CCHO is celebrating 50 years of ministry! Throughout 2019, we will be sharing stories of the lives that have been forever changed by the work God has done through our family of ministries (CCHO, Encourage Foster Care and Encompass Christian Counseling). Today, we take a fun look back on five decades of branding, with the evolution of the CCHO logo and what our heart emblem signifies as the focus of story #14 in our 50 Stories for 50 Years of Ministry series.
A lot changes in one decade, let alone five. The world is fundamentally different today in so many ways than it was when CCHO started in a single farmhouse in 1969. Back then, a postage stamp cost a nickel and a penny, the average new car went for about $2000, and a new house cost approximately $40,000 (source: Project Firebird). Today, you’ll pay more than 10 times as much for a stamp ($0.55), the average new car costs more than $34,000, and a new home sells for more than $360,000 on average nationally.
At CCHO, we remain focused on helping children overcome the abuse and neglect they’ve endured. Fifty years after first opening our doors, our purpose of helping people experience their worth in Christ keeps us rooted in our founders’ initial vision of creating a place where kids and God could meet.
But while our focus hasn’t changed in the last 50 years, our logo certainly has. Each version of the CCHO logo has led us to our current version, which is anchored by our heart. This same heart is also featured in the logos for Encourage Foster Care and Encompass Christian Counseling, as well as our special 50th anniversary logo.
In Ezekiel 11:19, God’s promise to the brokenhearted is clear and encouraging: “I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh.” The heart in our logos represents the radical transformation that only God can initiate. It reminds us that, while we strive to do our jobs well each and every day, there is only One who can renew hearts and restore lives. As verse 20 says, “They shall be my people, and I will be their God.” Without Him, we are lost but with Him, we all have hope.
We may not know how much a new car will cost 50 years from now or what our logo will look like in 2069, but we can trust that these words from our loving God will remain true.
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