Construction of $5 Million Kenyan Community Church in Kent, Washington Nears Completion
Members of the Kenyan Community International Church (KCIC) are preparing to relocate to their own building in Kent, Washington as its construction nears completion.
The 20,000-square-foot church building is being put up on a five-acre parcel of land off Pacific Highway in Kent and is expected to cost about $5 million when complete.
The church has been renting out a space in Rainier Beach Presbyterian Church in Seattle for 20 years and moving to its own building will eliminate many challenges members face at the current location.
“The other [Seattle] space was a rented space, and we had certain time slots. If we wanted to do anything outside of that, then we had to go and consult with the other congregations. At one point we had three congregations in that building,” Edgar Rurii, the KCI Church building committee chairman told Kent Reporter.
“It’s very difficult to expand service offerings because there are a lot of parts that are moving. But now over here in Kent, it’s very simple.”
Rurii says they expected to move into the building last year but its construction was delayed due to the number of permits needed. The new location is more convenient for a majority of members to attend services.
“Most of our congregation moved from the Seattle area to the suburbs around Federal Way, Kent, Puyallup and Tacoma. It has really been a drive for them to be able to go here [Seattle]. Eighty percent of the congregation is within 20 minutes of the new site. It’s much closer for everybody,” said Ririi.
The new location will offer a perfect venue to hold services, conduct ceremonies, teach Sunday School, and act as a meeting place for community members as well as host events such as birthday parties, baptisms, weddings and graduations. It will also host a daycare, a bookshop, and a gift store.
“Most of our members have Christian backgrounds and Christianity is very vibrant in Africa, especially in Kenya where we come from,” said Joseph Karanja, the Chairman of Mission Ministry at KCI Church.
“So we know that moving to our new location is going to improve the diversity of the people who come to our church. We’re going to try and reach not only Kenyans, but also the general public in America.”
Services at the new building will be held in a mix of languages including English, Kiswahili, and Kikuyu to cater to their multi-ethnic congregation.
Fundraising for the new church building has been entirely from members of the community and congregation.
The church’s leadership is next month expected to close their mortgage and learn how much they need to pay back the bank. They estimate the building will cost around $5 million, and they have already raised over $1 million from the support of church members.