Demotte, Indiana

As you enter Grace Fellowship Church you are immediately greeted by a bright commons space with tall ceilings, beautiful windows, natural light, and a welcome desk. Café tables and couches by a fireplace immediately make you feel “at home.”

The commons is just one aspect of the 10,900 square foot building addition at Grace Fellowship Church, located in the town of DeMotte, Indiana. The project started from the need for more space. The church had outgrown their facility, and offices and youth events were located off-site. With a vision for the future in mind, Grace Fellowship launched their capital campaign, “Future Foundations: Building for Those Yet to Come” and partnered with Aspen Group to design and build a facility addition that would align with Grace’s mission and consolidate all ministry functions at one location.

The building addition includes a new worship center, kitchen, commons area, and office complex. Renovation of the existing facility into youth space was also part of this project.

The 350 seat worship center has moveable seating that provides flexibility in configuring the space for worship or large church events. The large platform, side-stage areas, green rooms, and audio/video/lighting system were all designed to support and enhance the dynamic music and visual arts ministries of the church.

The beautiful, functional commons area is a key feature of the addition. This space has provided a comfortable environment for members and guests to gather and build relationships, hold small group discussions, or just hang out.

The existing facility was renovated into children and youth ministry space, with classrooms for all ages and a multipurpose room with a platform and sound booth. An exposed wall, black fence along the loft, and galvanized steel “roof” over the classrooms in this space gives a fun atmosphere for children and the teen youth group as they worship and learn more about the gospel.

“I am ecstatic about this building,” shared Pastor Tim Hester, “We wanted the interior of the church to stand out and be welcoming, and that is exactly what we got.”

When the project was complete and they moved back into the building, church members were so impressed with the space. Those in the church who in the beginning stages of the project thought maybe they could do this project themselves, realized they would not have ended up with such effective ministry space had they not partnered with Aspen Group. “Aspen helped us achieve a design that reflected who we are, and helped us achieve the “wow factor” that we were going for…and now people are excited to bring guests to church,” shared Pastor Hester