For more than 50 years, the Council of Churches of the Ozarks (CCO) has been serving people in need — with programs housed in different buildings throughout Springfield.
Crosslines, the food pantry, was on the corner of Glenstone Avenue and Chestnut, as was the administration building and the One Stop (for early childhood programs) building, for example. The adult daycare program was located on Kearney Street and the Ambassadors for Children program was on Battlefield Road.
Thanks to the Levell Up Capital Campaign (named after CCO’s founder, the late Rev. Dorsey Levell) and funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, the Council of Church’s 10 programs are now all housed in a 60,000 square foot headquarters building at 3055 E. Division St.
The building is a former SRC Holdings warehouse which has been renovated and expanded to meet CCO’s needs.
Staff moved into their new digs in February.
“The first week I had team members introducing themselves to each other,” said CEO Jaimie Trussell. “They had worked together for years but didn’t know each other.
“We are kind of like the biggest, messiest Brady Bunch you’ve ever met,” she added, laughing. “We have 40 new step-siblings that are all in one house, trying to figure out who does what and when.”
The public is invited to tour the new facility at 3055 E. Division St. following a ribbon cutting ceremony at 2 p.m. Wednesday. Springfield Mayor Ken McClure and representatives from Greene County will be on hand to present proclamations celebrating the new facility.
The headquarters increases CCO’s distribution and warehouse space by five times. The location is along a city bus route and close to Highway 65, which makes it easier for those in need who may not have transportation.
And by bringing all of CCO’s programs under one roof, clients can access multiple services during a single visit rather than having to find transportation to different locations.
Clients who come to CCO to get food from Crosslines, for example, can access other CCO services and programs like the Ambassadors for Children or Connections Handyman Service — programs they might not have even known about.
“If you’ve ever been to the Department of Motor Vehicles and you have the wrong piece of paper or you forgot one thing, for most of us it’s very annoying, very inconvenient,” Trussell said. “But we can go home, get the right piece of paper, take another half hour off work, and come back to the DMV.
“For a family in crisis, getting to the wrong door on the wrong day for the wrong program after you’ve asked someone to watch your kids, you’ve taken two bus rides and you’ve taken a day off work, it’s devastating,” she said. “So if a family showed up at the Ambassadors for Children program looking for Crosslines food pantry, or they showed up at the administrative headquarters for Safe to Sleep shelter, it was maddening. For someone at their breaking point, it was just devastating.”
(Safe to Sleep is CCO’s overnight shelter for homeless women. The shelter will continue to be housed inside a partner church, but the Safe to Sleep administration team now has an office at the new headquarters.)
Deb Stratman, a longtime regular volunteer for the Council of Churches, said having all the services and programs at one location makes a big difference for clients, as well as the volunteers.
“Our new headquarters really supports how we serve guests with calm and comfort, help and hope,” Stratman wrote in a statement to the Hauxeda. “People come to our front doors sometimes not knowing what to expect, but they all leave with a smile.
“The flow of the new building, combined with the thoughtful details for those we serve, truly makes a space of dignity and hope,” she continued. “People know that when they come to the Council, they’re served well and that our guidelines are held together by grace.”
Learn more about Council of Churches of the Ozarks programs and how to get involved as a volunteer by visiting their website.
