A Center for Faith

Due to increased resident demand for services and events, Christian Village Communities is building a new, state-of-the-art worship center named for longtime church leaders Sam and Gwen Stone to unite all residents in their faith-filled community.

Between the two locations that make up Christian Village Communities, residents can partake in a robust schedule of activities to remain active, socially connected and engaged in their faith.

While the experience has been a blessing for residents and their families, the communities have experienced a few growing pains along the way. The 100-seat chapel at the Christian Village at Mason (CVM) began running out of room to hold all who wanted to attend Sunday services, and demand continued to grow for larger spaces for other events.

Chaplain Tom Moll added a second Sunday service to accommodate everyone who wanted to worship, but both services soon reached maximum capacity. Staff members also report turning people away for events, as the current facility isn’t large enough to accommodate all residents for special gatherings.

While robust involvement serves as a testament to the vibrancy of the senior-living community, Christian Village Communities leadership recognized the need for more space to include all residents and their families looking to participate in organized activities and events. In January, they announced plans to build a new, 400-seat worship center and auditorium attached to the Village Center on the 85-acre Christian Village at Mason campus, which offers 190 independent living residences for older adults as well as a full continuum

of care.

The new facility will be called The Stone Worship Center and Auditorium, in honor of Sam Stone and his late wife, Gwen Stone, who died in December 2015. Sam Stone moved to the Christian Village at Mason in 2017. A $2.75 million capital campaign will be launched to fund the facility’s construction.

"The need to expand our existing chapel capacity by building the Stone Worship Center and Auditorium is particularly inspiring to me as the CEO of our faith-based organization because it speaks to one ultimate measure of our success –­ the spiritual vibrancy of our community demonstrated by the increasing number of residents who desire to participate in worship," said Larry D. Monroe, president and CEO of Christian

Village Communities.

Sam and Gwen Stone were well known in the greater Cincinnati area for almost six decades as leaders of the Restoration Movement of the independent Christian churches and Churches of Christ. Sam Stone served for 25 years as editor of Christian Standard magazine, and held numerous leadership positions in churches, Bible colleges, parachurch organizations, church conferences and conventions.

Their two children also lead ministries. Jeff Stone is the senior minister at Bright Christian Church in Bright, Indiana, and Dave Stone is the senior minister at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

Christian Village Communities began the first phase of fundraising this year by meeting with targeted donors, and plans to launch the public phases of its campaign in January 2019 by appealing to its entire mailing list and contacting others with connections to the organization. Leaders are hopeful to see groundbreaking

n 2020.

"The Stone Worship Center and Auditorium will be an exciting addition to the CVM community that will enhance our ministry by allowing us to serve a greater number of people more effectively in Jesus’ name," Monroe said.

To learn more about The Stone Worship Center and Auditorium and how to support the campaign, email Larry Monroe at larry.monroe@christianvillages.org or call 513.701.3435.