In 1969, Associate Pastor Jim Forstrom came to First Free with lots of ideas, including expanding the church’s vacation Bible school into something new. He saw something in Jim Rosene, then a 16-year-old high school student, and asked him if he’d like to help. “I...
The world looked a lot different in 1989. The Berlin Wall was about to fall. The Cosby Show was the top-rated TV program. General Motors was America’s largest corporation. Gasoline cost $1 a gallon. That year, Patti Clauson got a phone call from a friend at church,...
Two upcoming opportunities at First Free are aimed at adoptive families and those considering adoption or foster parenting. Wednesday Conversation Next Wednesday, March 29, Toni Rowley will lead the Wednesday Conversation by telling her family’s story. She and her...
In a neighborhood where need is always visible and hope isn’t, a former factory contains a thriving ministry for at-risk kids. Located at the corner of Seventh Street and 13th Avenue, Rock House Kids is a Bible-based program for children and teens. It runs four...
Hello, my beautiful girl, I cooed to my baby daughter as I picked her up out of her carseat. Then, out of nowhere, someone quipped, You don’t want to tell her that too often or she’ll get a big head. Wait…what? I thought as a record audibly screeched in my head. ...
Every child has a story. For hundreds of children in the Rockford area, that story may be filled with the abandonment, loneliness and shame that comes from having a mom or dad in prison. First Free Rockford is hoping to share the love of Christ with 70 children who...
