In 1894, the first Adventist church was born in the Tampa Bay area with a charter group of 12 members who heeded the gospel commission to “go”. This adventurous group set out to spread the gospel to this wonderful community. Sharing the Sabbath with others traveling on unpaved streets, members came together by the means of the day, bicycle or horse. Meeting in a Presbyterian church chapel, the little group continued to grow. As the church grew, the needs of the youth in the community continued to press on the hearts of the members. An attempt at a small school took place in the 1890’s led by Mr. B.D. Gullet but after his departure the school folded until a more permanent fixture was implemented in 1917. As the first teacher of what is now Tampa Adventist Academy, Euhemia Taeger established a 1 room class out of a garage and our school now serves students from preKindergarten to high school Senior.
Tampa First has had locations on Marion Street worshiping in the Presbyterian church, then moved to Florida Avenue and Gladys, to Nebraska and 121st, and a brief period in the school gymnasium while the church at our present location was being built where we had our grand opening on 8/7/71.
In more recent history, our school Tampa Adventist Academy (TAA) had a need to expand, and in 2018 TAA closed and brought forth a new school North Tampa Christian Academy. In partnership with the Florida Conference of Seventh day Adventists and Advent Health, this school is a beacon to a new community that it serves bordering Hillsborough and Pasco counties. The school has experienced growth since its opening in 2018 and continues to provide quality Christian education to its students.
Other expansions that have taken place was the growth of another church. In 2014 we assisted with the expansion of our church in the area with the launch of Life Spring in the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel area.
Our church looks forward to continued growth and expansion to spread the Word of God in the Tampa area in the years to come!
