Two Campuses Across South Jersey
Fellowship Community Church sits on Hainesport Road in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, just off Route 38 in the western suburbs of Philadelphia. The original Mount Laurel campus began in the 1980s when Pastor Mark Willey started a small congregation that has grown into a community of roughly 1,000 people spread across two Sunday services. The steeple-side of the structure is home to the sanctuary, lobby, offices and the main Welcome HUB; the other side houses the church gym, where kids' classrooms are kept secure behind locked doors during services.
In the 2010s, Fellowship launched a second campus at 710 Collings Avenue in Collingswood, about ten miles to the northwest, so that attenders driving in from that town would not have to make the longer trip to Mount Laurel. The Collingswood campus holds one Sunday morning worship service at 10:00 a.m. with a children's program starting at 10:30, drawing around 150 people each week and concentrating its ministry on the surrounding neighborhood through the family unit.
A Casual Sunday in the Sanctuary
Visitors to the Mount Laurel campus find two morning services each Sunday, at 8:45 and 10:45 a.m., both running about an hour and fifteen minutes. The style is intentionally come-as-you-are. People wear everything from shorts and flip-flops to polos, skirts, dresses and the occasional suit, and nobody is asked to stand or identify themselves as new. Greeters in the lobby will sometimes ask if a family is newer, simply to make sure nobody is missed, but in the service itself the only thing asked of first-timers is that they consider filling out a connect card.
Each service opens with roughly thirty minutes of worship led by a full band singing modern songs. The sanctuary stays mostly dark with colored stage lights; haze, lasers, and heavy strobing are not used. Most people who are able stand at their seats to sing. A pastor then teaches from the Bible with a focus on practical, Scripture-centered application for everyday life, and many services close with a final song and an optional time at the front for anyone who would like someone to pray with them.
Giving is mentioned in the announcements but no plates are passed. Visitors are told plainly that newcomers should feel no pressure to give, and regular givers are thanked for sustaining the ministry. Online giving and giving boxes at the back of the sanctuary are the main channels.
For the Kids
Fellowship KIDS runs during both Mount Laurel services. At the 8:45 service there are classes for nursery through 8th grade; at 10:45 there is nursery and programming through 4th grade, since older elementary and middle schoolers are encouraged to attend worship with their families. Check-in takes place at kiosks in the main lobby and greeters are on hand to help. The church recommends that newcomers arrive about fifteen minutes early to get their children settled before the service begins.
The kids' wing takes several layers of precaution. External doors on the children's side of the building stay locked during services, and a network of monitored security cameras watches the hallways. A printed name-tag system keeps an accurate roster of every child in the building, and a secure pickup-tag system makes sure that only the adult who dropped off a child can collect them. All volunteer teachers and helpers are vetted and trained, and a written Child Safety Policy is available for any parent who wants to read it.
Sunday-morning classrooms do not serve snacks, and outside snacks are not brought into the rooms, which makes allergy management simple. For parents who would rather keep their children with them, two family rooms at the back of the sanctuary on each side have a glass window into the service and a TV feed of the preaching, and the lobby also carries the service on a large screen.
For families whose children have disabilities, the church runs a dedicated special-needs ministry that can tailor a classroom plan depending on the child's needs. The coordinator, Barbara Puglia, can be reached through the main church office.
Junior High and High School
The youth ministry meets on Friday nights during the school year and splits by age. Junior High, for students in grades 6 through 8, gathers from 7:00 to 9:15 p.m. with game time, Bible study and small groups. High School, for grades 9 through 12, meets from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m. with worship, teaching, small groups and plenty of time to hang out. The youth program also sends older students into leadership roles across the church, including as helpers and counselors at Vacation Bible School, soccer camp and wilderness camps, and on local and international mission trips.
The youth ministry is shaped by six stated foundations: a commitment to the Scriptures, a lifestyle of worship, a culture of prayer, a passion for Jesus, authentic community and hearts of service. During the summer the church runs both Vacation Bible School and Salao Soccer, an indoor futsal league offered from January through March in five age divisions for children and youth ages 7 to 18.
Young Adults, Families and the Empty-Nest Years
Young Adults, primarily singles and young couples in their twenties and thirties, meet for community groups on Tuesday nights at the Mount Laurel building. The evening starts with a larger gathering and then breaks into smaller groups for discussion and prayer.
Family Night is the church's ministry to married couples with children. It meets on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., with a children's program running concurrently for nursery through 5th grade starting at 6:15. Each group is made up of seven or eight couples, with older mentor couples who have adult married children leading younger couples through the rhythms of marriage and family. Family in Focus, a separate Sunday-evening group that meets from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., focuses more directly on parenting and on building a biblically shaped view of life.
Empty Nesters are encouraged to plug into neighborhood community groups, and the Empty Nesters ministry leader, Pastor Jim Panter, helps them find both groups and places to serve. The Seniors ministry hosts a monthly luncheon on the third Wednesday of each month from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the church lobby, with a planned program, a $6 lunch and opportunities to support mission agencies. The same group keeps an active community group for Bible study and discussion, goes on regular outings together and works on service projects.
Men, Women and the Wider Adult Ministry
The Men's ministry exists to help men connect with other men who share similar interests, struggles and values, with discipleship, accountability and fellowship opportunities through Bible studies, retreats and one-off events. A men's email newsletter and a men's Facebook group keep the conversation going between meetings.
The Women's ministry, led by Joanne Sharp, offers two ongoing Bible studies during the week, community groups specifically for widows, singles, moms and women with chronic illness, and gatherings such as Propel, IF:table, prayer groups and MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers). A weekly email, an Instagram account, a Facebook group and the EncouragHer podcast keep women in touch with the broader ministry. An annual women's retreat is the highlight of the calendar.
