Please share about yourself.
Tina has a little over 20 years of experience in both business and ministry, is an ordained minister in the PCUSA and the founder of Heart Key Ministries, a 501(c) (3) non-profit corporation. Prior to her full time commitment in ministry Tina founded and owned Hamous Investments Financial Division, a California Company established in 1989, and served the community as a Banker and Financial Advisor.
As a trained dancer, classical clarinetist and saxophonist, Tina understood from an early age that it is her faith in Jesus and passion for worship that has formed who she is. She and her husband Bruce have been married for 23 years and enjoy working out, biking, Art & History Museums, Theatre, and spending weekends in the wine country. A graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary, Tina holds a Masters of Divinity degree.
Please share about your church and your context.
The Artists Outlet (TAO) is a newly created worshipping community intentionally designed for artists gifted in performing and fine arts, and for those who want to be part of a creative and artistic worshipping community. With an ecumenical mission mind, The Artists Outlet also serves as a resource for churches of other denominations that seek creative ways to offer inspired and artistic elements to their worship services. With a mission mind to serve the community, The Artists Outlet works in collaboration with local communities to offer music mentorships, lessons, conferences, and training seminars in an effort to reach those who do not attend church yet have a desire to learn artistic expression through performing or fine arts.
Please share a story of transformation from your church.
As part of its mission mind, The Artists Outlet offers artistic dance lessons as one part of its many services to the local community. One evening a woman named June came who heard about the classes in the local paper. She listened quietly to the teaching, she was reticent to introduce herself to the others and said she really could not dance. I told her it had more to do with listening and allowing her heart and soul to respond to the words than it was having her body keeping perfect rhythm. With that said, June jumped up with the other attendees and began to experience the dance class. We listened to Christ centered music that night, and June came to me later with tears in her eyes, saying “something is happening.” I gently responded, “I believe the Lord is speaking to your heart through the dance.” June, came the next week, and the next, and the next, and I invited her to coffee and began meeting with her weekly. Soon, I invited her to church and she began attending on a regular basis, and joined the dance team.
You see what makes June extraordinary is that she never thought she could ever dance because as a child she suffered a terrible brain trauma. She had always been in the shadows, in the margins, in the fringes of society and had never been invited into a community. Until that day at the studio…when the Lord invited her to dance.
Please share about your next steps.
Since The Artists Outlet is a ministry that goes to the people, it seems fitting that it would not have any one stationary building or meeting site. Instead the vision for this outreach ministry is to have between two and four spaces that it meets in that may be accessed by its members and participants through social media, advertising and word of mouth. (Similar to how the Food Truck phenomena has compelled itself into a regularly attended social community). Our next steps then are to continue to build relationships, secure resources and locate venues that would be conducive for this type of artistic worship.