Church at the Cross

What Church at the Cross does

Church at the Cross is a private, nonprofit Baptist church founded in 1953 and headquartered at 700 Good Homes Rd in Orlando, Florida. It operates a single multi-building campus comprising a main auditorium (Building B), children's ministry space (Building A), student cafe and classrooms (Building C), a chapel, and Champions Gym. The church delivers two Sunday worship services — a Traditional service at 8:30am featuring hymns and a Contemporary service at 11:00am with modern worship music — supplemented by Life Groups at 9:45am and a Wednesday evening Cross University discipleship program. It is led by Pastor Shawn Smith, who arrived with his family in July 2023, and operates under Southern Baptist Convention doctrinal standards (Baptist Faith and Message 2000).

The church's core product surface is a diversified ministry portfolio rather than a technology platform. Major programs include Cross Kids (birth–5th grade), Cross Students (6th–12th grade), six language communities (ASL/Deaf, Brazilian Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Tagalog, Spanish, Vietnamese), Unique Abilities ministry for guests with disabilities, free ESOL English classes, a Food Pantry, recreation programming (pickleball, basketball), baptism and membership onboarding (Discover CATC), and prayer ministries including a daily 5:30am Zoom gathering. The supporting technology stack consists of the Church Center mobile app (for giving, event registration, group sign-ups, and secure child check-in with rotating weekly codes), the Listen Everywhere real-time audio translation system deployed for Spanish and Portuguese during the 11:00 am service, and standard communication platforms (Microsoft Teams for men's prayer meetings, Zoom for women's prayer). A YouTube channel hosts a message archive of weekly sermons.

The church's revenue model is voluntary member contributions across multiple giving channels: in-service tithes and offerings, an online giving portal with credit/debit/ACH capability, text-to-give (texting "give" to 407-904-8100), direct stock gifts, Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) from retirement accounts, and planned giving via wills, trusts, or life insurance policies. Core services and programs are provided free to attendees. Strategic partnerships include LIFT Disability Network (special needs inclusion), the Fellowship of Filipino International Baptists of Florida (FFIBF) — of which the church's Filipino Community is a founding member — and Central Florida Christian Academy (CFCA), a Christian K-12 school affiliated with the church that offers tuition discounts to its full-time employees.

Name

Church at the Cross

Legal name

Church at the Cross

Website

https://catcorlando.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1953

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Church at the Cross is a nonprofit Baptist church founded in 1953 in Orlando, Florida, serving a multicultural, multigenerational congregation through Sunday worship services, language communities in six languages, children's and student ministries, disability support, free ESOL classes, and a food pantry.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131)

akta.pro primary industry

Local Congregations & Worship Communities (Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues) (BPAGAJAA)

Keywords

• Religious worship services
• Children's ministry
• Student ministry
• Multilingual ministry
• Community outreach

Headquarters

HQ city

Orlando, Florida

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tithes and Offerings: Members and attendees contribute financially during Sunday services through offering buckets and lobby boxes as an act of worship and generosity
2. Online Giving: Secure bank-grade online portal accepting credit, debit, or ACH transactions with giving history tracking
3. Text-to-Give: Donors text 'give' to (407) 904-8100 for quick mobile giving without app downloads
4. Stock and Charitable Distributions: Direct stock gifts and Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD) from retirement accounts with tax advantages
5. Bequest Giving: Naming the church as beneficiary in wills, trusts, or life insurance policies

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Church at the Cross is a multi-cultural, multigenerational Baptist church in Orlando, Florida offering weekly Sunday worship services (Traditional at 8:30am and Contemporary at 11:00am), along with a comprehensive portfolio of ministry programs including children's, student, adult, and multilingual language community ministries. The church also delivers community services such as free ESOL English classes, a Food Pantry, disability-inclusive programming, and digital engagement through the Church Center mobile app.

