Nearly 40,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses are in downtown Phoenix this weekend for the “Love Never Fails” International Convention, including 5,000 people from 41 countries.

The convention, being held at Chase Field and the Phoenix Convention Center, is one of the largest conventions ever held in downtown Phoenix, according to Megan Trummel, director of marketing and corporate communications for Visit Phoenix, which promotes Phoenix events and books conventions at the Phoenix Convention Center.

"The Jehovah's Witnesses convention is one of the largest events that we’ve had in our downtown, excluding national sporting events," Trummel said. "Visit Phoenix booked this meeting into the destination in the fall of 2017, and with an event of this size, I imagine that their organization has been planning this event ever since."

The three-day convention begins on Friday.

As delegates arrived at hotels in downtown Phoenix, volunteers wearing cowboy hats stood on corners holding signs in multiple languages, handing out water and welcoming the delegates.

"This is 40,000-plus people, with people from all over: different countries ... so many different nationalities, languages coming in, but all for the same purpose," volunteer Sonny Maxwell said.

Worldwide, there are more than 8.5 million Jehovah’s Witnesses in 240 countries.

Jehovah's Witnesses recognize the Bible, worship one God and believe Jesus is the savior and the son of God. However, they do not believe in the Holy Trinity as most Christian denominations do, according to JW.org, its official website.

Jehovah's Witnesses also do not believe in hell as described in most other Christian denominations, but instead that after death, a person passes out of existence, to await resurrection if they have learned God's ways, the website says.

Economic impact

Steve Moore, CEO of Visit Phoenix, said in a press release that the convention will have an estimated economic impact of more than $60 million, including for things such as hotels, transportation, food and other spending.

Delegates attending the convention are staying in 77 different hotels in the Valley, including in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Chandler and Surprise, according to convention organizers.

Visitors also have the option to come early or stay later to visit tourist destinations such as Sedona and the Grand Canyon, with 47 buses running to take delegates to destinations.

Phoenix is one of 22 cities selected to host an international convention for Jehovah's Witnesses this year.

It was selected because of access to the stadium and the nearby Phoenix Convention Center, as well as other venues and tourist destinations, as well as its affordability. Hotel rates in the Phoenix area typically drop significantly during summer compared with winter and spring, when demand from tourists and conventions in the Valley soars.

"For our guests, for our delegates, we want to make it a great experience, but we also want to make it an affordable experience," said Robert Hendriks III, a convention spokesman.

"Phoenix is affordable in the summer. They need us and we need them. There is nobody in the hotels, we’re coming and filling all of the hotels, that’s good for them and what’s good for us is the rates are very good. So we’re able to provide a great experience at a good cost."

To make the experience as seamless as possible, convention delegates were accompanied by volunteers from the moment they stepped off the plane at the airport. Due to the large event gaining "Super Bowl" status, volunteers were allowed to greet people at their gates. From there, they were bused to hotels, walked to and from activities downtown and given water.

"We take very good care of them. They’re our guests," volunteer Randy Gardner said.

Gardner, who lives in Phoenix, was excited when the city was announced as a convention location, though surprised it occurred in the middle of summer.

"Who would invite over 5,000 people from 40 different countries to Phoenix in August? We were surprised, but then we said we could do it," Gardner said.

Transforming Chase Field

In the early hours Thursday, after the Arizona Diamondbacks game against the Philadelphia Phillies, thousands of volunteers deep cleaned the stadium, fixed broken seats and set up platforms, audio/video equipment, baptism pools and other convention-related equipment.

Deep cleaning included power washing the seats, sweeping and mopping up dirt and scraping gum off the undersides of chairs.

"We’re used to taking baseball stadiums and making them houses of worship. It’s what we do," Hendriks said.

Volunteers were glad to help.

"It feels good," Gardner said. "We were able to go to Berlin for the very same convention and now we get to give it back and it feels really good."

Edgar Uzeta drove up with his family from Tucson to volunteer, helping to greet delegates at the airport and clean the stadium.

"It just brings a joy that you’re able to help out with what you can, just the smile on our faces and satisfaction when we go back to the hotel," Uzeta said.

Hendriks hoped that through these actions, people would have a better impression of Jehovah's Witnesses.

"Phoenix is special because you’ve welcomed us with open arms," he said. "We have an obligation as an organization to leave this city better than when we came."

In the wake of mass shootings in Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, Texas, delegates were grateful for the chance to be surrounded by love, which the convention will focus on through presentations, prayers, symposiums, songs and volunteer efforts.

"It’s very easy in this world to get downhearted. To be in fear," Hendriks said. "And it’s very easy to isolate yourself because of fear. And this convention proves that that doesn’t have to happen. That people of all races, religion, ethnicity can actually come (together) ... We haven’t given up hope that love can still abound in this world."