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EAGLE POINT Eagle Point church meets $1 million fundraising goal Money will help pay for expansion Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 18, 2015 at 7:25 PM By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 18, 2015 at 7:25 PM » Social News EAGLE POINT — Four months after announcing they were a mere $800,000 shy of a $1 million fundraising goal for construction of a new sanctuary, members of the Eagle Point Community Bible Church are declaring a miracle. The century-old congregation with a history of pulling off construction and expansions just as its building was about to burst at the seams will increase seating capacity from 300 to 500 with a $2 million expansion. An anonymous donor offered church members a $1 million match last year if they could raise the same amount within 12 months. Inching their way toward just $200,000 raised by late November, the church appealed to the community in hopes of meeting their March 31 deadline. Church pastor Dick Bull, who last week announced the church had, in fact, surpassed its goal by $35,000, said last  fall church leaders were so confident about meeting their fundraising goal that a contractor had been selected and building plans had been drawn up. Having raised only $435,000 by the end of February, the church and surrounding community raised more than the rest of the $1 million in the last few weeks of effort. "It seemed like a big goal to raise all of it but we just got together and prayed and asked the Lord if he wanted us to do this and if he would provide the money. We did all the things churches do — garage sales and bake sales; people made quilts," Bull said. "The people in this church really did sacrificially give. It almost didn't look like we were going to make it until the last few weeks. The due date we had to have a million dollars raised by was March 31. I think of the story of Jesus multiplying the five loaves and the two fish. We just prayed he would multiply our little into a lot." Bull said expansion couldn't happen soon enough. Since he arrived in the late 1970s, church membership has risen from about 55 members to over 300. Space is so tight that the church offers services in nearby locations to fit everyone in. A popular youth program on Wednesday nights finds the church using two nearby school gymnasiums to accommodate attendance. "We actually printed up a sign for our nursery that pretty much said 'no vacancy.' God has blessed us with a lot of young couples in the church," Bull said, noting that the church hopes to break ground within six months. "We just don't have any more room in our facilities. It's really been a God thing that we are out of space and that we raised this money. I guess our problems are good ones." Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected] By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Apr. 18, 2015 at 7:25 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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