Coffee Break Past to Present

This December, current Coffee Break Program Manager Sam Huizenga met with Former Founder and Director, Neva Evenhouse, who began the ministry in 1970. The two discussed the beginning of Coffee Break and how far it has come.

Neva Evenhouse sat with Sam Huizenga at her table, sipping coffee as many members do during Coffee Break small groups, before beginning her story.

"We started a new church, Peace Church, in South Holland," reminisced Neva Evenhouse. "The goal for all of us was to be a witness in that community."

Coffee Break began in South Holland, IL, a then-new suburb of Chicago. A group of ten women began praying together trying to discern how to reach out to their community. They began a Story Hour time for children which eventually gained ground. One small group of women meeting together soon turned into five small groups. It was not long until other women and churches participated in the new ministry.

"I had to start training some of these other women from our church," said Evenhouse, "Other churches came to me and asked 'What are you doing?' By the end of the year, there were six groups. In three years I was going around the country [training] groups."

Sam Huizenga later explained how much farther Coffee Break has come and where it is going.

"In 2010, we created Global Coffee Break Team," said Huizenga. "Then, in 2017, Global Coffee Break moved in with a new organization Timothy Leadership Training Institute (TLTI), in order to resource a global ministry."

Coffee Break, starting as a small-suburban ministry, has grown into a global ministry that is expected to be translated into languages such as Chinese, Russian, and others. From past to present and into the future Coffee Break continues equipping leaders as they meet with others and discover the Word.