Redemption Church Ogden provided a Block Party as a means to take the gospel to their neighbors
Ogden, UT – Redemption Church in Ogden led in festivities related to the recent Back to School Night at Odyssey Elementary School, where God made Himself known.
Nearly 800 people came through the doors, giving us an incredible opportunity to meet families, build relationships, and share Christ’s love in a tangible way.
Brooke Hatfield, who is part of Next Gen collegiate ministries, was able to connect with many families throughout the evening, answering questions, offering encouragement, and helping us strengthen our presence within the OES community.
It was clear that God is opening doors for deeper connections and ongoing ministry in the school.
At the same time, we hosted a Block Party right outside, welcoming around 75 people.
While the turnout wasn’t as large as we had originally hoped, the Lord still used it for His glory. Every person who came provided an opportunity for a meaningful conversation, and we trust that seeds were planted that He will continue to grow.
NextGen leaders and students provided support by providing games and carnival snacks.
We also believe this smaller gathering was a stepping stone, paving the way for future opportunities within Odyssey Elementary.
One of the most beautiful parts of the evening came after the events wrapped up. With the leftover food from the Block Party, we were able to bless our wider community by taking it to the local homeless shelter.
That food went on to feed hundreds of people, reminding us once again that nothing is wasted in God’s Kingdom. He multiplies even the smallest offerings to make a big impact.
Overall, the evening was a powerful reminder that our role is simply to show up faithfully, and God does the rest.
We are excited to see how He continues to work through these new connections, deepen our relationships with Odyssey families, and use our ministry to point people toward the hope we have in Christ.
This event was hosted by Redemption Church in Ogden, and was assisted through financial support through the UISBC and North American Mission Board Evangelism Grant. If you want more information about how your church can reach your community with events partnered with NAMB Grants, please reach out to our UISBC staff.
Students from Charleston Southern University in South Carolina are helping church planters in Northern Utah through a ministry called The Bridge
By UI Connections Staff
Ogden, UT – In January 2025, Redemption Family of Churches began a national partnership with South Carolina Baptists to explore and begin a student internship program where students from NAMB’s GenSend Summer will extend their mission and stay for an entire semester to help church planters sow seeds of the gospel in communities where college students and young adults live, work, and play. In order to make this happen, leaders from the church reached out to Utah Idaho Southern Baptists and we partnered with Redemption to help launch “The Bridge” ministry utilizing State Missions Offering/Mission >>>UI dollars to pilot this project, in partnership with the South Carolina Baptist Convention. Below are two of the stories from student missionaries who have come from Charleston Southern University and planted their lives in Northern Utah to plant seeds of the gospel.
Stories from The Bridge
The month of February has started to pick up with some normal ministry rhythms and the students have already plugged into some great ministry activity. By now, most have found jobs and are starting to build relationships in those jobs. They have also connected to their local churches with half of them connected to Redemption Ogden and the other half at Redemption North Davis in Kaysville. They’ve been given leadership opportunities in a young adult ministry in Ogden. This is where they are connecting many of those they are sharing the Gospel with.
This path month these students have connected with five different individuals that are leaving or have recently left the LDS church and are not yet believers. Leadership school has been an effective way to equip the students for how theology, ecclesiology, hermeneutics, and understanding the Bible affect real life ministry. Redemption Church leader, Casey Swails, has been teaching an evangelism class on Tuesdays and Thursdays which also gives real course credit with Charleston Southern University. The guys have been going through “What It Means to Be Protestant” with Gavin Ortlund working through the distinctive of our faith from a polemic perspective.
Below, the students have written up their reports for the month of February. Thank you all for contributing to this program. Already God has brought fruitfulness to this program. Several current CSU students have reached out asking how they can participate in this program in the future. Please be praying for how we can continue to offer this in 2026. Thank you Utah Idaho Baptists for your giving and care for these students.
COREY WADE
Ministry here has been difficult in a number of ways but so worth it. I’ve been working as a pharmacy technician and only 2 out of 10 of my coworkers aren’t LDS. Of these two, one is less resistant to thinking about religion than another. She told me early on when I was explaining why I moved that Utah doesn’t have enough religious options in her opinion. Her openness to something else being true has been encouraging and my hope is to continue to scatter gospel seeds that land when these kind of conversations come up.
While her openness is encouraging, I’ve also gotten to see the brokenness and anger that the LDS Church causes toward religion in general. A pharmacist from another store filled in at my store one day a few weeks ago, and upon finding out from me why I moved and what my Christian Studies program was like, decided to press in to see why I thought my faith was right and everyone else’s was wrong. He expressed to me why it bothered him that even more kinds of churches were coming to Utah and that he thought religion was for the weak.
Despite the challenge of some discouraging conversations, many relationships being built are great encouragements for us. Our friend, Porter, has been seeking help for how to challenge his girlfriend of 3 years and her family on their LDS beliefs. A few Sundays ago, his girlfriend visited our church for our young adult gathering with him and got to hear the gospel and discuss some implications of it with other young adults in our discussion groups.
A new friend of mine named Nicholas who cheers for the college in town has been sitting down with one of our pastors and I to continue his search for fulfillment after an injury ended his season. We’ve had the opportunity to share with him the kind fulfillment that will only come from Jesus and he’s continuing to press in to hear and understand more about Jesus because of it. Please continue to lift up these relationships in your prayers, as well as the Young Adult ministry at Redemption as a whole. We have a good group of people coming who genuinely need community. Pray that they would find it in the true community of Christ’s church.
KATE SAUNDERS
It’s been roughly 7 weeks since we made the trek from South Carolina to Utah and life here is finally finding a consistent rhythm. I can’t begin to talk about the last month without rejoicing in how kind the Lord has been to provide for me. He has put so many people and ministries in my path that I have grown to love and take such joy in. The church family at Redemption has welcomed me with open arms and allowed me to be involved in so many ministries. These have included weekly young adult meetings and events, Sunday morning serving the church, Weber State campus outreach, and helping with mission teams that come to visit.
Outside of official ministry, Leadership School and Evangelism classes through Redemption Ogden have constituted a continuous pour of information and learning. Please be praying for the churches ministries as we see new ones take shape and existing ones continue to grow. Three weeks ago, I began working part time and have been stewarding relationships and foundations for gospel conversations while trying to be aware of HR rules and limitations. The Lord has been kind to put many questions in people’s minds so that I can directly answer things without getting in trouble.
Please be in prayer as I continue in this workplace that I would have opportunities to share the gospel and love my co-workers well. I am grateful for the several warm and sunny days we have seen recently that show spring is on its way. However, I am thankful for winter sports like snowboarding and indoor pickleball which have consistently provided means to great conversations with people.
Please be in prayer as we stay consistent with our weekly activities and share the gospel with our new friends. I am so thankful to live in Utah and be supported by so many amazing people and organizations! Thank you!
These are just two of the stories shared by students serving GenSend Semester in Northern Utah. They are joined by many more students that are investing their lives to reach college students and young adults in Utah with the gospel. By your gifts to the Mission >>> UI/State Missions Offering, college ministry can be funded now and into the future. Thank you for giving to help reach this important generation. https://uisbc.org/smo
COREY WADE 
KATE SAUNDERS