The 6th Avenue Project

The most common request we get from people living in the community is, “Do you have a home that my family can rent?”. This is a major shift and a shift that cannot be overlooked. For the first 8 years of living and working in the neighborhood, the most common statement was, “If my family is going to have a chance of ‘making it’, we have to get out of North Highland.”. Highland Community Church and Truth Spring have labored intensely for the last 16 years to change that. We have worked to make North Highland a refuge for the poor and powerless. A place where they can come and have the opportunity to thrive, not just survive. A place where they can be developed. A place where they can find hope. That is beginning to happen! Hope is rising from the ashes.

In the last year, Truth Spring has purchased 12 properties and/or lots on 6th Avenue. 12 properties that desperately need to be renovated and/or have houses built on them, so that we can provide quality, affordable housing to the families of North Highland. 6th Avenue is one of the darkest streets in the neighborhood for drug use, prostitution, violence and a general sense of hopelessness. Truth Spring desires to reclaim this street for the glory of God and the good of our neighbor. However, this is a project that is bigger than Truth Spring. Therefore, we are calling out to the body of Christ to help us! Help us provide a refuge to children who need a safe and quality home. Help us provide a refuge to families who want the opportunity to remain in North Highland and be developed.

What would it look like for the body of Christ to come together, putting all differences aside, and instead putting all of our resources, talents, and abilities together for the good of a forgotten people? This would be a powerful message spoken to the people of the North Highland community regarding the unique equipping and empowering God has given to The Church to go into the waste, desolate places of our city and bring the hope, life, and light of Christ.

Please consider having your church partner with us on this endeavor. Here is the plan we have created for 6th avenue:

• From January 2022 - October 2022, everyone that is willing to partner with us begins to come to together once a month to pray and to plan.

• In the book of Acts, it says of the early Church, that there was not a needy person among them because everyone gave to the apostles so that each person’s basic needs were met (paraphrased). Truth Spring wants to reignite that type of Christian living and giving. In light of that, we are asking churches in Columbus to combine their resources (time, talent, and treasure) for the overall good of the North Highland people.

  • Time - each church will commit to a portion of time (one weekend, several weekends, one full week, etc.) for a construction team from their church to come to 6th avenue in order to help build/renovate a home.

  • Talent - we are asking each church to find individuals within their congregations who have a talent for building/construction. We need builders, plumbers, electricians, sheet rockers, framers, painters etc. Pretty much any skill that fits in the world of construction/rehab/design! If you don’t have that specific talent, and still want to be part of this project, we’ll take you to! Come sweep, pick up nails, get water for folks, and any other thing necessary to serve!

  • Treasure - each church will decide on an amount that they will contribute towards renovating/building a home on 6th avenue

• The kick-off to the 6th Avenue Project was a banquet (Luke 14:16-23). On Sunday, October 23rd 2022, at 5:30pm Truth Spring lined the center of 6th avenue with tables and extended an invitation to the people of North Highland, along with our partnering churches, to come dine with us. This was an evening filled with prayer and praise as we dedicated the North Highland neighborhood to the glory of God.

• Building of new homes began in November 2022. Throughout the Winter of 2022 and into the Spring of 2023, based on your churches availability, you will send a team from your church to 6th avenue where we work together to renovate/and or build houses on that street.

Our prayer is that this will lead to both revival and revitalization within the North Highland community! If you would like to be involved with the 6th avenue project, please fill out the form below and tell us how you would like to partner with us.