Pittsburgh Christian Fellowship

Mark 16:15 “Go everywhere and tell the Good News to everyone”. Whether you are an avid follower of the scripture or receive your daily updates via the Bible app, this passage not only describes the Pittsburgh Christian Fellowship, but it is part of their mission! The vision of the church is to teach people to reach their world with the Good News of Jesus Christ while connecting with a community of believers. The church is nicely nested on top of Mount Oliver located on Brownsville road. Their team is also lead by Senior Pastor Chris DeMark who is supported by his wife, Belinda DeMark, and two daughters, Joyus and Faith DeMark. This bunch spends  every day reaching out to others, providing them a safe and welcoming place to worship.

Fellowship reaching the masses

The Pittsburgh Christian Fellowship provides many opportunities to become involved including Sunday Services, events throughout the year and a Podcast featuring none other than Senior Pastor Chris DeMark. Chris became Senior Pastor of the church in 1994 and since has provided ample opportunity for others to join in his mission.

Along with providing masses and summer programs and picnics, the church coordinates and connects individuals who may be struggling by accepting the following fundraising offerings:

• Tithes
• Missions
• Emergency
• Youth
• Children
• Mens
• Womens

Like we said, if you cannot find time for a Sunday mass, simply listen to one of the recorded podcasts and get YA JESUS ON!

Paths crossing at the right time

Belinda is a current employee of Highmark Inc. in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. She noticed an online article that was posted about another employee who frequently provided churches the opportunity to become CPR/First Aid certified. Without hesitation she reached out to Lucas Boyd, at the time also a Highmark Employee. Together, they planned a weekend where leaders in the church and volunteers could receive life saving training in CPR/AED/First Aid.

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One of the biggest reasons why The Pittsburgh Christian Fellowship wanted to get certified was due to the high volume of youngsters who attend on weekends and in the summer. Having all members trained in case of an emergency was a must! B42L (Before It’s Too Late LLC) came in and trained 9 individuals how to properly perform life saving skills. Right place and right time? It is odd to think about it but what would have happened if Belinda did not have the courage or thought to give that article a read?! Now we won’t say that higher intervention had anything to do with the class taking place, but it is very incredible that Belinda decided one day to click an article and found an answer to her problem.

Skills that SAVE LIVES

As every chapter preceded, the group asked questions on how best to attack a multitude of situations. Wanting to ensure each participant was able to respond to just about anything, we can tell you many “what if” scenarios were quickly answered. The group was able to have open discussion and practice their skills with real life walkthroughs. We covered some of the following topics:

• Recognizing and Responding to Emergencies
• Cardiac Emergencies including Cardiac Arrest – CPR
• AED basics and skills
• Choking recognition and skills
• Sudden Illnesses
• First Aid and wrapping a wound skills
• Environmental Emergencies – heat/cold related

In addition to certifying the group in these skills, each member walked away with B42L’s “assurance plan” (life saving tool that refreshes skills used in CPR on the spot). The members of this parish didn’t decide to request a class for compliance reasons or to check a box for safety training. Rather, each member had a deep interest on how they could each be better equipped to serve their community. This type of GOOD FAITH makes it certain that the church and its message is most definitely spreading the word and is doing the right thing, no matter what.

Giving back

The Pittsburgh Christian fellowship gives so much and asks for very little in return. Recently, the church had a roof problem where the damage done has caused leaking and ceiling tiles to deteriorate. The church plans on having designated offerings to raise money to replace the tiles and fix the leaky roof! If you are interested in donating please reach out to Pastor DeMark!

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