Our Staff

Lead Pastor: Steven Fisher. Contact – steven@branchlanc.org

Associate Pastor: Arlin Riehl. Contact – arlin@branchlanc.org

Worship Pastor: Crystal Fisher. Contact – crystal@branchlanc.org

Worship Director: Naomi Riehl. Contact – naomi@branchlanc.org

Kids Ministry Director: Danicka Martin. Contact – danicka@branchlanc.org

AVL Director: John Stoltzfus. Contact – john@branchlanc.org

Administrator: Lena Ramos. Contact – lena@branchlanc.org

Our Elders

Click this link to learn more about our elders and the government structure of our church.

Our Beliefs

Click this link to view our statement of faith.

Our Story

In 2015, a small group of young adults began to meet in a basement every Wednesday night to pray for revival. Within a few months, the little prayer meeting doubled and then tripled in size and soon became known as the Upper Room. Over the next few years, we continued to gather weekly to pray but without pursuing additional vision. By the spring of 2017, the Upper Room no longer met weekly although we still gathered frequently for fellowship and community.

In the summer of 2017, Steven and Crystal Fisher felt led to once again begin hosting a weekly prayer meeting. At that time a core team consisting of Steven and Crystal Fisher, Dave Smucker, and Arlin Riehl was established to bring leadership to the meetings. In the spring of 2018, we sensed that He was calling us to press “pause” once again. With a team of 15-20 people, we began to ask what God desired of us as a community. It was during this time of searching that God began to bring clarity and direction for next steps.

In October of 2018, we launched Ministry Nights, which began as a monthly gathering focused on encountering the Lord and hosting His Presence. It was also during this time that we changed our name to Branch Community. We were able to develop a collaborative relationship with Ridgeview Mennonite Church that summer and we started renting space from them, giving us the chance to expand into a dedicated area with an office, kitchen, and prayer room.

It became clear to us in the summer of 2019 that God was leading us to establish Branch Community as a local church body. In the fall of 2019, we began to lay the groundwork for planting the church. On March 15th, 2020, we launched Branch Community as a local church with 110 people in attendance. Enthusiasm was high as the Lord encountered our hearts that first Sunday night. It was that very week that the reality of Covid-19 hit and smashed our carefully laid plans! The following months were challenging but we pressed on despite the pandemic and the turmoil that followed. We now look back on 2020 as the year that God planted us for such a time as this. Our heart cry is that we could walk in the anointing of Isaiah 61, that we might “be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.” To Him be the glory!