Flourishing Through Suffering and Beauty

Sunset Ridge in San Antonio was a church in decline. Membership had fallen from about 700 to under 100, and they were told the most faithful thing they could do was close the doors. In the middle of that season, Taylor lost her son Ellis to stillbirth at eight months. Jess, who had lost her daughter Ava the same way years earlier, went to the hospital to sit with her and tell her what no one had told Jess: that she would get through it. At a time of deep tragedy, a community was reborn. This film follows how shared grief became the ground for something new: a chapel window lit for the whole neighborhood, a parking lot turned into a park, a preschool, a coffee trailer, and a regenerative farmers market every Saturday. The chapel was built in 1931 for a tuberculosis hospital, with stained glass added because people believed beauty could help heal. That belief still runs through this community. It’s a story about suffering, beauty, and what it looks like for a church to flourish in the 21st century. Learn more: Flourishing & the Church - https://flourishingandthechurch.com/ Sunset Ridge: https://sunsetridgechurch.org/ Featuring Taylor Bates, Deputy Director, Sunset Ridge Church & Collective Jess Lowry, Lead Pastor & Executive Director, Sunset Ridge Church & Collective Suz Browning, Sunset Ridge Congregant Kim & Steve Gilbert, Sunset Ridge Congregants Che Ortiz, Program Manager, One Another Coffee Sarah Barbosa, Enchanted Acres Farm, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market With thanks to the Sunset Ridge community for sharing their stories. Directed and Produced: Lindi van Niekerk Director of Photography: Jeremiah Mott Camera Assistant: Hannah Mott Editor / Narrative Development: Byron McLeroth Multimedia Design: Amy Clarke Made possible with the support of Flourishing & the Church and the Sunset Ridge community #FlourishingAndTheChurch #SunsetRidge #Church #Community #Flourishing #SanAntonio