From a New Jersey Backyard, This Dream Continues to Grow

Lisa and David’s backyard was a place for deep conversations, bonfires, laughter (yes, sometimes thanks to a prank or two!), food prepared in massive quantities, and teenagers running around everywhere. It wasn’t unusual to find a couple of tents pitched on the front lawn for kids to spend the night. Seriously!

Long before 2019, together we imagined a place where people could live together, learn together, and grow in their relationship with Jesus.

A place where someone could learn to cook a meal, fix a car, learn how to drive, or simply sit around a table and experience genuine community.

Lisa’s heart was to reach people who had been overlooked, rejected, or forgotten. People like me.

When I first got out of jail after becoming a Christian, I didn't know where I belonged. Lisa and David invited me into their lives, and they became my family.

And I wasn’t the only one who experienced the Merideth’s extraordinary generosity.

Over the years, they welcomed countless teenagers and others who had nowhere to belong, opening their home and their lives to people in need. They understood that loving others came with real risks, sacrifices, and challenges. But they never let that stop them.

To this day, Lisa and David are the closest examples I’ve ever known of what it looks like to live like Jesus.

Through countless conversations and, more importantly, the example of her life, Lisa launched Greenhouse by the way she lived. Literally.

Greenhouse Project’s Permanent Home – coming in 2027!

On Sunday mornings we're about to begin a series in the book of Luke, where Jesus declares that He came "to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10).

That's exactly what I saw Lisa live out.

She went toward people others might avoid. She answered the phone calls others might ignore. When someone was in need, they moved to the top of her list.

She understood that Jesus came for broken people.

Today, as Greenhouse Project take steps toward establishing a permanent home, I think about those conversations around the bonfire.

What once seemed like a distant dream is becoming something tangible. You can book an in-person tour to experience the vision inside our building project here.

This will be a place where people can come as they are, learn practical skills, grow in their faith, build meaningful relationships, and experience the transforming love of Jesus.

It's the very kind of place Lisa envisioned because it's the kind of place she created wherever she went.

At Our Table, There’s Always Room for One More

The loss of Lisa still hurts.

Even as a pastor, I sometimes wrestle with why God allowed her to leave us so soon.

But this week, I was reminded of Jesus’ words in John 12:24: a grain of wheat must fall to the ground and die in order to bear much fruit.

And when I look at Lisa’s life, I see just how much fruit God continues to bring forth from the seeds she planted: it's alive in her children, in the leaders she raised up, in the people she welcomed, and even now in the countless lives touched through Greenhouse Project.

And her legacy challenges me to ask: What if we all lived this way?

What if we opened our homes to a teenager who needed encouragement?

Invited someone over for dinner?

Took a young person camping?

Started a ministry, taught a skill, or simply answered a phone call when someone needed help?

To live like Lisa, all we need is a willing heart and a love for Jesus that moves us to action.

Years ago, we dreamed together about a place where the lost could find hope, the broken could experience healing, and everyone could discover a place to belong.

That dream was inspired by the way Lisa and her family live — with open hearts, open doors, and always room for one more at their table.

Today, as we take the next steps toward a permanent home for Greenhouse, I'm reminded that what we started together, God is still growing. And with this new space, we'll be able to welcome even more people into the Greenhouse community, carrying on the legacy Lisa lived out every day.

Because there's always room for one more. Yes, there's room for you!

As we reflect on the impact of Lisa’s life, this is the perfect moment to consider a gift in her honor.

Gifts go directly to funding our ministry work, in a fund dedicated to her name. Thank you for your generosity!