From a Woman's Club to a Cornerstone on Junipero
On January 3, 1954, Carmel Presbyterian Church was formally organized with 70 charter members. The founding pastor, Reverend Dr. Harry Clayton Rogers, came out of retirement in San Francisco to start the work. He was 76 years old when he invited the 70 founders to a Sunday morning service at the Carmel Woman's Club at San Carlos and 9th, where his opening sermon was titled "It Can Be Done."
The young congregation worshipped at the Woman's Club for more than a year while members raised money and pushed through seven public hearings to win a use permit from the Carmel Planning Commission for the corner of Mountain View and Junipero. Comstock Associates broke ground in January 1955 on a sanctuary building originally budgeted at $102,870. By the time the walls went up, the church had grown to 200 members. Reverend Dr. Rogers presided over a cornerstone-laying ceremony on May 8, 1955, and the sanctuary was officially dedicated on September 11, 1955.
Two Sunday Services and a Monthly Gathering
The church runs two Sunday services in two very different spaces. At 9:30 AM, the Traditional Service fills the Sanctuary with choir, organ or piano, and hymns. A Family Lounge is available for parents with little kids who want to worship at this hour, but no staffed childcare is offered at the 9:30. The service is also livestreamed each week on YouTube.
At 11:00 AM, the Contemporary Service takes over Friendship Hall with the CPC Band leading worship. Children three months old through 5th grade can be dropped off just before worship, while students in 6th through 8th grade start in the service before being dismissed to their own Middle School class.
When a month has five Sundays, the whole church gathers at 10:30 AM in the Sanctuary for a single combined service that blends traditional and contemporary music and lifts up one prayer of praise and thanksgiving together.
A Building Made of Stones and Stories
The Friendship Court, with stones gathered from religious centers around the world, was built alongside the church in the early years. An education wing and parking lot were added in 1964. The stained-glass windows, the chancel cross, and the carved panels on the church doors accumulated over the decades, each one given by a family or group with a story of its own.
In 2014, an extensive remodel of nearly the entire campus added a sanctuary expansion, three large classrooms, a professional-grade kitchen, new bathrooms, a second floor of offices, and a large multipurpose room tucked under the sanctuary.
A Light on the Monterey Peninsula
The new sanctuary drew national attention in August 1956, when President and Mrs. Dwight Eisenhower worshipped at CPC at the invitation of Dr. Rogers' grandchildren, then ages five and seven. Decades later, Colonel and Mrs. John Glenn and their family worshipped at the church on Easter Sunday in 1999.
The pastoral lineage since the founding runs through Reverend Dr. Joseph Marquis Ewing, Reverend Dr. George Hunter Hall, Reverend Deanne E. Hendricks, Reverend Dr. Harold N. Englund, Reverend Dr. John Snyder, Reverend Dr. John Wilson, the Reverend Dr. Robert Ohman during an extended interim season, Reverend Dr. Richard Duncan, and Reverend Dr. Tim Yee. Reverend Dr. Jennifer Holz was hired as senior pastor in September 2024 and installed on November 3, 2024.
ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians
After many years within the Presbyterian Church (USA), CPC became affiliated in August 2014 with ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians. The church points to the ECO Essential Tenets as part of its denominational identity and calls its members Covenant Partners, a name that signals the joining of a mission rather than a club. Preparation classes for Covenant Partnership are offered throughout the year, usually on Saturdays from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, covering the church's theological beliefs, history, structure, budget, and vision.
What CPC Believes
CPC's statement of faith centers on the Bible as God's authoritative word, on one God eternally existent as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and on the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the only hope for sinners. The church teaches that the Holy Spirit indwells Christians and binds them together as a covenant community, and that believers gather for worship, preaching and teaching, fellowship, communion, baptism, and prayer. The congregation's stated values are Active Compassion, Biblical Truth, Equipping Believers, and Making Disciples.
Growing the Next Generation
Children and students make up a major slice of CPC's ministry. CPC Kids Club welcomes kindergarten through 5th graders on Wednesdays from 3:30 to 5:00 PM on the Patio for an afternoon of high-energy games, snacks, and Bible-centered teaching. On Sundays, children in Pre-K through 5th grade join their families in the Sanctuary for the first part of the 11:00 AM Contemporary Service before being dismissed for Kids Worship with age-appropriate teaching and small groups.
Middle schoolers in 6th through 8th grade meet at 11:00 AM on Sundays and 6:00 to 7:15 PM on Wednesdays for a walk through the Bible with a focus on scripture memorization. High schoolers in 9th through 12th grade gather Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 PM in Friendship Hall for food, biblical teaching, and reflective worship, with periodic retreats, service projects, and trips scattered through the year. A separate Young Adult Ministry for ages 18 to 30 meets Monday evenings from 6:00 to 7:00 PM, anchored by dinner, worship, and a Bible-centered talk.
