Stewarding Our Call
Rebuild and Renew
Quick Links
Quick Links
For over 20 years, we have followed God’s call to be a thriving, diverse urban church sharing Christ’s love and serving the needs of our local and global communities from our current location in Allison Hill at 2217 Derry Street. With sacrifice from faithful members and many partners, we’ve transformed an old car dealership into a life-giving sanctuary that is set apart “for the worship of the living and true God, and to the service of Jesus Christ our Lord”.
Join us in stewarding our call!
Goal Progress
$347,850 of $1,500,000 Raised
As of March 14, 2026
100% of your donation benefits this campaign.
The Call
At HBIC, our vision is to be a thriving diverse urban church sharing Christ’s love and serving the needs of our local and global communities.
Our vision spurs us forward. In 2023 – 2024, the Harrisburg Brethren in Christ (HBIC) Next Steps Task Force led the church in conversations about fulfilling our call as our congregation continued to grow and our impact expanded—including a space audit and resulting recommendations. Soon, a natural disaster would reshape these conversations, but not our congregation’s commitment to advancing our vision.
A Tornado of Change
On August 9, 2024, our church building was severely damaged by a tornado that tore the roof off our building, devastated the upstairs, and flooded our staff’s office space and the entire children’s wing. One pastor recalls salvaging personal belongings while using an umbrella as rain poured inside the building. When the storms subsided, only one-third of our building was inhabitable. In remarkable expression of God’s provision, our sanctuary was spared, and we worshipped there together that Sunday.
God’s Provision & Grace
Despite extraordinary challenges in recent years, we praise God that we continue to grow in ministries and in attracting new members to join us—a testament to the Holy Spirit’s leading and to the compelling vision with which God has entrusted us.
Our pastors and congregation have summoned heroic determination as we continue to sustain and grow our worship and ministries while coping with the drag on energy and resources of operating all worship and ministries out of the sanctuary, unfinished area, and complex array of multiple satellite locations.
This is not sustainable.
Make a Pledge
Make a commitment to support Stewarding Our Call over the next three years!
Make a Donation
Ready to dive in? Support Stewarding Our Call now with a one-time or recurring gift!
Rebuild & Renew
This fall, Pastor Hank Johnson led the church through a study of Ezra and Nehemiah: Return. Rebuild. Renew. Our continuing work together is rooted in this biblical call of stewardship and renewal.
Our church building reflects our focus on authentic relationships and ministry as reflected by our unvarnished but welcoming facility. As we rebuild the foundations of our physical building, we recommit to the spiritual foundations at our core: our roots in Harrisburg, our children & youth, and ministry in general.
We renew our call alongside ministries like Food Pantry, English Language Learning, and Loving our Global Neighbors Locally.
Pledge
We invite you to join us in this work of rebuilding and renewal. The Stewarding our Call: Rebuild and Renew capital campaign is a three-year initiative of Harrisburg Brethren in Christ Church to raise $1.5 million to fully retire our church loan and empower our impact. This campaign represents more than financial freedom—it’s a spiritual invitation to rebuild our foundation and renew our capacity to serve our community, invest in future generations, and deepen our commitment to racial justice, outreach, missions, and discipleship.
We invite you to consider joining us as a partner to steward that call. Your support will help us continue to build relationships of love and mutual respect with all kinds of people, which can lead to lives changed by the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Click below to print the pledge form. You can either drop your completed pledge form in the “Stewarding Our Call” lock box located in the church lobby or email it electronically to stewardingourcall@
Serve
We invite you to consider other ways to partner with us as we steward our call. We have many ministries here at HBIC each ministry area has unique opportunities for using your gifts! As you read through the serving opportunities, you may find one that resonates with how God might be calling you to bless the church and community through your time and energy. To learn more about getting involved with the many ministries at HBIC, click the link below.
Give
To make a one time or recurring gift online, visit our giving portal. If this is your first time using our giving platform, check out this visual guide to get set up.
Enter the amount you would like to give. Select ‘Capital Fund – Stewarding Our Call’ from the menu. Select the desired frequency (for recurring gifts), then complete the rest of the form with your financial information.
