• Where we are: 45-815 Po'okela St., Kane'ohe

• Our numbers: About 1,500 members attend weekly services

• Our pastor: Ralph Moore

• What we believe: "Hope Chapel exists to equip God's people to take His love to every person," Moore said. The essence of their belief, he said, is "that we love God and we love the people around us."

The church and its members reach out to people of all backgrounds, Moore said.

"We're trying to look out for the people that maybe the rest of the Christian world isn't looking out for," he said. "We do a lot of stuff with people who are going through addictions and ... we've tried to take an attitude that says we want to love the gay people in our community. We're trying to reach out to everybody."

• Our history: The church was started in 1983 by Moore, formerly of Oregon, and Aaron Suzuki of Maui. Prior to planting the Kane'ohe church, Moore was the senior pastor of Hope Chapel Hermosa Beach in California, where Suzuki was a member.

Members of Hope Chapel Kane'ohe Bay first gathered at Kailua Beach Park, then moved to a community center at He'eia State Park, then to Kapunahala Elementary School in Kane'ohe, Benjamin Parker School in Kane'ohe where they spent 14 years, and finally to their current location on Po'okela Street where they have been for nearly three years.

• What we're excited about: At "Taste of Hope," to be held 4 to 7 p.m. Jan. 13 and Feb. 10 at the church, those interested can learn about the church's vision and values, and about Moore, author of about five books, including "Friends: How to Reach Generation X" (Regal Books, $11.99 paperback) and "Let Go of the Ring" (Straight Street Publishing, $13.95 paperback). The free event includes a presentation by Moore and the church's pastoral staff, as well as a barbecue dinner.

Members are also looking forward to a visit by David Barton of Washington, D.C., leader of a Christian ministry called Wall Builders and author of nearly two dozen books. Barton will be a guest speaker at the church, 7 p.m. Feb. 11, and will cover the topic "Founding Fathers and the Christian Heritage in the United States." The event is free and open to the public.

• What's special about us: "The biggest thing that makes us stand out is that we spend so much energy on raising up leaders and planting churches from this congregation," Moore said.

To do so, Moore said it is important to have a "five-generation church" that caters to members of all ages.

"I'm a baby boomer and ... (this) can't just be a baby boomer party, and so we're just really trying to reach out to the younger generations," Moore said. "There are probably more Gen X-ers in our congregation than there are boomers."

Because of the church's large youth membership, Moore said there's always a strong emphasis on embracing the younger generations' diversities, such as the music they listen to and the way they dress.

"So there's a lot of freedom in this church," Moore said. "It's kind of an 'unchurchy' church."

All 25 Hope Chapels in Hawai'i, Moore said, started from Hope Chapel Kane'ohe Bay. Members have also planted about 170 churches outside of Hawai'i, in countries including the mainland United States, Japan, Australia, Thailand, Philippines, Mexico and England.

"The most recent, exciting thing is that we started 34 churches in Pakistan in the last 18 months," Moore said.

"We really are trying to take the love of God, through the gospel of Jesus Christ, to everybody in the world."