A former drug addict and drug dealer, after being transformed by the power of Jesus, Pastor Anthony Celender and his wife Ashley returned to the very streets where they used to sell drugs, this time to share something much more powerful and life-changing—the gospel. The couple planted CityReach Church New Kensington, in September of 2014, on one of the worst streets in the area. The story began, however, long before the church opened its doors.

A ROUGH BEGINNING

Anthony was born to a family of Italian immigrants in the Pittsburgh area. His father was an alcoholic and his parents divorced when he was three years old. His mother remarried an abusive man, and by the time Anthony turned 18 he had moved 21 times. “It was a rough time for me. Every time I would get settled, we would move again,” he says.

As a preteen Anthony started hanging with the wrong crowd. He started smoking marijuana and partying at 12 years old, and a few years later began selling drugs.

In 2005, Anthony and his girl friend (future wife) Ashley were getting high together. She started to withdraw on Anthony’s couch and was puking. “That was the last time I sold drugs. I thought this is the fruit of my life. I did this to my girlfriend and I’m doing this to families all in the name of making money and getting high,” he says.