Family
Fun
Fest

A next-level strategy resulting from Charlotte WOW Jam is a new multi-year initiative to transform lives in Cornelius' Smithville community.

The 2010 outreach in the Smithville Community was held on August 21.  Click here to view a slideshow.

Community Transformation Partnership

In 1933, Lakewood Park was known as the “veritable Coney Island” and it was recognized as one of the most attractive and up to date parks in the South.

Today, that same 100 acres is known as Lakewood Community.  Now, an economically challenged area in West Charlotte, its residents wrestle with unemployment, under-motivated youth, drug influences, prostitution and children growing up without the love of a father.  It’s been said, “Lakewood needs an infusion of God’s love.”

In 2009, Grace Covenant Church & Faith Memorial Baptist Church, located in the Lakewood community, committed to partner together to bring spiritual transformation to those living in this community.  Our partnership joins us together in some unique ways  – a predominately white church and a predominately black church serving together,  a suburban church and a urban church reaching out together and a Pentecostal church and Baptist church worshiping the Lord together.

We are now entering our second year of this community transformation partnership and invite you to find your place of service as we make the love of Christ known to those who need to see and hear the Good News of the Gospel.

Community
Blessing Week

During the week of the National Day of Prayer (first week of May), Grace Covenant Church delivers Blessing Baskets to mayors, fire chiefs and police chiefs for Cornelius, Huntersville and Davidson. These leaders and their teams make many sacrifices to lead, protect and care for our community.

We encourage all members of the Grace Covenant Family to write thank you notes and/or contribute baked goods for the baskets.

National
Day of Prayer

Annually, on the first Thursday in May, we unite in spirit with others to pray for elected and appointed community and civic leaders. Services are held in the afternoon and in the evening.

Thanksgiving Baskets

Each year we pack and deliver Thanksgiving Dinner Baskets for those less fortunate in the Lake Norman and Charlotte Area.  In 2009, volunteers packed and delivered 190 baskets! Thank you to all who helped by giving financially and by giving their time to bless families in our community.

In 2010, we will pack baskets on Tuesday, November 23.

Community
Christmas
Blessing Tree

Annually,we provide a community Christmas Blessing Tree to help families in our immediate area who are experiencing a challenging time. Grace Covenant Church families take an ornament from a tree located within the church and purchase a gift for either a man, woman or child (as listed on the ornament they select).  In 2009, GCC blessed 311 people from the community with gifts. 

In 2010, the trees will be up on Sunday, November 28.  Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  if you have any questions.

Holiday
Serving

Grace Covenant Church strengthens and supports several ministries during the holidays.Opportunities are posted on the Local Outreach Wall Display at the end of October.

Room in the Inn (RITI)

During the winter months, from December thru March, volunteers provide food and fellowship in a loving environment at Grace Covenant to our homeless neighbors on Thursday nights and Friday mornings. Serving opportunities include set-up crew, food preparers, food servers, evening or morning van drivers, night host and morning clean-up crew.  Individuals, families, small groups and classes all participate in this opportunity to make a difference in peoples' lives.

An orientation for the 2010-2011 season will be held on Thursday, October 28 at 7pm in the modulars behind the main building.

Sacred
Suppers

The Grace Covenant family provides dinner on each Tuesday in May to families who are sharing their loved one's last days at the Levine & Dickson Hospice House in Huntersville for families sharing their last days with family members in their last days on earth. For more information on this ministry, please  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Prison
Ministry

Michael Vick was renowned as a professional quarterback who eluded would-be tacklers to find open-field freedom.  Then everything changed with his 2007 imprisonment for operating a dog fighting ring, confining Vick to reflect upon his spiritual condition and eventually reach out for a second chance at real freedom. 

Before Vick’s release last year after 18 months in prison, former NFL Coach Tony Dungy agreed to help the disgraced man in reshaping his life – an intense mentoring relationship both during - and after - his time in prison.

The commitment held eternal significance.  So has the process.  Every incarcerated man and woman needs Dungy’s message of hope and challenge: Jesus Christ transforms hearts and lives.  While our nation is effective at putting people behind bars, Christ called the Church to share a message of real freedom to captives.  During this year, over 20,000 individuals are expected to be released from North Carolina prisons.  Before and after walking out, they need constant encouragement to make their “second chance” successful.

Various ministry opportunities are available for men and women at Grace Covenant Church to touch the lives of those in prison and re-entry programs.  Options include:

• visiting jails regularly
• serving on unique prison retreat teams – from worship to supplying cookies
• mentoring and preparing inmates for re-entry
• supplying toiletries for those recently released
• being a pen-pal to women inmates
• and more!

If you would like to explore how you could connect to a prison or re-entry ministry, contact Jenelle Lozano at 704-655-0185 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Our Challenge…Our Opportunity

• Prisoners attending 10 or more Bible studies while incarcerated are 66% less likely to re-offend
• 82% of incarcerated adult’s children end up in prison
• 157,917 individuals were in North Carolina’s offender population as of January 6, 2010
• $581 is what the average family pays in taxes to run our prison system