We also invite you to explore the possibility of giving a special gift! Chat with a team member to discuss bequests, trusts, stocks, and estate planning.
HBIC’s Unfolding Story
OUR VISION
For over 20 years, we have followed God’s call to be a thriving, diverse urban church sharing Christ’s love and serving the needs of our local and global communities from our current location in South Allison Hill at 2217 Derry Street.
A TORNADO OF CHANGE
On August 9, 2024, our church building was severely damaged by a tornado and subsequent water damage. When the storms subsided, only half our building was inhabitable.
STEWARDING OUR CALL
Despite extraordinary challenges in recent years, we praise God that we continue to grow in ministries and momentum—a testament to the Holy Spirit’s leading and our compelling vision. We invite you now to join us in rebuilding together.
1890
Our congregation traces its call to community back to its first location on Bailey Street in Harrisburg, PA in the late 1890’s.
1936
A second congregation was established at The Messiah Home on Paxton Street in 1936.
1962
The congregation moved from Messiah Lighthouse Chapel to 2001 Chestnut St. and the church was renamed “Bellevue Park Brethren In Christ Church”.
1977
The congregations from Bellevue Park BIC and The Messiah Home merged to what has been known since as “Harrisburg Brethren In Christ Church”.
1990s
It became apparent that the congregation was growing beyond the capacity of the building. By the mid-90’s average attendance was 150. Although a second service was added in 1997, the building limitations at Chestnut St were understood to be too great to remain. In 1998 our Vision Statement formed.
2002
After searching for about eight years, a building task force found 2217 Derry St. which was formerly the home of Earl B. Lehman Saab and Volvo car dealership. After a congregational vote, the building was purchased on October 4, 2002 and a dedication service was held on November and plans began to raise funds and remodel.
2003
The Building Common Ground Campaign Fellowship Dinner was hosted on Sat. May 10, 2003 at 5PM.
2005
Construction on 2217 Derry Street began in May 2005. The last worship service held at Chestnut St. was Sept. 25, 2005 and the first service at the Derry St location was Oct. 9, 2005 (3 years after the property was purchased.). The building was then dedicated on November 20, 2005 at 4PM.
2023-2024
The HBIC Next Steps Task Force led the church in conversations about fulfilling our call as we continued to grow and our impact expanded—including a space audit and resulting recommendations. Soon, a natural disaster would reshape these conversations, but not our congregation’s commitment to advancing our vision.
August 9, 2024
Our church building was severely damaged by a tornado that tore the roof off our building, devastated the upstairs, and flooded our staff’s office space and the entire children’s wing. When the storms subsided, only half our building was inhabitable. In a remarkable expression of God’s provision, our sanctuary was spared, and we worshipped there together that Sunday.
Frequently Asked Questions
Since a large part of the roof was ripped off, the upstairs office area is unusable. While some items (records in filing cabinets, some personal and historical items) were salvaged by the group that arrived early on Friday morning, most things will need to be discarded. The flooding in the office caused further water damage in the children’s wing of the church, so those rooms are also unusable.
Thankfully, the sanctuary, prayer room, early childhood rooms, kitchen and youth/open area were unaffected! We will use all of the remaining space to the best of our ability until a temporary office and rebuild plan is established.
Cor Construction is working with us as we navigate the clean-up and rebuild plans in the wake of August’s tornado. They’ve demoed both the upstairs and CE areas, removed the asbestos upstairs, cleaned up all of the roof debris, and added a safety fence around the front and rear entrances to the church. All of the gas leaks in our system were repaired and heat was restored in the building. The structural engineer report arrived, and work on the roof is complete! We received bids and a final cost for both the children and upstairs areas, as well as the youth and coffee areas.
The congregational council approved our applying for a loan from the BIC Foundation for up to $1.55M to complete the work at our special council meeting on November 2, 2025. See the email follow-up from the meeting in the communication archive on our Rebuilding Together page.
Currently, drawings are being prepared for the purpose of applying for permits.