Spring Creek Church
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Spring Creek Church is a large, non-denominational, evangelical church located in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The church is autonomous and independent of any denominational control. However, Spring Creek recognizes the benefits of cooperation with other churches in world missions, and in its national, state and local expressions it affiliates with conservative Baptist denominations. Spring Creek currently averages 1,500 people in attendance per week and is a member of the Willow Creek Association.
Contents |
[edit] History
The church was founded in 1881 as Garfield Baptist Church, when a small group of believers wanting to reach their community for Christ started a little mission church. The church's earliest days unfolded in a small, wooden-frame building on the corner of Second Street and Garfield Avenue in Milwaukee.
By 1951 a new building was added adjacent to the old one, housing the growing body of believers. In 1964, continued growth mandated another move, this time to the suburb of Wauwatosa.
In the decades to follow, a strong Bible school and a flourishing AWANA program reached and trained hundreds of children in Biblical truth. Involvement in worldwide missions also expanded to include dozens of families serving the Lord around the globe.
In 1987, William "Chip" Bernhard was installed as senior pastor. Under Pastor Bernhard, the 1990s were marked by significant growth and vision in the church to reach future generations for Christ. Once again outgrowing facilities, the church embarked on yet another plan to relocate. God provided 99 acres of land in Pewaukee, and in October 1997, the church family made an historic drive down Capitol Drive to the new facility. In 2001, the congregation voted to change the name of the church to Spring Creek Church, which better reflected the new location.
Also in 2001, Spring Creek completed the Building for the Harvest capital campaign and opened a new, $4.2 million, 850 seat worship center with state-of-the-art sound, lighting, seating, and projection systems. After doubling attendance in the decade since moving to Pewaukee, in 2008, construction began on the And 1 campaign, which includes a $6 million expansion to the worship center (increasing capacity to 2,000), new foyer, coffee shop, and bookstore, along with a new Christian education wing with ten new classrooms. The project is expected to be completed by the spring of 2009.[1]
[edit] Chip Bernhard
Pastor Chip Bernhard graduated from Cedarville University in 1977 and earned a Master of Divinity degree from Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary in 1980. Bernhard started his pastoral ministry at Shawnee Baptist Church in Vincentown, New Jersey, where he served for seven years as an associate pastor. In 1987, he came to Spring Creek Church as the senior pastor.
Bernhard is currently a trustee at Cedarville University and is on the board of Shepherds Baptist Ministries, a care facility for the mentally disabled. He is married to Margie and they have three adult children: Kelly, Karl, and Ben. Pastor Bernhard enjoys sports, yard work, and has been the chaplain for the Milwaukee Bucks for several years.[2]