Product overview

Church at the Cross is a single-location Christian church in Orlando, Florida, offering a unified portfolio of worship services and ministry programs rather than a technology product portfolio. The church operates primarily through in-person Sunday services (Traditional at 8:30am and Contemporary at 11:00am) supported by the Church Center App for mobile engagement. Core ministries include Cross Kids (children's program for birth-5th grade), Cross Students (middle/high school ministry), Language Communities (multilingual ministries in ASL, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Tagalog, Spanish, and Vietnamese), Life Groups (Sunday small groups at 9:45am), and Cross University (Wednesday evening discipleship). Additional programs include recreational activities (pickleball and basketball), ESOL English classes, a Food Pantry for community support, prayer ministries, Unique Abilities disability support, baptism services, and online giving. The church also provides message archives for sermon viewing. No commercial technology products or modules are offered.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sunday Worship Services (Traditional and Contemporary) Weekly Sunday worship services offered in two formats: Traditional service at 8:30am featuring time-honored hymns, and Contemporary service at 11:00am featuring modern high-energy music. Designed for general community members, faith seekers, and regular attendees.
• Cross Kids Children's ministry program for birth through 5th grade offering age-appropriate Bible teaching, activities, and safe environments during service hours and Wednesday evenings. Includes a weekly rotating unique security code system for child check-in with parent tag matching.
• Cross Students Middle and high school student ministry featuring Sunday Life Groups at 9:45am, Wednesday night services at 6:30pm with games, worship, and preaching, plus special events, summer camps, missions trips, and conferences throughout the year.
• Language Communities Ministry Multicultural ministry offering worship and community in American Sign Language (Deaf), Brazilian Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Tagalog, Spanish, and Vietnamese, with real-time audio translation available via the Listen Everywhere app during services.
• Life Groups Sunday morning small groups at 9:45am featuring structured Bible-based curriculum with lecture-style sessions and discussion formats for all ages from birth through 12th grade.
• Cross University Wednesday evening discipleship program at 6:30pm featuring prayer gathering followed by topic-based groups covering faith, marriage, finances, and other subjects for the whole family.
• ESOL English Classes Free English as a Second Language classes for non-native speakers offered Mondays and Thursdays 6:00-7:30pm using the English for Everyone curriculum, with classes for Level 1 and Level 2 beginners.
• Food Pantry Food assistance program providing monthly food pantry distributions and larger food giveaway events to support community members facing food insecurity.
• Unique Abilities Ministry Ministry for individuals with disabilities offering sensory support (earmuffs, sensory toys, quiet room with livestream), family gatherings every two months, special events throughout the year, and partnership with LIFT Disability Network.
• Prayer Ministry Various prayer groups including Power Hour (Wednesdays 6:30pm), Men at the Cross (Saturdays 6:00am at Cross Courtyard or via Microsoft Teams), Midnight Prayer (monthly), and Ladies Daily Morning Prayer (daily 5:30am via Zoom).
• Online Giving Digital giving platform offering online giving via a bank-grade security portal, text-to-give (text 'give' to 407-904-8100), in-person giving boxes, stock gifts, qualified charitable distributions from retirement accounts, and will/bequest options.
• Message Archives Online archive of weekly sermon messages available for on-demand viewing, featuring Biblical text-driven preaching on real-life topics with practical faith applications.
• Recreational Activities Recreation programs including pickleball (Saturdays 9-11am and Monday evenings 6-8pm) and men's basketball gym nights (Wednesdays 8-10pm) held in Champions Gym.
• Baptism Services Public celebration of faith through baptism, representing commitment to Jesus Christ and an important step in the spiritual journey for church members.
• Discover CATC New member orientation program featuring Pizza with the Pastor events where newcomers can meet Pastor Shawn and church leaders, learn the church's story and mission, and make connections.

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LIFT Disability NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChurch at the Cross is a proud partner of LIFT Disability Network and participates in their local events. The partnership supports the church's Unique Abilities ministry providing inclusive worship experiences for individuals with disabilities.
• Fellowship of Filipino International Baptists of Florida (FFIBF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChurch at the Cross Filipino International Community is a founding member of FFIBF, allowing the church to partner with other Filipino churches across Florida for statewide fellowships, prayer networks, support systems, and annual growth opportunities.
• Central Florida Christian Academy (CFCA)minorOthersCFCA is a Christian school affiliated with Church at the Cross. The church supports CFCA through tuition discounts for full-time church employees and mentions the school in its language communities and recreation ministry pages.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Elevation Church: Large multi-site non-denominational church with contemporary worship, online streaming, and digital-first engagement strategies. Comparable worship-and-discipleship product portfolio at materially larger scale.
• Watermark Church: Large Dallas-area church with extensive community services, family ministries, and discipleship programming. Comparable community-outreach orientation (recovery, counseling, ESL-adjacent) and evangelical identity.
• Life.Church: Pioneering multi-site church and developer of the Church Center Platform app used by Church at the Cross. Directly comparable technology stack (Church Center App, online giving) and contemporary worship model, but operating at multi-state scale.
• Mariners Church: Orange County California-based evangelical church with multi-generational family ministry, contemporary and traditional services, and community outreach. Comparable multi-service, multi-program operating model.
• Saddleback Church: Large historic evangelical church with multi-site campuses, comprehensive family ministry, and global missions footprint. Comparable breadth of programming and longevity, though at materially larger scale.

Direct peers

• Northland Church: Long-established Orlando-area church with multi-generational family ministry, community outreach, and contemporary worship services. Comparable single-region focus, family programming depth, and Orlando market positioning.
• Summit Church: Orlando-area church with comparable multi-generational family ministry, students program, and community outreach. Direct competitor for the same Orlando donor and volunteer pool.
• First Baptist Orlando: Large historic Baptist church headquartered in Orlando with extensive family, student, and global-mission programming. Directly comparable denomination (Southern Baptist), geography (Orlando), and ministry-breadth profile to Church at the Cross.
• The Church of Eleven22: Jacksonville-based Baptist-affiliated church with strong family, students, and missional programming across multiple Florida campuses. Comparable Baptist-rooted identity, family-first programming stack, and Florida regional footprint.

Regional players

• Lifepoint Church: Florida-based multi-site church with contemporary worship and family ministry across multiple campuses. Comparable evangelical identity and Florida regional presence, though operating across multiple sites rather than a single campus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ChurchattheCrossOrlando/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/catcorlando
• Instagraminstagram.com/catcorlando
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/catcorlando

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Church at the Cross