Our History
Hillside has a long history of being a community of people who love God, love their city and desire to be a church that is relevant with an outward focus where all are welcomed.
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1979
Launch
A small group of faithful people from Pomona First Baptist (now Purpose Church) had a vision to start a church in the new community of of Rancho Cucamonga. They started meeting at Chaffey College. The founders stated, "It was a faith thing."
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1980
First Pastor
Dave Burns was called to be the Senior Pastor. He often stated, "We want to be in over our heads."
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1984
Land Acquired
The founding members secured 10 acres of dirt and granite at 5354 Haven Ave. Moving to the Rancho property gave a great sense of permanence to the congregation.
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1994
Sanctuary Built
The Community Center (first sanctuary) was built after meeting in modular buildings. One leader prayed, "God wear this building out for your glory!" and God answered the prayer.
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1999
Community Outreach
The Soap Box Derby gave a glimpse of the potential impact of Hillside of our community as over 10,000 people attended. "Our church must be about reaching out to those who are not yet here" it was said.
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2004
Our Finest Hour
Launched Our Finest Hour, a faith-filled journey to seeing God do "more." We have always be a church that is "all in" when there is a compelling vision, and dreams for a new building were put in motion.
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2009
New Sanctuary
Our building opened and set the course for a new chapter to reach out cities. One of our favorite quotes from this era was, "The only thing that stays the same is change."
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2012
New Pastor
Pastor Dave Burns retired and and Aaron McRae became the senior pastor of Hillside.
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2016
Rooted
Rooted was introduced to our Hillside community. Since then, thousands of Hillsiders have developed a deeper relationship with God, the church and their purpose. Rooted has continued to influence the lives of our people still to this day.
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2020
Tech Upgrades
After generous donations were given to completely upgrade our video production capabilities, Hillside Online launched with only a three-day notice after having to close in-person gatherings due to the pandemic. Our people had the opportunity to watch and engage with gatherings for the first time on tv's, computer screens, and personal devices in what we referred as Hillside Anywhere.
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2024
45 Years
After celebrating 45 years, our leadership desires to create a future now. Our focus will be on three initiatives as we move through this year and next: Spiritual formation and guiding people to grow deeper in their faith, volunteer and leadership pathways for all who call Hillside home, and the next generation as they carry the mission of Hillside forward.