The Bridge Church was planted by our Lead Pastor, Marty Schmidt in
September of 2007. We were planted from our parent church, Third Church in
Pella, Iowa, about 45 minutes away. It started with a core team of 25 people
and, over 15 years, has seen steady growth. From just a couple staff members,
we now have 19 full time staff and 4 part time staff.
We have been portable in the Ottumwa location since day one, but have met
in the same building, the Bridge View Center. BVC is a local convention center,
with a theater that seats 650 people, a huge lobby, and conference rooms that
we utilize for children’s ministry (Bridge Kids).
Over the course of the first 10 years, we focused on the community in
Ottumwa, specifically, and added services as we grew until we had 3 services
each Sunday. In 2015, we were able to purchase and begin renovations on a
building in downtown Ottumwa that is for everything but Sundays.
Renovations were completed in fall of 2018 on what we call The Hub that
houses our coffee shop open to the public every day but Sunday, our staff
offices, small group space, a gym, and an auditorium that can seat about 300
people.
After year 10, we started feeling a call to branch out to communities close by.
We had a number of people driving from 30 – 45 minutes away just to attend
in Ottumwa. In 2019, we launched a campus in Centerville, Iowa, about 45
minutes southwest of Ottumwa. They have seen steady growth in 3 years,
through multiple location changes and are now averaging about 300 people
each week in a building that barely fits them all! We have recently purchased a
portion of a mall in Centerville and are renovating that space to have our first
permanent Sunday location. That should be up and running by March of 2023.
In 2020 we were set to launch our third location in the town of Fairfield, Iowa,
when COVID-19 shut that down for a year. We were able to launch officially
on Easter of 2021 in the middle school in Fairfield, about 20 minutes
from Ottumwa. In just a year and a half this location sees on average
200-250 people each week.
In 2023, we have announced that we plan to open a campus in a town called
Oskaloosa, Iowa, about 30 minutes from Ottumwa. We are excited to go to
this community as we have had people driving from there since we started, 15
years ago. We feel like God has finally opened the door to be able to reach this
community effectively.
Throughout the years we have also been able to bless our communities in
many ways. One of our favorite events each year is The Christmas Store. It is
an event where families are able to pay $5 per child to shop for Christmas and
they get socks, underwear, a pillow, a toy, and a book and we wrap it all
with them while we watch their kids. In 2021, well over 1000 kids were
shopped for. In addition to that event, we do serve projects at least every
other month, with a huge Serve Day across all locations in July each year.
We manage a Free Clinic that offers free health care each week and is staffed
by volunteer doctors and nurses. We recently started a separate non-profit
called the Southeast Iowa Dream Center that will help to be the vehicle to be
hands on in the community. We are about to finish building our first house that
will be sold at and advantage rate to a single parent.
We are poised for more growth with our campuses both growing, and looking
ahead to launching a 4th campus next year. We’re excited for how God is
continuing to use us to Rebuild, Repair, Restore.

Rebuild, Repair, Restore. We are here to Rebuild families, Repair identities,
and Restore the cities we are a part of.

• Know God
• Find Freedom
• Discover Purpose
• Make a Difference

• Found People Find People
• Saved People Serve People
• We Journey Together
• Grace Compels Generosity
• Faith is Moving Forward

The Bridge Church is in search of a Worship Leader who will lead the worship
ministry at one of our campuses. We are looking for someone who is a team
player and carries a spirit of excellence in all that they do.

• Loves Jesus and the local church
• Has life-giving relationships including a life-giving marriage
• Loves working in a team environment
• Is passionate about worship
• Leads with discernment and pastoral qualities
• Cares about people and processes
• Has a “Get Er’ Done” work mentality
• Strives to be better and improve
• Is teachable, humble, and receptive to feedback
• Is flexible and open to other opinions and ideas
• Practices organizational, practical, and goal-orientated disciplines

• Leading and helping develop worship and worship teams in a
  multisite campus of The Bridge Church
• Maintaining planningcenteronline.com, ensuring that materials for
  the team are online at the appropriate time (including but not
  limited to: chord charts, keys, practice tracks, vocal parts
  assigned, tutorials and/or other supplemental material)
• Managing the scheduling of musicians and worship leaders for
  weekend services, as well as potentially student services, or other
  events through a year
• Managing team rehearsals and ensuring that the band is able to
  play songs with excellence
• Recruiting worship team members at any stage of musicianship
• Developing the team to the next level of excellence
• Assisting the Worship Pastor in brainstorming, scheduling and
  implementing the worship services

• Modern
• Servant leader
• Passionate about worship and Christ
• Authentic
• Energetic
• Hard-working
• Tech-savvy
• Relational
• Genuine

Southeast Iowa is a great place to live and raise a family. Our communities are
full of friendly people and unique opportunities. The cost of living is very
affordable, with many options to purchase homes at a fraction of what they
would be in other towns. Our communities offer a great balance between
rural Iowa and semi-urban feel. There are multiple cultures, languages, and
foods in Ottumwa and opportunities to grow. Above all, God is moving in this
region and it is exciting to be a part of a vibrant and growing church family!