Who We Are

About Us

The Bethel Community Transformation Center (BCTC) is a coalition of local clergy, community leaders, visionaries and builders. We believe in the healing power of reconciliation to build community and unity of purpose between people of diverse races, religions, ages, and geographies.  

The Faces of bctc

Our Leadership

Our Board of Directors lays out the strategic vision for our organization, while our building staff work each day to make it a reality.

  • Pastor Aramis Hinds

  • Ben Falik

  • Napoleon Harrington

  • Rabbi Ariana Silverman

Taking Action Towards Healing

What We Do

Hear from just a few of the people who are helping build the Bethel Community Transformation Center and making its vision a reality.


When the BCTC team first set out on this journey, we came across an amazing thing at the Rabbi Leo M. Franklin Archive at Temple Beth El: a woman who had nearly the same vision as us, 50 years earlier! Meet Dr. Marilyn Heins, now 86 years old:

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Take a tour of the building and learn more about the vision of healing and reconciliation with our Executive Director, Pastor Aramis D. Hinds.

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Hear from Gerald McLean, Music Minister at Breakers Covenant Church International at BCTC. He believes in the possibilities and promise of transforming this space and his community – through music.

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Listen to Ralph E. Williams II, Outreach Pastor of Breakers Covenant Church International, speak about breaking down barriers in our community in order to honor our shared legacy and the future we’ll build together in this space:

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Apostle Edwin Lindsey, who leads Breakers Covenant Church’s care ministry, was on the streets of Detroit in 1967 and remembers the deep tensions. Listen to him speak about his hopes for healing and reconciliation at BCTC:

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A Place for All People

Our Vision

We are going to rebuild the historic Temple Beth El building at Woodward and Gladstone in Detroit. We envision a four-phase renovation process beginning in Summer, 2017 and covering all of the different areas of the building. Our initial fundraising campaign will enable us to reach the short-term objectives stated above and transform this vision into a construction plan with an architectural firm and general contractors. Scroll to bottom of site to download our Vision Document!

  • Phase 1

    Phases
  • Phase 2

    Phases
  • Phase 3

    Phases
  • Phase 4

    Phases
Latest News

Our Blog

A Message to our Backers

Dear backers and supporters, On behalf of the entire BCTC Board, I would like to offer my sincere thanks to you for stepping up to support our BCTC Kickstarter campaign aimed at starting the restoration of the former Historic Temple Beth El and also the restoration of lives and people. It has been an exciting

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Front and Center.

This post originally appeared on our 2017 Kickstarter campaign. Dear Backers, I’m excited to share that yesterday our story was on the front page of the Detroit News – Detroit’s second-largest newspaper (and the 10th most-read newspaper website in the United States!) The word is getting out about what we’re doing together. At the same time,

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What does FREEDOM mean?

This post originally appeared on our 2017 Kickstarter campaign. Dear backers, What does freedom mean to you? On Passover each year, Jews around the world celebrate the exodus of the Israelites from brutal slavery in Egypt under a cruel Pharaoh. What are our personal Egypts today – and what will it take for us to

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Press Coverage

As Seen On

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Contact Us

Call us: (313) 818-3259
visit us: 8801 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI, 48202