K-Ministry: A Korean-Speaking Fellowship at CPC
K-Ministry is a Korean-language fellowship that meets within CPC, directed by Eun Ha Chung, who also serves as a Commissioned Lay Pastor of the church. The group gathers for an online prayer meeting on the second and fourth Fridays at 9:00 PM on Zoom and meets in person for worship nights several times a year, often bringing in guest speakers such as pastors Brian Kim and John Park for weekend gatherings that include a Friday-evening worship service and a Saturday morning follow-up.
Men and Women at CPC
Men's ministry meets every Saturday morning from 7:30 to 8:30 AM in the Fireside Room for fellowship and Bible study. The ministry also offers small groups, an annual men's retreat, and an annual men's golf tournament throughout the year.
Women's ministry keeps a full weekly calendar. Women in the Word meets Thursdays at 9:30 AM in the Sanctuary and on Zoom for a verse-by-verse Bible study. A Tuesday morning study gathers from 9:30 to 11:30 AM in the Fireside Room. The Carmel Women's Book Club meets on the second Wednesday of each month at noon for potluck lunch and book discussion. A walking group called Women's Wednesday Walk meets Wednesdays at 9:00 AM at the corner of Scenic and Ocean for conversation and exercise, and a monthly gathering with food and fellowship rounds out the calendar.
Adults in Every Season
For adults in any stage of life, CPC offers several Sunday-morning options at 11:00 AM. The Discovery Hour meets in the Fireside Room for study through books of the Bible, while The Gathering meets in Friendship Hall for teaching on the attributes of God and related Christian doctrine. A Wednesday evening ministry for adults adds another touchpoint for those who want deeper community during the week.
Yellow Brick Road Benefit Shop
The Yellow Brick Road Benefit Shop is one of CPC's best-known outreaches. Founded in 1988 by Shirin Snyder, wife of a former CPC pastor, the shop operates as a charitable retail outlet whose proceeds fund scholarships, hunger relief, homelessness services, and other basic needs in Monterey County. Long after its founding, Yellow Brick Road remains a standing mission of the church, staffed by CPC volunteers and supported by shoppers and donors from across the Peninsula.
Missions Close to Home and Around the World
CPC supports a long list of mission partners across continents. Local partners include Christian Business Men's Connection in Monterey, Young Life Monterey, and International Students Inc. in Monterey. Regional and global partners include church planters in Uganda with Beautiful Response, in Ukraine with E3 Ministries, in Lebanon with National Alliance Church, and in Indonesia with Partners International; campus ministries with Cru and Intervarsity at MIT; Bible translation work in Papua New Guinea with Wycliffe; Mercy Ships in Africa; Mission Aviation Fellowship; YWAM in India; and YUGO Ministries in Ensenada, Mexico, among more than twenty other organizations. Each year the congregation hears from these partners directly during the Great Commission Weekend and gathers for a quarterly Prayer Walk to pray by name for missionaries the church supports.
Deacons and Pastoral Care
An elected Board of Deacons serves as the hands and feet of Christ at CPC. Deacons host memorial receptions, deliver meals to families facing illness, welcome new babies, and walk alongside those who are hospitalized or grieving. The deacons also run Ark in the Park on the first Saturday of each month from 8:30 to 10:00 AM, meeting at the El Estero Park picnic area in Monterey to bring toiletries, socks, underwear, blankets, and other tangible resources to neighbors without housing.
Legacy Funds for the Long Haul
CPC Legacy Funds (formerly known as the CPC Foundation) were created in 1965 by members of the church. More than $4 million has flowed through the funds over the decades to support ministries that the operating budget alone cannot cover. Endowed programs include support for worldwide missions, the deacons' ministry to the elderly and those in need, ministerial housing assistance, youth music and youth leadership development, building and grounds maintenance, men's ministry, and a flexible Innovation Fund for new outreach efforts.
Joining, Giving, and Getting Connected
Visitors can introduce themselves through the digital Connect Card or stop by the Start Here table on Sundays to find the right ministry fit. Sermon recordings are available each week on the CPC Listen podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and a curated playlist of contemporary worship songs is updated on Spotify and Apple Music. People can support CPC through online giving, by mailing a check to the church PO Box, by dropping a gift into the offering box during Sunday services, by texting GIVE to the church phone number, or by donating stocks, RMDs, or cryptocurrency through the finance office.