Leadership Update

We want to be certain you know how deeply we care about Hope City, how important you are as a part of the Willamette family, and how we have compassion and understanding for what is both hard and exciting news for our church. We ask for your support, your prayers, and for your engagement in this season.

Your elders and I, along with all of our staff team, are committed to prayerfully, carefully, and transparently leading through this time of transition. We are available to meet with you, answer questions you may have, and pray with you. You are welcome to contact me at chris@willamette.cc or to contact our elders at elders@willamette.cc and we will respond to you. Additionally, below we want to provide you with answers to questions that may be on your mind.

Thank you for your love for the Beckers and your love for Hope City.

Chris Yarco
Lead Executive

How did you come to the decision to call Brian Becker to WCC?

We truly believe God has been orchestrating a journey for His purposes that started over eight years ago. WCC has been in relationship with Hope City since that time, providing prayer, care, and financial support to help the ministry thrive under the Beckers’ leadership in SE Portland. Over three years ago, through relationship and shared vision, Hope City became part of the Willamette family. In 2018, we adopted Milwaukie Christian Church and they combined with Hope City as one church family. We have walked closely together, and Brian has been part of our senior leadership team.

Jenn Becker also served two years as the Community Life leader for the Willamette campus, and has a love and affection for many of those who call Willamette home and for the WCC staff. Both Brian and Jenn are already deeply woven into the fabric of WCC.

Brian and Jenn have begun transitioning their leadership from the Hope City campus to the Willamette campus. We are maintaining our shared leadership model and teaching rotation, however, so Brian’s leadership will continue to impact the Hope City campus and he will still be seen teaching across our campuses on some Sundays. In the meantime, we've begun our search for a new lead pastor to serve Hope City as its primary communicator and leader of ministry.

While we did not anticipate this, our elders and senior team began seeking and praying for clarity, conviction, and peace in the way forward, and we unanimously believe that this is the right decision. Simultaneously, Brian and Jenn unequivocally believe in this call for their lives, the life of Hope City, and the life of WCC.

What about Hope City?

You are a huge part our family, and as a thriving church that serves the Milwaukie and SE Portland communities incredibly well, we are right with you.

We have begun the search for the Lead Pastor to serve Hope City and the Beckers will be a large part of making the decision of who serves with you. That search will include a careful process of meeting with leaders and prayerfully and carefully determining who is the right person to invite to join the ministry.

In the meantime, with the support of other staff from across our campuses, Russ, Seth and Beka, Sarah, Chrissy and Tom Vice will be providing leadership, encouragement, and direction for the needs of ministry at Hope City.

How is the staff at HCC?

We have an incredible staff team. As you can imagine, the staff is experiencing a similar range of emotions as you may be, from sadness at not being able to work day to day with Brian and Jenn to a level of uncertainty and expectation for what the future will look and feel like.

They have been resounding in their support for Brian and Jenn, and their trust for who is to join them and lead in the future. They are very important to us and we will continue to seek to care well for and steward them and their families as they seek to care and steward their responsibilities for you and our church.

When are we meeting for live, in-person worship and teaching on Sundays?

We are looking forward to both online and in-person live worship and leader equipping starting Sunday, February 21st at 10:00 am. For our in-person gatherings, please register each week. You will find a link to register for in-person services on our home page once registration opens a week before the first in-person service on February 21st.

After taking a short break to vacation with family, Brian will continue to teach and preach at our Hope City campus online, and Tom Vice will be supporting our live, in-person gatherings each weekend.

Anything else I should know?