A new church is planning to build a community center on its 34 acres in Buxton.

The EastPointe Christian Church, which now holds services at the Marriott in South Portland, envisions a campus with soccer fields, basketball courts and a gym on its land at 502 Portland Road at the intersection with Route 22 in Buxton. “We want to do something to contribute to the community. That’s the dream,” said Rev. Scott Taube.

The church uses the existing farmhouse on the property as an office and hopes to build within three years. Taube said church officials talked with many Buxton residents at the town’s recent community day and they received positive reactions to their plans.

Beth Taube, the pastor’s wife, said a building wouldn’t likely be a traditional church structure. She said they could put up chairs in a multi-purpose building, which could include a gym, for services on Sundays. The building would be available for use by the Buxton community during the week.

The church bought the Buxton property in January. Beth said future plans could include a coffee shop and a bookstore.

She said 25,000 cars a day pass by their Buxton property. “It’s a great location with a lot of traffic,” she said.

The church began in March last year. Taube and his wife, who have been married 21 years, started the church with two other couples, who relocated to Maine from Ohio. The six people came with 15 children. They moved here after being contacted by a church-planting group based in Manchester, N.H. “They called us to pray about coming here,” said Taube, who pastored in Ohio for 20 years.

They believe Maine is their calling and plan to stay. “We’re here for the duration,” Taube said.

At first, they held services in a former movie theater across the street from the Maine Mall. EastPointe is a non-denominational church and refers to its services as “celebrations.”

To raise awareness of their new church, they sent out three mailings with a total of 200,000 postcards to residents of Greater Portland. It got results with 220 people showing up for their first service. Taube said 85 percent of them came as a result of the mailings, which cost $30,000. The church has grown to 270 members.

Taube sees their Buxton site as the hub of the ministry. The church would have various Sunday meeting points. Looking at a multi-site approach to the ministry, they’re also thinking about buying a building on Route 1 in South Portland near the Scarborough town line. “It’s thinking outside the box,” Taube said.

The multi-site approach, he said, is a growing trend, placing the church in the backyards of people. “It’s not the mega church on the hill,” Taube said.

He said they were changing with the times, but their message hasn’t changed. “The messages are Bible-focused that people can apply to their lives,” he said.

Taube said the church stresses a relationship with God and one another. The church logo is “Real people, real God, real simple.”

“People are looking for something authentic and people who are real,” he said.

Small groups of parishioners meet in homes during the week. On Sundays, some parishioners travel from as far away as Gardiner, Denmark and Kennebunk to attend services. “We try to have upbeat services. It’s very casual,” Beth Taube said.

Services attract a broad range of ages. Church member Mark Adkison of Gorham said the church has organized youth activities, which includes camping trips. “It’s taking off. It’s fun to see something grow,” Adkison said.

Adkison’s wife, Lisa, said they try to direct the youth in a Biblical way, providing a support system for youth. The church is taking its young people to an upcoming youth conference in Pennsylvania. “We try to keep them busy so they’re too tired to get in trouble,” she said with a smile.

Church members are taking an active role in the community. The church youth pastor, Jerry Snavely, is leading the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Gorham High School.

The church sponsored a “family funfest” carnival for local children at five locations in local communities this week. They had one each in Gorham, Westbrook, South Portland and Portland earlier this week with another today, July 27, at Big 20 Bowling in Scarborough.

The funfests are free and the church gave away cold drinks, hot dogs and popcorn. A Sunday school class from the Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Ky., supported EastPointe in providing the funfests. It sent people and trucks loaded with tents and children’s Bible-based games. “They came to encourage us,” Beth Taube said.

The church plans to continue reaching out to communities. “These events are what we intend to do in the future,” the pastor said about the funfests.

Church services for adults are at 9 and 10:30 a.m. on Sundays at the Sable Oaks Marriott off Running Hill Road in South Portland. For more information, call the church office at 929-3966.

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Rev. Scott and Beth Taube of EastPointe Christian Church in Buxton.

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