First Covenant Church of Oakland is not only the longest-serving church partner of Children Rising. We were born out of a pilot school adoption program within FCC. 

Randy Roth, the former senior pastor, heard a message from the then-superintendent of Oakland Unified School District: “We need you and your congregations to adopt a neighborhood school!” Randy took the challenge to heart and, with a leap of faith, moved into the uncharted waters of serving children in our neighborhood schools.

Since that moment in 2001, Children Rising and FCC have shared a special relationship. “Our church has a vision of building up people, breaking down barriers, and being a light for the city of Oakland. This partnership helps us break down barriers to the flourishing of children’s lives, ways that we can build up each child and their families, and moves us toward showing Christ’s light in the larger scope of the city,” Pastor Marco Ambriz shared.

Children Rising creates meaningful opportunities for members of the congregation to go out into the community and put faith into action in their daily lives, and the congregation has responded! “By partnering with Children Rising and investing in children and their success, FCC is able to provide a connection so that people can grow in their faith and put it into practice.”

Marco reflects on Jeremiah 29:7, a foundational scripture for Children Rising that imagines the  health, welfare, and prosperity of the community. “This scripture has provided a framework for the members of FCC to grasp the reality of proximity and solidarity with the city in which we exist. We believe that the holistic success of an individual—a precious child—will impact the flourishing of communities in the wider city and has the potential to exponentially create transformation in ways that were once unimaginable.”