CHURCH ON THE GREEN

It was Pastor Ben E. Leonard's vision for reaching the retirement communities of the Northwest Valley that inspired him to take on the leadership of First Assembly of God of Sun City West in January 1998.  The congregation had been established in 1989 in a former bank building converted to a lovely Spanish-style sanctuary.  As the congregation grew, it added a second morning service and overflowed its space. 

Pastor Leonard's roots are in Iowa and Illinois where he lived on a farm and went through school, graduating in 1957.  In 1960 he entered Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri, earning a B.A. in Bible Ministry.  During his sophomore year in 1962, he met and married Alice Capell in Kansas.  They have three grown children: Julie, Benny Joe, and Jeff, and four grandchildren.  Since Graduation, he has pursued graduate studies in Southern Illinois University and has completed half of his course work for a Masters degree in Bible Studies from AGTS.

After a semester on a basketball scholarship at Southern California College, Costa Mesa, he returned to Illinois where in 1967 he accepted his first pastorate in Crystal Lake.  In the Chicago area he studied Greek and Hebrew at Moody Bible Institute and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.  Subsequently, he pastored churches in Mesa, Arizona, and in Illinois until the move to Sun city West in 1998.

Pastor Leonard's desire is that Church On The Green becomes a viable expression of the love of Christ.  He seeks to effect a revival of Spirit-filled, biblical living which will spill over into the retirement communities.  He is determined to examine every possible method of doing so desiring that the church be effective in worship, evangelism, fellowship, teaching and ministry.  He wants to make a difference for Christ.

It is his prayer that all who come to Church On The Green will find the Lord, grow in grace, and discover a place where they can minister.