Christian City raised $21.3 million, exceeding its $17.2 million fundraising goal to expand early childhood education and housing support for young adults aging out of foster care.
The South Fulton County nonprofit announced Oct. 16 that its Growing with Purpose campaign had surpassed its goal, paving the way for a new early learning center and a threefold expansion of its Thrive Graduate Transition program, which serves young adults ages 18 to 24 who have aged out of foster care or are at risk of homelessness. Enrollment is expected to grow from 17 to 49 participants through renovations to existing campus buildings, construction of seven townhomes and additional support services.
Bob Hope, chair and co-founder of Hope Beckham Espinosa, secretary of Christian City’s Board of Trustees, said the campaign’s success reflects both the need for its services and the community’s confidence in the people leading the effort.
“The need was matched by the people who ask,” Hope said, explaining that donors consider not only an organization’s mission but also the people asking them to contribute. “Donors give to organizations, but they also give based on who approaches them and the trust they have in those individuals and the respect they have for those individuals.”
Launched in 2025, the campaign was Christian City’s first major fundraising effort in more than 20 years. Founded in 1965, the nonprofit serves children, youth and seniors on a nearly 500-acre campus in South Fulton County.
“Reaching and exceeding our campaign goal is an extraordinary milestone for Christian City and a testament to what can happen when a community comes together around a shared purpose,” President and CEO Keith Horton said in the announcement. “Their generosity will allow us to reach more children, strengthen families and create new opportunities for young adults as they build independent lives.”
Hope said he initially underestimated the scale of Christian City’s operations. Visiting the campus helped him understand the range of services it provides and why the organization could attract support from Atlanta’s business and philanthropic communities.
“You get down there and realize it’s 500 acres,” Hope said. “It’s quite an operation, and you can’t help but really want to help.”
Hope helped develop Christian City’s Community Champion Awards, its primary fundraiser, to introduce more Atlanta leaders to the organization. When he first helped assemble a host committee, many people had never heard of Christian City. The event brought business and community leaders to the campus to learn about its work.
That outreach helped connect Hope with people who later assumed larger leadership roles in the campaign. He recalled arranging an introductory coffee meeting between Christian City and Kathy Waller (executive director of the Atlanta Committee for Progress) ,who eventually became a campaign co-chair alongside Millard Choate (founder and chairman of Choate Construction). Ron Canakaris (former Managing Principal, Strategist, and Chairman of Montag & Caldwell) served as honorary chair.
Hope said the campaign committee’s collective reputation helped build donor confidence.
“If you put the entire committee together like that, people look at it and they say, ‘Well, this is where I ought to give,’” Hope said. He compared the combined influence of trusted community leaders to the greater force created when multiple rockets are launched together.
The campaign will fund two major initiatives. The second being the construction of the Ron and Vicki Canakaris Early Learning Center, in partnership with the YMCA of Metro Atlanta, and is expected to begin in the coming months. The center will have five classrooms serving 100 to 120 children from birth through age 4.
For Hope, supporting Christian City is part of a broader commitment to create lasting change. For 30 years, he has led Atlanta business leaders on trips to rural Honduras, where their work has supported schools and medical facilities.
“I often think about what have I done that means really anything?” Hope said. “You want to do some things that have some sort of lasting impact.”
He sees Christian City as an opportunity to make that difference close to home, helping people at different stages of life build stability and independence.
