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The Church of God in Christ’s 2010 Convocation being held here November 8 through 16 is expected to draw 40,000 worshippers and large revenues to St. Louis.

“It’s estimated the Church of God in Christ will bring $20 million to $30 million to the city where our conferences are held,” said Charles E. Blake, the presiding bishop for the Church of God in Christ.

Bishop Blake pastors a church in Los Angeles with 24,000 members and is the presiding bishop of the 6.5 million member Church of God in Christ (COGIC). According to him, the convocation has much to offer the city.

“It acquaints thousands of people from around the world with the city of St. Louis, which is important especially when they consider it when they travel again. It enhances the image of St. Louis,” Blake said.

“Finally, we are a spiritual institution and we bring a time of spiritual emphasis to whatever city that the convocation is in. As we move around the city, hopefully we will be a moral and spiritual blessing to the city of St. Louis.”

For the past 102 years the convocation has been held in Memphis, but for the 103rd convocation, the annual event is being held outside of Memphis for the first time, moving to St. Louis at the America’s Center.

The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) signed a contract with the City of St. Louis to host the convocation for the next three years.

Along with using America’s Center for this year’s convocation, which is expected to be the largest Church of God in Christ conference of the year, 19 hotels have been booked with conference guests for the week. Bishop Blake also expects that retail stores and shopping malls will benefit from the conference.

“Many of our people are from small towns who don’t have the latest in apparel, and usually our people take this time to shop for what may not be available in their hometowns,” Bishop Blake said.