endeavor UMC. To be clear, Engage Newark will also be moving into Christian Endeavor UMC.

• We've signed a lease that gives us the time to make the move in an orderly fashion without too much financial pain.  Our decision to sign the lease was primarily to buy time to evaluate our best options moving forward. As I shared earlier, we explored various non-traditional options such as movie theaters and commercial spaces but ultimately found that merging with ENC aligns best with our vision and goals.

We are excited to join forces with ENC as they also move into a historic church space in Newark. Here are some reasons why we accepted this invitation:

• ENC shares our values and culture, making it a natural fit for a partnership.

• We believe that by combining our strengths, we can accomplish more together and make a bigger impact in our community.

• Both CITM and ENC are committed to launching new non-traditional ministries, and this merger provides us with greater opportunities to achieve that.

• Christian Endeavor is a declining church that desires new life and growth, and we are eager to contribute to their revitalization efforts with this partnership.

We understand that change can be both exciting and challenging, but we are confident that this move and merger will lead to new opportunities for spiritual growth, community engagement, and outreach.

We invite all of you to join us in this journey as we embark on this new chapter together.  

God bless,

Mariah

Pastor Mariah Miskimen