When I met the Trimbles, I was so struck by their love for God, love for people and their commitment to ministry. We moved to a rental church auditorium and then to the school auditorium where his wife worked. Then to an office park, with a space for worship and church offices. We moved again to a larger rented space with plans to build a building across the street. We broke ground with ceremonial shovels one Thanksgiving in 2005.
A fund-raising program was introduced to the congregation. People were asked to make commitments and "make more room" for the others who would come, if we would sacrifice. People were asked to give their tax refunds, refinance their homes, and "bust open some CDs." Jon James was brought in to "invest" the donations and help people reach their individual financial goals. People rolled over their retirement funds into JW James & Associates and in turn, James promised profitable returns flipping commercial real estate and to make a contribution to the building fund out of the profits. I later discovered that James was being investigated by the SEC. His company was seized and ordered into receivership.in addition to the money that individuals invested with James, Trimble invested (or so he says) building fund donations with James. At least $500K was lost in this scheme.
I resigned my membership after this information came to light and a conversation with Trimble that was less than convincing.
What a sad and disgraceful ending to something that began so beautifully. Sometimes I think that it really did start beautifully and other times I wonder if it was a scam from the beginning. It's hard to believe that anyone who preached "love as a core value" could hurt others with so little regard for the financial, emotional and spiritual damage that he caused.
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