Among major U.S. cities, Portland, Oregon, consistently ranks near the bottom in churches per capita. That was the appeal for Brett Meador, who founded the nondenominational fellowship Athey Creek Church (ACC) in 1996 with the vision of teaching through the Bible verse-by-verse. That’s still the mission as the church has grown over the past 30 years.
What has changed is the type of financial stewardship required to meet ACC’s evolving needs. The church currently has four campuses across the Portland area, and it has longer-term expansion plans.
Brooke Meador, ACC executive director, noted that growth had been slow and steady over the years. In the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic, however, attendance grew significantly. At first, parishioners attended services online, but demand for in-person gatherings soon followed. That’s when ACC approached BMO Commercial Bank to help assess its options for property acquisition and the financial resources necessary to continue fulfilling its mission.
“ACC has five services—two on Saturday and three on Sunday,” said Andi Allcroft, ACC’s director of finance. “As soon as a new one opened, it would fill up. We needed to figure out how to fit more people in the buildings we had or explore other options.”
Initially, ACC intended to expand its main campus in West Linn. As the plan shifted, they found an opportunity to acquire a separate property. BMO was able to secure a larger line of credit to make that purchase, as well as three other properties it has purchased over the past year. The first two—in Hillsboro and McMinnville—opened in June 2025, and ACC plans to open its Riverside campus in West Linn in September. And ACC isn’t stopping there.
“We might be able to build a bigger building that would more effectively house our congregation week to week,” Meador said. “The property is perfect and we look forward to working with BMO on all the possibilities there.”
BMO has a dedicated Religious Institution Banking team staffed by professionals with expertise in the needs of houses of worship. It was during those initial discussions that ACC realized they could get more than a financing partner for a single project; they could gain a relationship based on collaborative partnership. That includes finding solutions outside of property acquisition by taking advantage of BMO’s One Bank approach to serving clients.
Between 2019 and 2022, ACC’s revenue increased by more than 125%, and its cash reserves climbed more than 700%. In collaboration with BMO Treasury Management and BMO Capital Markets, the Religious Institution Banking team was able to provide a safe storehouse for ACC’s reserves while earning a solid return on those funds. The bank also provided an alternative payments solution that proved valuable.
“One of the big perks was the virtual credit card, so we don’t have to have as many cards floating around among the staff,” Allcroft said. “And the relationships that we have with the team, they’re here for us anytime we need help with something.”
Because the relationship has been so fruitful, ACC has been proactive about contacting the BMO team about their plans, which helps get everyone on the same page regarding which financial solutions would work best. With a new campus about to open, the focus now is on exploring long-term solutions for ACC’s space requirements.
“It's a huge blessing that we've gotten to have this partnership,” Meador said. “We have a lot of interesting opportunities on the horizon, and as we look forward to developing those, I feel very well equipped to be able to do those things.”
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