A VISIONARY MODEL (continued)
changing a culture, and culture changes with a change
in mindset.”
Church leaders who attended the New Dollars/New
Partners sessions were the driving force behind the
church’s space sharing and they strongly supported
the vision clinic. A committee to evaluate the proposal
was created from a broad spectrum of congregation
members, allowing them to have ownership of the
issue. The congregation’s emotional ties to the
building made many members feel vulnerable as they
considered welcoming an outside organization into
their fold. Congregation members who were skeptical
of the idea were included in the decision-making
process to be sure that they were given the opportunity
to be heard and not dismissed.
“We are tied to the building but we aren’t
just the past. We are the future, too, and we
are changing the idea of our building being
a museum.”
The Reverend Tom Plumbley,
First Christian Church, Fort Worth, TX
For Reverend Plumbley and the congregation, the
turning point occurred in early July 2012 with the
realization that “we are tied to the building but we
aren’t just the past. We are the future, too, and we are
changing the idea of our building being a museum.”
What had been a hardship, the congregation realized,
could be transformed into its greatest asset.
Importantly, repurposing part of the building into
the vision clinic allowed First Christian to expand its
mission while also saving the landmark.
The Community Eye Clinic of Fort Worth will
significantly increase the availability of health
services to underserved populations. Children will
be able to access sight-saving surgery and other
critical care, and the public/private partnership
will provide patients with other social services,
some of which can be met by First Christian. “The
church intends to have a team of volunteers to assist
patients in finding resources such as shelters, food
pantries, vocational training, and general healthcare
resources,” explains Dr. Deakins. “By taking on
these roles of patient advocacy, [First Christian] will
allow [doctors] to focus on the vision and medical
care.” The vision clinic allows the church to impact
the community in a significant way, fulfilling its
mission of serving the needs of the economically
disadvantaged while also allowing the congregation
to maintain its building for the future. It is a model
of sustainability and adaptive reuse that could be
applied to congregations in all communities.
Fort Worth City Manager Tom Higgins was the honorary first patient
at the new Community Eye Clinic of Fort Worth, housed on the
second floor of First Christian Church.
19 • Sacred Places • www.sacredplaces.org • Spring 2013