A 3 Year Capital Campaign

“For everything there is a season, and a time
for every matter under heaven.”

—Ecclesiastes 3:1

Why is the time for a

capital campaign now?

Christmas Eve 1994 was the time to open the H Street Campus, to reach farther East than ever before, to build out the new campus, and to take a great leap of faith, moving to the new location.

More than 30 years later, it is time to retire the debt on that new venture so that we can step into a new season of ministry together. Now is the time to release the debt, so that every dollar ahead can be devoted fully to ministry—reaching, welcoming, and transforming lives for Christ.

We believe now is the time, because momentum for the future is strong. When you’re ready to launch something great—momentum matters.

In the last several years, our congregation has faced historic challenges—each time, our faith, creativity, and commitment have turned obstacles into opportunities for growth.
For us, COVID turned out to be a SEASON of growth: more prayer groups, more Bible Studies, more LIFE Groups, more mission outreach, and more financial giving. We grew our sense of purpose and connection.
In the last two years, we have sent more children to camp, teens to camp, and teen counselors to work at camp than any other church in our Conference. We had 60 college students apply to serve in our internship program last year (we can only accept 5). We had more teens and college students attend the Mexico Mission Trip in 2025 than ever before and numbers for `26 are already surpassing these record `25 numbers. This is a SEASON of exploding numbers of young people at FUMCCV.
When the United Methodist Church faced separation over LGBTQ inclusion, FUMCCV stood firm in our long-held value of welcoming all people, and this turned into a SEASON of growing our church family. Though we lost a few, we gained many more who are grateful to find a fully inclusive church family in their own community.
We won’t lie: there were times in the last five years when we thought our Preschool would be a casualty of these difficulties as well. We fought hard to keep our doors open, we extended our license to serve new populations, strengthened our administration, and remained faithful to our mission. Now, we find ourselves growing month over month, operating in the black, and welcoming new families every week. It’s a SEASON of growth.
Just seven miles from the busiest border crossing in the nation, we have witnessed humanitarian crises firsthand—more than once. Some would argue that “those” people just need to go home. Our conviction is different: no matter who they are or where they come from, they are in our backyard—and they are suffering. In response, we have increased our work with local food pantries, deepened our involvement with Border Church, opened an asylum shelter, and supported nonprofit legal assistance agencies. Through it all, we have seen a SEASON of welcoming the people who needed it most.

See Our Brochure

**Faith Found Here:**

Real People, Real Stories

These are the stories that remind us why this matters. In this video series, real people from our community share how their lives were transformed right here at First UMC of Chula Vista. Watch their stories and see what God has been doing in our community, and what becomes possible when we step into this next season together.

Watch Real Stories Now

The next season

Our current $1.2 million loan dates back to the final construction completed in 2005, adding the Discovery Center, Youth Room, and additional Preschool classrooms. This debt adds over $150,000 to our annual budget and will only grow in the coming years.

To prepare for the future, our Leadership Council and staff are launching a Capital Campaign to fully retire this debt. We are partnering with Horizons Stewardship under the guidance of Senior Vice President Richard Rogers.

Public Campaign Launch: Spring 2026

Campaign Goal: Raise $1.2 Million to completely eliminate the debt thereby leaving every dollar of the future for mission & ministry.

Loan Overview + Key Facts

If we can eliminate the debt in this season,

imagine the next season at FUMCCV.

Expanded age-level ministries for every age.
- Young people love FUMCCV; help us make more opportunities for them to grow in faith.

Expanded staffing.
- More can get done when we’re not just a skeleton crew on a skeleton budget.

Expanded opportunities for outreach.
- That allow us to reach more people with the message that they, too, are welcome and valued at FUMCCV.

Expanded worship opportunities.
- Imagine an alternative to Sunday morning.

Expanded eastward ministry
- We moved to the H Street in 1994, envisioning ministry to the eastern flank of Chula Vista. Over the last 30 years, millions of people have moved east and south of our campus.
- Currently, there are no Methodist, Mainline Protestant, or Progressive faith communities serving all those new residents. Imagine a season in which that becomes our mission field.