Vision
Belonging
All people are made in the image of God and are welcome in our community. Each one of us is a unique and essential member belonging to an imperfect community on a journey of embodying God’s unconditional love.
Abundant life in Christ
Being with, following and sharing Jesus is the most abundant way of life together.
God’s dream
God has a restorative dream for all of creation. We want to join God’s redemptive movement in the West Central neighborhood through acts of service, justice, mercy and more.
Belonging Statement
Every human being is fearfully and wonderfully made in God’s image, reflecting the resemblance of God in unique and marvelous ways. Every person ― inclusive of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, economic or immigration status, physical or intellectual ability, education or faith history ― is unconditionally deserving of dignity, belonging, and the fullness of God’s love in our community. Join us as we live communally rooted in the love of God, growing in the way of Jesus.
(Genesis 1:27, Psalm 139:14, Romans 8:38-39)
Pastor Phil would love to grab coffee with you soon and learn more about your story!
Mission
To encounter and share the love of Jesus as we seek to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God together in the West Central neighborhood.
Beliefs
The Apostle’s Creed
We believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
We believe in Jesus Christ,
God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic* Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
*catholic refers to the universal church
Affiliations
The Covenant Church
The Garden is part of the Covenant Church, a multi-ethnic movement of over 800 churches in North America. The Covenant has distilled their theological commitments into six affirmations that allow local churches the freedom to follow Jesus in contextually specific ways while preserving a common identity.
The Covenant affirmations are:
We affirm the centrality of the word of God.
We affirm the necessity of the new birth.
We affirm a commitment to the whole mission of the church.
We affirm the church as a fellowship of believers.
We affirm a conscious dependence on the Holy Spirit.
We affirm the reality of freedom in Christ.
To learn more about the Covenant denomination, click here.
Immanuel Spokane
In the summer of 2021 we planted The Garden from our parent church, Immanuel, a community who’s been worshipping and serving together since 2012. Immanuel is currently located in the Shadle neighborhood.
Immanuel is a purposefully diverse and passionate church community in Spokane that exists to worship God in simplicity and beauty, to extravagantly love all without distinction, and embody in words and actions the Good News of God’s kingdom through Jesus Christ.
To learn more about our parent church, Immanuel, click here.
Parish Collective
Parish Collective is a Christ-following ecumenical network bringing people together across intersections and distance. Our main point of unity lies in learning to be the church in each of our unique neighborhoods. When we connect across places, we find the power of God’s love to be healing and transformative. This means we may not agree on everything, but we have a mutual commitment to love and respect, especially protecting those on the margins of our differences.
To learn more about the Parish Collective, click here.
Staff Team
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Hannah Rae Tjelle
DIRECTOR OF KIDS LIFE
Hannah Rae oversees all things kids life with a degree in theology and a ministry endorsement from Whitworth University. Hannah Rae, her husband Ryan and dog Mia live here in the neighborhood — if you see them out gardening, say hey! Ryan works in the neighborhood for an organization called Side By Side that seeks to create space for people with and without disabilities to experience life together in Christ.
Hannah Rae gets excited about seeing God's Spirit move in people to foster freedom and belonging, seeing diverse people sharing food at the same table, soccer with strangers, gardening with neighbors and ice cream!
You bring so much to the table & I can't wait to hear about it!
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Michael Harris
DIRECTOR OF YOUTH LIFE
Michael graduated from Whitworth University with a B.A. of Theology and since has been serving youth in the Spokane community with a variety of organizations. He lives in the West Central area, but hails from California. He loves sports (ultimate frisbee, soccer, basketball), creating music (mostly hip-hop) and outdoor activities. Over the summer you might find him jumping into the Spokane River with his buddies and in the winter out on the ski slopes with friends and family.
Michael would love to connect with your middle and high school students, and serve them through ministries that are FUN and life-giving. He takes the call to enter the kingdom of heaven like children seriously- what is life without the joy that comes from seeing the world through childlike eyes?
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Michaela Flanders
CO-DIRECTOR OF WORSHIP & ARTS
Michaela and her husband Seth love living in the West Central Neighborhood and are excited to grow their family in the beautiful city of Spokane. She attended WSU and Bellevue College and earned a degree in Diagnostic Ultrasound Technology and currently works at a local OBGYN. Seth is attending WSU and working full time on a doctorate of Environmental Science and Natural Resources. You can find them active in their community on the Centennial trail, on the Spokane River in the summer or enjoying a movie with their neighbors in the front yard. Michaela has several years of experience serving with worship, primarily singing and is responsible for organizing and communicating to the worship team each Sunday. She has always believed in the complexity and importance of worship and its role, honoring and connecting us with God. And she enjoys encouraging others to explore who God is and the endless love God has for them wherever they're at.
Your voice is a joyful sound to God. You matter and I would love to meet and connect with you!
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Taylor Mehl
CO-DIRECTOR OF WORSHIP & ARTS
Taylor is fairly fresh to Spokane after spending 9 years in Ireland (& growing up in San Diego)! Before moving abroad, Taylor spent her 20s travelling with Youth With A Mission (YWAM), leading worship, pouring into student leaders on college campuses, and, randomly, working as a wedding florist. Her time in Ireland started with a few years running a youth club in a little village and ended with 6 years in Dublin, studying Sociology/Social Justice at UCD, working as a Children & Families Pastor, and starting up a non-profit flower business. Taylor is currently an art teacher at an elementary/middle school on the South Hill and is excited (& honored!) to be joining the Garden community!
Taylor is super passionate about approaching worship pastorally—intentionally gathering the people of God and fostering a culture of shared, expressive love and wonder within His presence! She finds it an absolute joy to creatively and practically help “recenter our scattered senses upon the presence of God."
Michaela said it beautifully…Your voice is a joyful sound to God. You matter and I would love to meet and connect with you!
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Phil Moore
PASTOR
Pastor Phil, his wife Nina and their two sons love living in the West Central neighborhood. Nina is a school counselor at a local school.
Phil is passionate about daily love and life with God. He likes to nerd out about the early church and the everyday practices of Jesus. He’s also energized by prayer, nature, art, outer space and Liverpool Football Club.
Phil studied Theology and Speech Communication at Whitworth and also graduated from their Master’s in Theology program. He’s a licensed pastor in the Covenant denomination.
I would love to hear your story and get to know you more. Let’s grab coffee or go for a neighborhood walk!
Volunteer Coordinators
Elon Roe
Technology
Curtis Powell
Leader of Formed in Faith
Seth Flanders
Service Hosting
Sidney Neddenriep
Hospitality
Food Group Hosts
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Upriver Neighborhood
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West Central Neighborhood
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West Central Neighborhood
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Cliff Cannon Neighborhood
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West Central Neighborhood
The Garden Church Board
The Garden board — or “Roots Team” — serves with a collaborative, shepherding leadership style cultivating our community to be “Rooted in the Love of God and grow in the Way of Jesus.” The board meets once a month to pray and plan together.
Chris Connors
Claire Strunk
Emily Anderson
Erica Eizenga
Phil Moore
Ryan Tjelle
Seth Flanders
Stacey Rawson