Our Story
Who We Were
A home church in Springfield, PA — born from 14 years of youth ministry and a conviction that everyone deserves a seat at the table.
How It Began
A Pastor’s Call. A Family’s Yes.
Hope Philly started with Pastor Joe Kim. After years of pastoral ministry in New Jersey and New York, Joe felt a clear and specific call: to plant a church for displaced Christians in the greater Philadelphia area — people who loved God and wanted a real community, but hadn’t found a home.
Joe came to Mike and Megan DeHaven with that vision. Mike and Meg had spent fourteen years serving the youth of Delaware County, and that community of young people — now young adults — was exactly the kind of displaced, hopeful group Joe was describing. Mike and Meg said yes. The young adults said yes. Hope Philly was born.
The Table
From a Coffee Shop to a Living Room
Hope Philly didn’t start in a sanctuary. It started at a table at 5 Points Coffee in Upper Darby — a handful of people with open Bibles and a lot of questions about what church could look like.
As the community grew, the DeHaven home in Springfield became the gathering place. Sunday mornings in the living room. Potlucks that stretched into the afternoon. Late nights when real conversations happened because no one wanted to leave. It was never about a program. It was about making sure that anyone who walked through that door knew: we saved you a seat.
What We Believed
Three Things We Held Onto
These weren’t points in a statement. They were the air we breathed.
You Have a Seat Here
Our tagline was our theology. No one who walked through the door was an afterthought. You were expected. You were wanted. There was a seat with your name on it.
The Church Happens at the Table
We believed communion wasn’t just a ritual — it was the shape of Christian life. Sharing food, sharing space, sharing your actual life with people who would show up for you.
Faithful in the Ordinary
We weren’t trying to build something impressive. We were trying to be faithful in the small things — because we believed the small things were the whole thing.
Our Journey
2021
First Gathering at 5 Points Coffee
A small group gathered at 5 Points Coffee in Upper Darby, PA. Pastor Joe Kim led the first message. Mike and Megan DeHaven and a community of young adults they had walked with for over a decade were finally in the same room with a new name.
2021–22
Moving the Table Home
Sunday gatherings moved from the coffee shop to the DeHaven home in Springfield, PA. Adam Dawes led worship on the cajón. Sarah Allen, Chris Sywulak, Mikey Goldhorn, Eric Choi, and others stepped into the life of the community. The living room became a sanctuary in the truest sense.
2022–23
Deeper Roots
The community deepened through shared meals, potlucks, small group nights, and an annual retreat. Mike launched outward bound ministry — camping trips, airsoft, Bible studies, and service work in Kensington. Emii Kim opened her heart to the community with quiet, steady faithfulness.
2023
We Lost Adam
On Super Bowl Sunday, 2023, we lost Adam Dawes — our worship leader, our community champion, and someone who had grown up right alongside us. His loss was felt deeply by everyone who knew him. We grieved together, as a family does. Eric Choi stepped into the worship leader role and carried the music forward with faithfulness and love.
2024
A Faithful Ending
Mike and Megan were being called more fully into leadership at InFaith. Pastor Joe was called to New Hope Presbyterian in Kent, Washington — and later elected Moderator of the 43rd General Assembly of the EPC. After honest, prayerful discernment, Hope Philly held its final Sunday together. Grateful. Full. Faithful to the end.
The Closing
Not a Failure. A Faithful Ending.
There is a kind of grief that comes when something good ends. We felt it. Hope Philly closing wasn’t the result of conflict or collapse — it was the result of lives faithfully moving where God was calling them.
The things that mattered — the friendships, the discipleship, the shared table — those didn’t close. They just scattered outward, the way seeds do.
Adam Dawes
Worship Leader · Community Champion · 1995–2023
“Adam grew up in our youth ministry, and when it came time to build Hope Philly, he was one of the first to say yes. He led our worship every Sunday — but it was his character, his brightness, his generous and joyful presence, that shaped who we were as a community.”
Adam met Sarah Allen through the youth ministry they both called home. They walked into Hope Philly together and became a steady, beautiful presence at the heart of everything we were. We carry Adam with us still — in the music, in the memories, and in the way he taught us to show up fully for the people right in front of us.
The People
Those Who Built It
Hope Philly was shaped by ordinary people who gave extraordinarily. These are the ones who set the table.
Pastor Joe Kim
Lead Pastor & Founder
Hope Philly was Pastor Joe’s vision. He led with deep pastoral care and theological faithfulness. He now serves as Pastor at New Hope Presbyterian in Kent, WA, and was elected Moderator of the 43rd General Assembly of the EPC.
Emii Kim
Pastoral Support & Community
Emii brought steadiness, warmth, and faithfulness to every gathering she was part of. Alongside Pastor Joe, she helped create a space where people felt genuinely cared for.
Michael DeHaven
Co-Founder & Elder
Mike served Delaware County youth for over 14 years before co-founding Hope Philly. He continues in outward bound ministry, IT service in Kensington, and leadership with InFaith alongside Megan.
Megan DeHaven
Co-Founder & Elder
Megan poured herself into youth ministry for over a decade before helping plant Hope Philly. Her home was the church’s home. She now hosts a women’s Bible study on Monday nights and serves in InFaith leadership.
Eric Choi
Worship Leader
Eric served as assistant worship leader under Adam Dawes. When Hope Philly lost Adam in 2023, Eric stepped into the role — carrying the music forward with faithfulness and love for the community Adam had helped build.
Mikey Goldhorn
Lead Guitar & Vocals
Mikey brought energy and heart to worship at Hope Philly every Sunday, helping build a musical culture that felt like home.
Chris Sywulak
Setup, Teardown & Children
Chris was the first one in and the last one out every Sunday at 5 Points. He also served as our point person for children’s ministry — a quiet, steady, indispensable presence.
Sarah Allen
Hospitality & Resident Baker
Sarah grew up in the youth ministry and was part of Hope Philly from the very beginning. Her baking, her warmth, and her gift for hospitality made every gathering feel like home. She and Adam Dawes were dear friends who walked this road together.
Still Going
The Scattered Seed
The Sunday gatherings ended, but nothing that really mattered did. The community built around that table scattered — and is still bearing fruit in Delaware County, Philadelphia, and beyond.
Mike & Megan
InFaith home missions leadership, outward bound ministry (camping, airsoft, Bible study), IT & service work in Kensington, and Megan’s Monday night women’s Bible study.
Young Adults
A 20s & 30s Bible study led by Jerry Iamurri (InFaith) carries the young adult mission forward, with an annual retreat keeping the original community connected.
Pastor Joe
Pastor Joe now leads New Hope Presbyterian in Kent, Washington, and serves as Moderator of the 43rd General Assembly of the EPC — carrying the same pastoral faithfulness to a new congregation.
✝
We Built in His Strength. We Rest in His Faithfulness.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
2 Timothy 4:7