Council of Churches unveils new name

Last edited 11:26 a.m., March 27, 2025 [Editor's note: Additional information has been included.]

Council of Churches of the Ozarks Inc. made good on a long-held goal Wednesday, unveiling a new name for the nonprofit that provides such social services as a food pantry, foster care outreach and a women's shelter.

The nonprofit is now doing business as Crosslines Community Outreach, CEO Jaimie Trussell said at an event held at CCO's 3055 E. Division St. headquarters. The organization consolidated its operations under one roof with the February 2023 opening of the $8.2 million headquarters building, a former SRC Holdings Corp. facility.

"It feels like the exact right next step for our organization," Trussell said in an interview prior to the event. "There's nothing wrong with the name Council of Churches from the concept perspective. The challenge was when you hear Council of Churches, it doesn't actually immediately identify for anybody what we actually do."

The new name, Trussell said, keeps the CCO acronym intact and pays homage to its Crosslines resource center and food pantry, which serves nearly 70,000 people annually. The Crosslines food pantry was the first official program from the 1960s-founded nonprofit, which originally started as Springfield Area Council of Churches before its 1990 name change to Council of Churches of the Ozarks, according to the organization's website.

"The name is very intentional," Trussell said of Crosslines. "They chose it at the beginning ... because this organization was meant to cross lines. We are a community organization for every member of our community."

Trussell, who has led CCO since 2020, said she's heard misconceptions that the nonprofit is a legislative body for community churches. She's received calls from church patrons who want to discuss goings-on at their churches, among other misunderstandings.

"What we are is a social services organization that works together with churches but also businesses and individuals. We are driven by our faith, which is a Christian faith, to serve our neighbors," she said. "I think Crosslines Community Outreach so much better expresses that."

Pro bono
Trussell said digital marketing firm Campaignium LLC is donating services for the CCO rebranding initiative.

"This was something that could have cost $100,000 easily," she said.

Indeed, the pro bono contract is for services valued at "upwards of six figures," said Jeff Paulette, partner at Campaignium, which operates in downtown Springfield. Paulette said its in-kind services for CCO include a new website, graphics and search engine optimization.

Trussell said that while the nonprofit’s name is Crosslines Community Outreach moving forward, the rebranding initiative will be conducted throughout the course of the year. The new website is expected within six to seven months, she said, along with systemwide branding updates.

"It's not going to be a flip of the switch. It will be a much more gradual process," Trussell said, noting Council of Churches of the Ozarks Inc. remains the nonprofit's legal name.

Paulette said Campaignium's work for CCO is part of a nonprofit assistance program the firm started around five years ago. That has included the facilitation of $10,000 Google Ad Grants for nonprofits globally, he said, noting the marketing firm switched its philanthropic focus to annual campaigns for local organizations during the last few years.

The scope of the CCO campaign has expanded Campaignium's work to two years, starting in 2024.

"A rebrand of such a major nonprofit took a little longer from a standpoint of getting everybody on board," Paulette said.

Tyrone Davis, senior account manager at Campaignium, said during the March 26 event that the firm analyzed past and present data including digital metrics, surveys and discussions, as well as future trend predictions.

"All of this work then came to life in a new name and a new logo, with three key elements that best represent the organization," Davis said, pointing to religious imagery of a cross, heart and fish that remained through the logo change. "We look forward to continuing this partnership."

Decades in the making
Trussell said at the event that CCO, founded by the late Rev. Dorsey Levell, has sought a name change since as early as the 1990s.

"It has been a long time coming," she said.

Wes Buchholz, vice president of programs at CCO, said firms such as ADsmith Marketing & Advertising and Habitat Communication & Culture have helped the nonprofit to reach for the name change goal in recent years. The work was cemented with Campaignium.

"They helped us finally take action on choosing a path forward," Buchholz said.

CCO board member Jim Anderson said the nonprofit's programs, such as Ambassadors for Children, Diaper Bank of the Ozarks and Safe to Sleep, would not change, and the headquarters would remain the Dorsey Levell Ministry Center.

"I think in many ways we're clarifying our function," he said.

CCO ranked No. 17 on Springfield Business Journal's 2025 list of the area's largest charitable nonprofits, with 39 employees marking its ranking criteria. The organization additionally reported a $7.7 million operating budget for 2025 and $3.1 million in funds raised locally during 2024.