ABOUT HOPE

Connecting others to God, his people, and his mission.

Hope is a worshipping community where skeptics, believers, the unchurched, dechurched, those who are busy, stressed and the spiritually curious could find a place to explore faith, find belonging and experience the hope of Jesus Christ.

Hope Community Church in Wilmington, NC

Our Purpose

To Worship God.


“Worship is meant to awaken us to the presence of God so that we may actually live our lives differently as a natural response of being alive in Christ.” Our purpose in life is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.  Glorifying God is critical to forming our souls and living into the blessing we are meant to be to our community.

Our Mission

To Make Disciples.


This is the same mission Jesus gave to the church 2000 years ago, ‘go and make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them (Matt. 28). Our hope is to respond to this resounding call with humility and joy. If we simply be the church we will be a blessing to Wilmington and beyond.

Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians church in Wilmington, NC

Hope Community is affiliated with ECO, the Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians. ECO is a new movement of reformed churches across the US. This movement is centered on Christ and committed to helping churches flourish in an ever-changing world.

Read more about the core values at www.eco-pres.org.

Our Leadership Team

Nate Stratman - Pastor at Hope Community Church

Nate Stratman: Pastor

For the past 21 years Nate has been in ministry which is a bit ironic for someone who never wanted to be involved in church in the first place. Nate met his wife Kim here in Wilmington while she was a teacher and Nate was a youth pastor at a local church. They have two lively daughters, Ruthie and Ellie. 

Life took the Stratman family west for a season to First Presbyterian Church of Colorado Springs where Nate was a pastor on staff while completing his Masters of Divinity from Fuller Seminary.  The Stratmans returned to Wilmington in August of 2016 to start Hope Community.  Nate holds his undergraduate degree from the University of Arkansas (Go Hogs)!

Nate’s greatest joy in ministry is helping others connect or reconnect to God through worship, community and serving others.  Feel free to contact Nate at Nate@hopeforwilmington.com!

Blake Mueses Hope Community Church

Blake Mueses: Senior Program Coordinator

Blake Mueses grew up in Wilmington, NC and is a proud graduate of New Hanover High School and Meredith College where she earned a degree in Business Administration and International Business.

After Meredith Blake joined the Peace Corps and served as a Community Economic Development Volunteer.  She was sent to a rural community in the Dominican Republic where she met her husband Juan!  The pair moved back to Blake’s hometown in September of 2016 and joined Hope as it was just getting started.  Blake and Juan have two sons, Jax and Owen.

Blake fills the difficult role of ‘air traffic controller’ for Hope Community Church. She helps the church to communicate, organize, and connect to one another and the mission of Hope Community.

Eric Metts - Hope Community Church

Eric Metts: Worship Coordinator

Eric Metts is a native Wilmingtonian, New Hanover High School graduate and Cape Fear Community College graduate with a degree in Business Banking and Finance. He is married to his lovely wife Brittani who serves the Brunswick County School system. Eric’s deep passion is music and he has been working professionally as a musician since age 14, playing a variety of venues and local churches in the Cape Fear region.  Each year he plays over 200 shows as a solo acoustic act. 

As the Worship Coordinator at Hope Community, Eric carefully selects the the worship sets and arranges the musicians (as well as performing) for Sunday gatherings. We are grateful for his unique gifts and the spirit He brings to Sunday services.

Eric Metts - Hope Community Church

Ali Jo Meier: Community Life Coordinator

Ali Jo Meier was born and raised in Wilmington.  She attended East Carolina and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Public Health. After college, she moved to Colorado Springs and started working with various non-profits doing human services for 10 years  She eventually obtained a Master’s degree in Family and Human Development from Arizona State University.

Ali Jo is thrilled to be back in Wilmington with her husband Matt and 2 daughters, Lucy and Blaire and son Travis.  She joined the team at Hope Community in August 2021 as the Community Life Coordinator.  In this role, she enjoys helping folks find their place to plug in at Hope Community and support the vision of connecting them up, in, and out.  Ali Jo also helps support the Connections Team, stays connected with community partners, and helps to coordinate Hope Next.
Eric Metts - Hope Community Church

Maggie Kroeker: Hope Kids Coordinator

Maggie was raised in rural Kansas and attended Kansas State University. She received her Masters Degree and has worked with a variety of populations as a Speech-Language Pathologist for over 10 years. 

Maggie married her husband Brady in 2013. After living in Kansas, Florida and Tennessee, they have happily settled in Wilmington and are excited to be a part of Hope Community. Brady & Maggie have two children, Miles and Milly, who also love being a part of our church and can be found running around, feeding animals, or swinging on the tree swing every Sunday. 

Maggie serves as the Hope Kids Coordinator at Hope Community. Her role includes developing and implementing curriculum and working with volunteers and staff to coordinate care for the little ones at Hope. She also enjoys creating a calendar full of special events and playdates throughout the year to help parents and their children to connect up, in and out. 

Eric Metts - Hope Community Church

Shay Yarborough: Hope Kids Coordinator

Shay grew up in Fresno, CA and graduated from Fresno Pacific University with a degree in Early Childhood Development. 

Throughout college she worked as a preschool teacher and volunteered as a teacher in children’s ministry. 

Her husband, Billy, was in the Marine Corps and they lived many places where Shay taught second grade and worked as a substitute teacher. Shay and her family moved to Wilmington in the spring of 2020 for Billy’s new career with nCino and started attending Hope that summer.

Shay is our elementary coordinator who works closely with our volunteers to provide curriculum that will lead the children to connect up, in, and out. She also organizes events throughout the year for the elementary aged children to build relationships and grow within our community. 

Elders

Hope Community Church Leadership Team
Hope’s elders have been tasked with overseeing the spiritual health of the church.  Their role is to ensure we are growing up, in and out while reaching those who are disconnected from the faith and local church.  We are deeply grateful for their faith, service, and commitment to seeing Hope flourish.

Steve Risley

steve.risley@risleypadula.com
Connor Ciment
cimentconnor@gmail.com
Sherry Artemenko
sherry@playonwords.com
Dickson Mclean
Jdmcleaniv@gmail.com

 

Deacons

Hope Community Church | Wilmington, NC

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On Sundays, we are currently meeting outside at 10am at 3418 Prince George Ave. Castle Hayne, NC.

 

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