With humble beginnings in 1920, starting with the missionary efforts of Annie Gillispy from St. Louis, the first Afro-American apostolic church in the City of Fort Worth was founded. Over the years, many anointed leaders grew the congregation and continued to spread the message of Christ. Leadership included the following: Elder Frank Coats, Elder John Sanders, Bishop William North, Elder William Thompson, Elder William Foree, and Elder Thomas Jones.

In February of 1985, the current Senior Pastor, Bishop Richard E. Young, was elected to lead the church further. When Bishop Young transferred from Zion Temple Apostolic Church in Steubenville, Ohio, the Fort Worth church soon adopted the new name of the New Life Christian Church of the Apostolic Faith.

In 1993, Elder Jerry Shew retired as pastor of Fort Worth Apostolic Church located on East Belknap Street and requested that Bishop Young succeed him as pastor. He accepted and merged the two congregations and the church worshipped at the Belknap location until 1997. The church soon relocated to Campus Drive and the name was changed to The Chosen Vessel Cathedral.

Many years have passed and many souls have been added to the Body of Christ. Through regular worship services, outreach efforts, and the development of special programs, TCVC has serviced all ages in the congregation and community. Additionally, we have maintained the mission to provide a safe haven to those in spiritual and emotional distress by telling all JESUS SAVES!

After several major developments, the church structure was expanded to accommodate the growing congregation. Today, a beautiful glass façade encases a state-of-the-art sanctuary, where all are free to join for worship. The Lord gave Bishop Young a vision of a multifaceted campus to bring evangelism beyond the four walls of the sanctuary. He recently celebrated the completion of the Community Life and Learning Center (shown to the left). The Center currently contains a basketball/volleyball auditorium, bowling alley, fitness center, sports café, several classrooms, and administrative offices. It is also the new home for Southwest Community Economic Development Corporation (SCEDC) offices, a non-profit organization that Bishop Young founded in 2002.

Since 2003, SCEDC has been granted several service contracts, like TXU to provided free services to approximately 238 senior residents and 176 low income residents by insulating, replacing windows, and weatherizing their homes for winter and summer conditions over a two year period. SCEDC was also awarded $67,899 per year from the State of Texas to provide abstinence until marriage education. In 2007, SCEDC was also awarded a $3,000,000 federal grant to expand the existing abstinence education program over a five year period. In the past five years, 91 community and faith based organizations have partnered with SCEDC - Project FAMILY (Fathers, Adults and Mothers Impacting the Lives of Youth). These partnerships have led to more than 10,000 youth and adults in attendance of programs and services. And most recently in 2009, SCEDC launched the Project FAMILY Mentoring Program. This one year service contract with the Federal Government allowed SCEDC to provide four hours of mentoring services to those youth who have at least one parent incarcerated.

This host of programs have exceeded funder expectations, made the likes of Project FAMILY a national model for community based organizations, and has allowed the organization to reach farther into the community and build families from the inside out. TCVC/SCEDC can be expected to make a greater impact in our community as we maximize our potential for the growth and expansion of God’s kingdom here on the earth. We our committed to doing all that is in our power and ability to meet the needs of our community and improve the quality of life for all.