Wayne “Coach” Gordon is the founding pastor of Lawndale Community Church and Chairman/President of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA). CCDA is a network of individuals and ministries nationwide who engage in Christian community development efforts.
In 1975 Wayne moved to North Lawndale located on Chicago’s Westside. At that time, North Lawndale was the 15th poorest neighborhood in the U.S. He was a teacher and coach at Farragut High School, also located in North Lawndale.
In over 37 years of ministry “Coach,” as he is affectionately known, has played a key role in numerous community development initiatives.
He is one of the founders of the Lawndale Christian Health Center, a healthcare ministry that sees over 150,000 patients per year.
Wayne Gordon is a graduate of Wheaton College and Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. He received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary.
In 2011 Gordon received the prestigious William Wilberforce Award for his work to bring community to places with social and racial struggles.
Here’s how Gordon and his ministry are described in Real Hope in Chicago.
When Wayne Gordon and his wife started a Bible study for high school kids in North Lawndale, Chicago, people warned them that a white couple moving into a black neighborhood as a recipe for disaster. That was twenty-five years ago. Today, what began as the Gordons’ seedling Bible study has become the Lawndale Community Church. It has a staff of 150, has renovated more than 100 local apartments, has helped more than 50 young people graduate from college, runs a medical clinic that treated 50,000 patients in 1994, and has become a vital part of rebuilding an inner-city neighborhood into a community of faith and hope. Real Hope in Chicago is Wayne Gordon’s inspiring account of how people, white and black, rich and poor, old and young, worked together to transform a decaying neighborhood into a place where love is lived out in practical and miraculous ways. It offers an exciting model for interracial cooperation, urban-suburban church partnering–and real hope for the inner cities of our nation.
Gordon will be joining us in April 21-23 as one of the featured speakers at this year’s Annual Gathering.
Check out this video to get a taste of what you’ll hear from Coach.
