Thanksgiving Church begins $8 Million Expansion

Thanksgiving Church announced an $8 million expansion to its facilities near 36th and Highway 370 at a ground-breaking ceremony on November 24th.

Lead Pastor David Witkop said church leadership is excited about the new community center, which will replace the existing lobby. “It will be close to 5x our original lobby space and allow us to build bridges with the community. There will be a coffee bar with food available, not just on Sundays but throughout the week,” said Witkop. “It will, in essence, be a third space where people of all ages can find community, growth, and joy.”

Thanksgiving Lutheran Church is also updating its worship space as part of the expansion. Witkop explained, “We purchased a home in Old Town Bellevue that exists as a light house to the neighborhood, with individuals from Thanksgiving living and blessing the area by throwing block parties, Easter egg hunts, and connecting with the local elementary school Betz Elementary to provide volunteers, refurbishing the teacher’s lounge, and providing both financial and relational investment.”

The final component of the expansion is the lower level of the community center. It will be able to help with local disaster relief efforts like the floods and tornados of the past several years. The downstairs will offer showers, cots, and an indoor shelter for displaced individuals and families.

Thanksgiving Lutheran Church began offering worship services on November 6th, 1983. The church currently has around 1,500 parishioners.

The church started a capital campaign called NOW in 2022, which raised over $3 million.  The church obtained a loan to cover the rest. A new capital campaign will launch in 2025 to start paying the debt.

Witkop added, “We are passionate about every person on the planet growing into their God-given destiny. We believe that starts with loving people where they are, providing hope as the situation calls for it, and then sharing the hope that we have within us—that God is for us and that we are rooted and ground in our faith in Jesus Christ.”

Pictures Courtesy of Jim Taylor, Thanksgiving Church Council