A Brief History of Canyon View Vineyard Church
Twenty-seven years ago, Dan and Cheryl Cox were busy at work as a car salesman and housewife. They were both involved in a small, non-affiliated church called Christian Life Center. In the spring of 1981, the senior pastor of this small congregation resigned and moved to California. There were between 25-30 adult worshippers and they owned a small church building just one block off North Avenue.
The fellowship was small and finances were limited, so the leadership asked Dan if he would consider "filling in" until a pastor was found. Due to his background and training with Youth With a Mission, he had gained some experience teaching and public speaking, so he agreed to help. Two years passed and it became evident that the leadership of the church was not pursuing another pastor! Although he still held a full-time job for the next four years, he became the pastor, and the church grew to about 300.
Through a long series of circumstances, the fellowship became acquainted with a national association of churches known as Vineyard Ministries International. As Dan and Cheryl attended conferences and met with Vineyard Pastors from other cities, they began to see that this network of churches held the same values and vision that we felt God had given the fellowship. Therefore in the summer of 1988, Christian Life Center became Vineyard Christian Fellowship and they launched the search for a larger facility.
In 1989 we remodeled a car dealership on North Avenue and affectionately dubbed it the "Chrysler Cathedral." It proved to be a practical, functional solution, complete with ample paved parking. In 1990, we remodeled the former body shop portion of the building and created a Children's Ministry building where hundreds of children heard the Good News of the Gospel and were taught the ways of the Lord. Subsequent remodels added the lobby and youth buildings at that locale.
During the next two decades we watched God increase the size and scope of the fellowship beyond what we would ever have dreamed possible! Within these years we established four weekend services and scores of outreach ministries. Once again we found that we had outgrown our building.
Our current, beautiful "Canyon View" campus and our new name, Canyon View Vineyard Church (reflecting our location in the city) is the product of years of planning and enormous sacrifice on the part of our congregation.
We are still determined to provide our community with a place where every individual is welcome and encouraged to make Christianity accessible and applicable to their daily lives.
Revised Dec. 2008
