Last month, members of Greater Portland Bible Church (GPBC) spent a day at Gooseberry Trails — helping to frame some of the 52 affordable homes rising just steps from the church’s own front door.
As they worked alongside Habitat staff to form walls and install joists for building 14, GPBC members traded stories of the land. Some could remember parking their cars decades ago in the very place they now stood. Others recalled helping at Habitat’s earlier Trillium Court community.
For GPBC, it wasn’t just a volunteer day. It was the latest chapter in a relationship with Habitat Portland Region that stretches back more than a decade — built on the belief that a church’s role in community extends well beyond its own walls.
A dairy farm, a church, and a vision
The story of Gooseberry Trails begins long before the first foundation was poured. In the late 1980s, Greater Portland Bible Church purchased more than 20 acres in SW Portland from the Raz family, who had operated a dairy farm on the property for generations. When the Raz family decided it was time to sell, they wanted to see the land go to a church.
GPBC, which had been meeting at a school and other locations, had been praying for a permanent home. At its peak, the church welcomed a congregation of around a thousand people. Over the years, the property grew to include a youth center and even an 18-hole disc golf course.
But as the congregation’s needs shifted, so did its vision for the land.
A partnership built on shared mission
In 2011, GPBC sold a small parcel to Habitat Portland Region — and Trillium Court, a cluster of permanently affordable homes, was born. The decision reflected a strong alignment of values.
Senior Elder John Brunton, who was involved in the most recent land sale, shared that church leadership saw an opportunity to do something good for the community and liked that Habitat would provide housing for those who weren’t able to qualify through standard channels.
GPBC didn’t stop there. The church established a homework club for Trillium Court residents, opened its weekly food pantry to families, and extended invitations to every community event on its calendar. “As a result,” Brunton says, “we’ve established great relationships with several of the Trillium Court residents.”
When church leadership began looking at the lower portion of their property — a largely unused hillside and parking lot — the conversation with Habitat came naturally. GPBC ultimately sold nearly five acres at a significant discount. That land is now Gooseberry Trails.
A new pastor, a familiar vision
Tyler Michel arrived as GPBC’s lead pastor at the end of 2025, stepping into a project already well underway. He thought it was a perfect fit for the church, which strives to support the people around it. GPBC hosts a weekly food pantry, opens its doors for community gathering, from bagpipe practice to cheer classes.
“Helping is in our DNA,” Michel says. “We want to be a place where people feel welcomed.”
A Portland native who spent 13 years in Whatcom County before returning home, Michel has seen the impact of the city’s housing shortage — including within his own congregation. “I have single moms who are working hard,” he says, “but it’s hard to find a home that fits their income range… Anything we can do to help people get into the (housing) market is going to help them for the rest of their lives. It’s just getting that leap.”
Michel is pursuing a doctorate focused on what he calls “community flourishing” — the idea that a church’s role extends into the economic, social, and physical life of its neighborhood. For him, Gooseberry Trails is a living example of that philosophy. “We had an asset — land — and it went to fill a need,” he says. “It was mutually beneficial… And the idea that we’ll have 52 new families as neighbors is a great thing.”
Michel is already thinking about what comes next. “Whether it’s volunteering or collaborating with Habitat — I think there’s a lot of potential.”
Brunton agrees. When he thinks about the families who will call Gooseberry Trails home, his hopes are straightforward: “That they will feel like they have a neighbor in us that very much cares for their needs.”
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Gooseberry Trails is Habitat Portland Region’s largest community to date, with 52 permanently affordable new homes. Learn more on our Frame a Future page and RSVP to join us for a celebration on September 30!
