Mt. Zion Baptist Church officially broke ground on its highly anticipated MTZ Family Life Center as it looks to bolster and expand its programs to serve the community.
On Aug. 13, community members gathered at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 2019 Fisher St., in support of the planned MTZ Family Life Center. The $8.8 million facility will support and expand several programs operated by the MTZ Charitable Organization, the nonprofit charitable arm of Mt. Zion Baptist Church, as the church responds to increasing community needs. The new facility will replace Mt. Zion’s historic wing that faces Fisher Street.
“In 1960, a group of people jumped out on faith to build this building we’re in right now. And on Tuesday night, we came and we gathered in this space one last time for a testimony and prayer service,” said Rev. Marcus Allen, senior pastor of Mt. Zion. “I listened to people share stories about what happened within these walls, heard stories of how people’s lives were changed. How they found hope in the time they needed it most.”
The building was first constructed in 1950 by Mt. Zion’s Rev. Joe Dawson after the church was displaced by the University of Wisconsin from its West Johnson Street home.
It was expanded upon in the 1960s with hopes for a project like the MTZ Family Life Center, but did not find the support to pursue the project until 2008. However, economic conditions around that time caused it to take a back seat until recently.
“The demolishing of this building is not a destruction of a legacy. It’s built on top of a foundation that has already been set for us,” Rev. Allen said. “Many, many years ago, there was a conviction that this church had a responsibility to serve this community beyond Sunday morning, and over the years, that conviction grew to what we now know as MTZ Charitable Organization.”
The building houses many of MTZ Charitable’s programs. Programs include its Transforming and Reaching Our Youth program, support for young adults aging out of youth services, an academic learning center, career services, mental health services in partnership with Anesis Family Therapy, family stabilization services workshops, a food pantry housed in the home to the right of the old building, and a collaborative space of organizations.
Increased community need has steadily outpaced Mt. Zion’s ability to meet it with current space. For instance, its food pantry has seen a sharp increase in use since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“COVID did not create the disparities in our community. It exposed them,” Rev. Allen said. “COVID also forced us to look at ourselves. We were doing important work, but our facility was no longer adequate for the people in which we were serving.”
Its academic learning center, which was in the basement of the old wing, had to be moved to the relatively newer half of Mt. Zion, Rev. Allen likes to call that side of the building, due to health hazards and flooding. The church had the option to pay to fix the academic learning center, but to replace the floor alone would cost $50-75,000. It opted to wait since the new MTZ Family Life Center was in the works.
(Photo by Omar Waheed)
The old wing was still in use for some of the programs, but many had to be placed in the newer half. That area has become increasingly cramped as it still pushes to meet the needs of the community.
“We simply outgrew this space, so we made a decision. If we’re going to expand our impact, we had to expand our capacity. That is what this Family Life Center represents,” Rev. Allen said.
The project has received broad support from the city, county, other organizations and the community. The $8.8 million project has raised more than half of its goal, with $4.9 million secured to date. Mt. Zion is seeking to build the MTZ Family Life Center debt-free through continued support from the community.
Dane County has given $1.5 million for the MTZ Family Life Center. County Executive Melissa Agard said the investment, which was done by her predecessor, is for more than just a place; it’s for the community and future.
“Mt. Zion has long been trusted as a presence in our community, a place that we come when we hurt, a place we come when we are confused and a place we come when we need to celebrate,” Agard said. “This family center is going to build upon that legacy. It is going to create more opportunities for us to come together.”
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway called the MTZ Family Life Center another part of the “Renaissance here in South Madison.” She added that the sweeping revitalization and investment in the South Side is a renaissance that is long overdue.
“I think one of the most powerful things about this project, this amazing Family Life Center that’s going to be right where we are right now, is the message that it sends to our young people because this building, this new building is saying to our young people that Madison believes in them, and that we are collectively investing in them,” Rhodes-Conway said. “There’s a lot of nice new buildings around here, and it’s not the buildings that are nice. It’s what’s happening inside of them.”
Rhodes-Conway also announced that the City of Madison will give MTZ Family Center a community facilities funding grant.