Across all adults, the church also runs Classes and Gatherings on a wide range of topics. The Torah Seminar walks through Genesis through Deuteronomy and shows how Jesus is the goal of the Torah. The Bible's Big Picture Seminar zooms from a 30,000-foot view of Scripture down to its personal relevance. Other seminars include AWE (a ten-session study on overcoming fear by being overwhelmed with the awe of God), Can I Trust the Bible?, Digging into the Psalms, Thinking Like a Christian, and Your Marriage and Family Matters, taught by Dr. David Merkh and his wife Carol Sue.
Two financial classes round out the adult ministry. Practical Principles uses the Financial Peace University curriculum over nine weeks and is usually offered in January. Generous Principles works through a book, video lessons and discussion on what biblical generosity looks like in everyday life.
Community Groups, the Front Line of Care
Community groups are the heart of life at Fellowship. The church describes them as places where the small-group members support one another, learn together, and serve one another for the greater worship of God and the expansion of His kingdom. Groups are scattered through the week across the South Jersey region, in homes, in the church and online, and include neighborhood groups, family-focused groups, young-adult groups, seniors groups, an unmarrieds 30+ gathering and groups for parents and caretakers of those with special needs or disabilities.
The belief behind this approach is that God never intended the Christian life to be a solo flight. As Hebrews 10:25 frames it for the church, the community groups are where the one-anothers of the New Testament actually get practiced.
Celebrate Recovery, Stephen Ministry and the Food Pantry
Care happens in many ways at Fellowship, and most of it begins in the small groups. Beyond that, the church runs a number of specific ministries for those walking through harder seasons.
Celebrate Recovery meets every Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. and is open to men and women eighteen and older, whether or not they are members of FCC. The evening opens with worship and a teaching or testimony, then breaks into gender-specific open-share groups for compulsive behaviors, anger and co-dependency, life issues, and addiction, with a Solid Rock Cafe serving refreshments afterward. The program is built on the twelve steps and eight recovery principles paired with the Beatitudes, and is for anyone willing to be honest about life's hurts, habits and hang-ups.
Stephen Ministry equips volunteers with fifty hours of training to walk one-to-one with people going through difficulties, after a loss, after a diagnosis, after a pink slip, after a divorce or after the baby arrives. The conversations are confidential, and the Stephen Ministers meet weekly with their care receivers for as long as the need is there.
A monthly Caregivers Support Group provides encouragement and community resources for those caring for a loved one, and GriefShare offers a safe, structured setting for those grieving a loss. The Food Pantry distributes frozen, fresh and dry goods on a weekly pickup schedule; donations of non-perishable items can be dropped off on Tuesdays or at the welcome center any Sunday, and a Thanksgiving Food Pantry opens registration each November for families who would like to shop for holiday food.
A Faith Built on Seven Anchors
Fellowship describes itself as a non-denominational church with Baptist roots. The doctrinal anchors of the church are seven statements of belief, called the DNA: Jesus is central to everything the church is; all life change begins at the heart; the church seeks to keep in step with the Spirit; the church is called to make redemptive impact on its community; the church loves people where they are and hopes to lead them where God wants them to be; small groups are where the body does life together; and the church is committed to raising up leaders in everything it does.
Alongside its own doctrinal statement and church covenant, the congregation also recites the Nicene Creed together, confessing belief in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, in one baptism for the forgiveness of sins, and in the resurrection of the dead and the life to come. The full doctrinal statement and church covenant are available as PDF documents from the church's media library.
Becoming a Member
Membership at Fellowship is a covenant relationship. The path begins with a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, followed by baptism by immersion. Prospective members then attend a Membership Class, read the church covenant, submit a membership application and meet with a church deacon for an interview. The Board reviews each application, after which names are posted to the church for transparency during a fourteen-day notice period before final approval.
For those who are newer, the Welcome Party, held on the first Sunday of each month between services at 10:10 a.m. in the cafe, is a low-pressure way to meet the pastors and ministry leaders, hear what is going on around the church and start finding the small group or ministry that will be the right fit.
Seminars, RightNow Media and the Church Center App
The church maintains an active teaching library. Sermons are recorded every week and made available as audio podcasts on Apple, Google Play and Spotify, on YouTube for smart-TV viewing, and on the church's Vimeo and Resi video players. Seminars, including the Torah Seminar, the Bible's Big Picture, the AWE series, the Psalms workshop and the Thinking Like a Christian series, are streamed on demand with downloadable workbooks.
Fellowship has also partnered with RightNow Media to give every attender a free subscription to its streaming library of more than fourteen thousand Bible studies, Bible-based films and videos for kids. Accounts are available by request through the church.
Day-to-day life at the church runs through the Church Center app, which handles event registration, community-group messaging, kids' check-in, giving, downloading giving statements at tax season, serving schedules and the church-wide calendar. The app is available on iOS and Android, and can also be used from a browser at churchcenter.com.
A New Chapter of Leadership
In 2024, after forty years of pastoring the church he founded, Pastor Mark Willey retired. The succession team and the church board prayerfully recommended Pastor Mike Candy to become Fellowship's new lead pastor, and the congregation confirmed that recommendation. Pastor Mike was installed in November 2024. Pastor Mark continues to teach in the church's seminar series, particularly The Bible's Big Picture, and is listed on the staff as Pastor Emeritus. The pastoral team, alongside pastors and ministry directors across kids, youth, adults, care and missions, is rounded out by a Church Board of elected members who provide spiritual, organizational and financial oversight for the congregation.