The RENEW Generosity Initiative

Support our two-year generosity initiative, focused on expanding, renovating,
and updating our building to enhance our mission and vision.

Pastor Marshall Brown

A message from

What is RENEW?

RENEW is a two-year generosity initiative (beginning in April 2024 and spanning three tax years) to raise $5.5 million dollars, with a goal of renewing our building unto renewing our mission. We have a beautiful building in an unbeatable location. We believe now is the time to expand, renovate, and update our building so folks of all ages and abilities can experience Jesus around the North Shore, in Chicago, and beyond. 

We are asking you to join with us in faith to further make known Jesus’ kingdom and presence in our church, on the North Shore, and beyond.

Here’s How:

1

RENEW Welcome

Make our building accessible to all, no matter their physical ability. Offer dedicated and secure spaces for children and youth. Provide better circulation, way-finding, and spaces for casual gatherings.

2

RENEW Growth

Increase ministry space by 65% to enable increased discipleship and fellowship opportunities for children, youth, and adults to grow in Christ.

3

RENEW Service

Multiply our opportunities to gather, teach, and equip so that more disciples are sent out to serve God in our community and world.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.”
— Psalm 127:1

Become a sustaining supporter of RENEW

Reaching our goal of completing the RENEW project by May 2026 will require the ongoing support of our community. Fill out our RENEW Commitment Card to prayerfully commit to stepping out in faith and pledge a gift between now and May 2026 to the RENEW Generosity Initiative at Grace Presbyterian.

What your commitment
means to our church

  • 2005: We helped to start a ministry to undergraduate students at Northwestern University (RUF).

  • 2012: A generational opportunity to buy our building in the heart of the North Shore. 

  • 2017: We helped to launch a ministry to international graduate students at Northwestern University (RUF-I). We also installed our first class of elders (local lay leadership).

  • 2019: We began a mid-week discipleship program for children (GraceKids Wednesdays).

  • 2023: We baptized six adults and seventeen children, numbers we hope to continue to grow. We also purchased a home mere steps from Northwestern University as a long term space for ministry and outreach.

Your gift will help us usher in the next chapter in Grace Presbyterian Church’s rich history. Since four families gathered in a living room in 2001, God has allowed us to grow in almost every way imaginable.

RENEW Generosity Initiative FAQ

  • As we have grown, our beautiful building has increasingly hampered our mission: stairs with no lifts for those with mobility issues; flimsy dividers and multiple points of egress for children’s ministry; and a youth group that meets in the church foyer. We believe the time has come for us to renew our building so we can renew and expand our mission.

  • Our proposed plans renovate, expand, and improve our building so that we can support and grow our ministry impact. The plans include making the building accessible to all, no matter their physical ability. We will offer dedicated and secure spaces for children and youth. We will have better circulation, way-finding, and spaces for casual gatherings. The building will have 65% more ministry space for increased discipleship and fellowship opportunities for children, youth, and adults to grow in Christ.

  • All of the funds will be allocated for costs related to the existing building renovation, new building costs, and furnishings. Donations that exceed needs for building construction and renewal will be held in an overall Grace Building Fund to be used for future building renovation.

  • Target date is March 2025 to break ground. We expect 12-18 months of construction.

  • We don’t have those details just yet as we are not in the place of having our construction plan finalized. We are looking to work with the general contractor and architect to have the building process be the least disruptive to our normal schedule of church events

  • The new building addition and renovation cost is $5.5M. We are building 11,000 square feet (SF) of commercial/church space and renovating nearly 9,000 SF. PFA (the architecture firm) and our renovation team experts can confirm that current construction costs for commercial buildings with similar code requirements as the church are ranging from $500-$750/SF in construction costs. According to Redfin, the median sales price per square foot for residences in Winnetka is $509/SF. Multiply that by the total square footage for the addition (11,000) and the total would be $5,599,000. That does not include the cost of 9,000 SF of renovations, nor does it account for two new parking lots.

  • We are asking all who call GPC home to fill out a Commitment Card. This is a written commitment that allows the leadership to best plan on what to anticipate will be given toward RENEW and the timing of the gifts. Please know that it is not a legally or morally binding document. We know that you may encounter unforeseen circumstances that will increase or decrease your ability to give.

  • Our finances are annually reviewed by a CPA firm/third party. Additionally, our bulletin has a monthly high level budget summary, once a quarter the elders have started sending out a more detailed financial update, and twice a year we have a congregational meeting with even more financial detail available. We have built a reputation for trustworthiness in our financial dealings and take that very seriously.