Reach Utah

By Karen L. Willoughby

MERIDIAN, Idaho – More churches in Utah and Idaho (rather than from outside the two states) are becoming “sending” churches, Michael Cooper told attendees to UISBC’s recent annual meeting.

“Sending churches are those that “take responsibility for a church plant by sending them and ensuring they get the preparation, coaching and care they need,” according to Send Network Mobilization

“We are starting to see a shift,” Cooper said. “It’s becoming a trend.”

Church planting in Utah and Idaho is booming, with interest building among churches to help start churches and among men hearing a call to plant a church.

Utah

“God is raising up leaders and sending new churches into strategic areas around Utah,” Cooper’s report read, followed by a listing of nine church plants anticipated at this time for 2026.

Those areas are in Tremonton, Saratoga Springs, three in Salt Lake County, two in Utah County, and one each in Davis and Washington counties.

“Short-term teams is a great way for us to mobilize in Utah,” Cooper’s report read. “Will Galkin, the Send City Missionary for Salt Lake, and the Gospel Family of Churches use Plant Camp to do that.”

Plant Camp this year involved 29 churches and one college ministry – 483 participants – in serving nine churches.

Bobby Wood oversees the GenSend program, an 8-week summer thrust that includes college students from across the nation.

About 650 Plant Camp and GenSend participants distributed 43,000 door hangers, washed 220 cars, handed out 8,000 water bottles, handed out 1,500 surveys, helped with 250 camps and carnivals as they reached out to 140,650 people, an average of 217 people each.

Idaho

This year brought six church plants and churches that decided to affiliate with UISBC. Two Idaho men attended NAMB’s assessment retreat; they anticipate planting in 2026.

“It is exciting to share that next spring, 2026, I already have five planter candidates,” reported Richard Dugger, the Idaho church planter catalyst. One of them, Cameron Warner, is being sent by The Falls Church in Ammon. It’s to be The Falls Church’s first time to be a sending church.

“The Church Planter Residency Program continues to expand across southern Idaho,” Dugger continued, heaping praise upon Mike Palmer for his multiple efforts, among which are leading two churches, sponsoring a “Preachers’ School,” installing a year-long internship at Salmon Valley Baptist Church, and coordinating Reach Idaho. Visit the Reach Idaho website to learn more about Reach Idaho and how your churches and leaders can partner with them to expand their reach through local church planting.

Clint Henry, pastor of Central Valley Baptist Church in Meridian, Idaho, is a church-based catalyst, Dugger reported. “His expertise and commitment to seeing Treasure Valley have more gospel-centered, Bible preaching and Bible teaching new churches is inspiring.”

Henry hosts Idaho’s new Church Planting Residency Program in Spanish, an arm of Send Network En Espanol, which has seven students and two auditors. The church also hosts a new Hispanic church plant meeting at Central Valley.     

Three new church plants have begun since the 2024 annual meeting, for a total of five plants in Idaho. Three potential planters were assessed in September; four more are to be assessed next Spring.

Dugger learned while on a “friend-raising” trip the week before the annual meeting that his (and probably others) position with NAMB was eliminated in a restructure.