A College Park church is funding a free gas giveaway to the public this weekend.
MegaFaith Center will hold a “Gas on God” giveaway event at 1 p.m. Saturday at Chevron gas station, 5110 Old National Highway in College Park.
The church is offering motorists up to $50 per vehicle in free gasoline.
Pastor Jessie L. Simms said the church is funding a total of $10,000 in gasoline for the giveaway event.
“One thing I love to do is give to community,” Simms said.
The event is open to the public at large but MegaFaith Center is holding the event at the gas station on Old National Highway to spotlight and encourage the College Park neighborhood, Simms said.
“We want to make sure we make an impact on Old National Highway and Godby Road,” the pastor said. “It’s the weekend before Thanksgiving. People travel. You never know how this could help.”
“We just want to let people know that we care and bring together the mayor, council and College Park police.”
The pastor said College Park and in particular the Old National Highway/Godby Road neighborhood is dear to his heart. He moved MegaFaith Center from the city of Riverdale to Godby Road in March 2023 because that is what God was calling him to do, he said.
The Old National Highway/Godby Road neighborhood — which is less developed and has fewer amenities than other College Park spaces — is where Simms wanted the church to stand, showing neighbors that they matter and he sees them, he said.
“We chose to put our church on Godby Road because we wanted to go to a place that nobody comes to Simms said, repeating, “We wanted to let people know that we care.”
“I like to go in spaces that we can make a difference. I like to believe that if we can make a difference, we can make an impact. And that’s all we want to do is make an impact.”
The church also held a similar gas giveaway event in Riverdale about two years ago, he added. In College Park, MegaFaith gave away more than 600 backpacks filled with school supplies in August, he said, which cost the church $13,000.
Simms was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at birth when he did not initially take a breath or have a heartbeat.
“I don’t let that stop me,” Simms said of Cerebral Palsy. “I just want to show people that you can do anything you set your mind to.”
I know that there had to be many comments coming in and people are saying thank you and maybe next year I would be one to say thank you because I missed out on this great blessing I did not hear about this until it was all said and done but thank you anyway