Tucked into a quiet stretch of West 27th Street in Cheyenne, across from the Herschler Building and a short walk from the downtown core, First Christian Church has spent a century opening its doors to the capital city's residents. The congregation belongs to the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and members call themselves simply Disciples. The church's motto is: "We love all, we serve everyone, we grow together as a community in Christ." Another phrase, repeated throughout the church's materials, captures the denomination's ethos: "Disciples stress freedom and diversity."
Sunday Morning Worship at 10:30
Worship begins every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. and is described by the congregation as "blended." The service opens with singing and prayer, then moves into a more traditional feel that weaves together both contemporary and traditional music. Members gather in the sanctuary to celebrate God's presence together. Services are held in person and online.
The Lord's Supper is the heart of worship. It is celebrated each Sunday and at special occasions, including Christmas Eve and a Blue Christmas service in late December, and is administered by lay people. All Christians are welcome to participate. Communion draws the congregation closer together in thanksgiving for forgiveness of sins and renewal of life.
Adult Sunday School classes meet on Sunday mornings at 9:30 a.m., giving worshipers an hour to gather for fellowship and study before the service. Several small group options are available, and visitors who haven't yet connected with a class are warmly invited to come and grow with the church.
Children and Youth at the Center
Children are present and celebrated at First Christian. The whole congregation worships together at 10:30 a.m., and a children's moment - a brief message tailored for kids - is part of each service. After that moment, children ages 3 through 5th grade are invited to Kids Zone Sunday School, an interactive time of worship and learning. Children also take on visible roles in worship, including the chance to serve as an acolyte.
A nursery is available every Sunday during worship for the youngest children. Parents wanting more information can contact the church office.
Youth in grades 6 through 12 meet as the Youth Group, joining other local youth groups for service projects, joint activities, and fun days. The group attends church camp each summer, with the congregation traditionally paying 100 percent of the cost for any active participant who wants to go. Several kids and counselors have headed off together to camp in recent years, with parishioners filling care packages in the Fellowship Hall for the journey. The youth have also organized regional mission trips, including an Alaska service trip where a dozen young people and five adult chaperones worked in a homeless shelter, packaged food at a regional food bank (filling more than 330,000 pounds of food and feeding more than 430 families), walked alongside residents of a local retirement home, and led prayer walks at local parks. Inquirers can be added to the youth email list through the church office.
Children lead worship in other ways, too. Each December the kids lead a Christingle service, with the whole congregation building Christingles together. The youth and children also take the lead on World Communion Sunday, filling the service with special readers and a youth-led children's moment.
Adults in Sunday School and Small Groups
Beyond Sunday School, adults have several regular touchpoints for study and fellowship. Disciple Men, also known as CMF, gather for breakfast and fellowship on the second Saturday of every month at 8 a.m. The men's group takes part in mission and service projects throughout the year, and all men of the church are invited to join.
Disciple Women, the church's CWF, meet on the second Thursday of every month in three small groups, so members can pick a time that fits their week. The Marth Ruth group meets at 9:30 a.m., the Lydia group at 1 p.m., and the Sarah group at 7 p.m. Meeting locations vary, and the church office can help newcomers get connected. The CWF also hosts an annual Ladies Spring Tea - in recent years taking the form of a "Spring Shower" to restock the kitchen - and an all-church Good Friday gathering.
Care Across Generations
The Senior Ministry Program at FCC is built around a trained Care Team that brings "church" to members who are home-centered or hospitalized. Team members share God's love through spiritual practices that matter to the person being served. For those who are able-bodied, there is a monthly trip where seniors can share an outing and deepen friendships. The team's aim, in their words, is to offer presence and support.
A separate Elder Care Ministry Team focuses on the congregation's "Golden Friends," arranging visits and bringing communion. The team reaches out by phone to coordinate visits, and anyone needing prayer, a visit, or communion at home can contact the church office to be connected.
A Century on West 27th Street
First Christian Church marked its 100th anniversary in January 2026, with members traveling from near and far to celebrate the milestone. The congregation's written history reaches back through stewardship campaigns that built budgets and shaped ministries, through the hiring of a Director of Children and Youth, and through long-running programs like the Angel Tree Christmas effort that brings gifts to children of incarcerated parents. Church histories recall the "Claim the Vision" stewardship campaign of 2004, which raised pledges toward a Director of Children and Youth position, and a 2003 call of Rev. Kurt Borgaard as senior pastor, approved by a vote of 167 to 4. The sanctuary filled for his installation, with regional clergy, community guests, and the regional minister of the Central Rocky Mountain Region joining the congregation for the afternoon service and a sit-down dinner for around 240. In the years that followed, the Contemporary Worship Team and a praise choir and band helped give the service its blended feel, with hymns, scriptures, and graphics projected on a screen above the altar.
Long-running traditions also include Journey to Bethlehem, a December experience where members in costume lead visitors through a virtual first-century Bethlehem with a marketplace and Biblical scenes. Earlier in the church's story, community-wide partnerships took shape around marriage and family, including the Wyoming Alliance for Relationships and Marriage, which hosted "10 Great Dates" evenings to strengthen relationships, and a Fall Festival with Father Factor at the YMCA that drew more than 200 children. Members have also taken part in Cheyenne's Habitat for Humanity Blitz Builds.
The church is currently led by Senior Pastor Aerii Smith. Pastor Cindy now holds the title of Pastor Emeritus.
Outreach Across Cheyenne
Outreach and mission work sit at the heart of the congregation's identity. The Outreach Committee, which describes itself as always "looking for ways to love our neighbors," supports a long list of local ministries with volunteer hours, mission projects, and financial gifts.
- COMEA House - The church prepares and serves dinner for the homeless shelter on the first Thursday of every month. Substitutes are always welcome.
- Family Promise Cheyenne - First Christian is part of a rotation of local churches that house and feed families experiencing homelessness while they seek housing and employment.
- NEEDS, Inc. - A standing "Tuna...And!" collection gathers tuna, peanut butter, jelly, and breakfast cereal year-round for NEEDS, which serves Cheyenne's homeless and low-income neighbors. The church's annual goal sits around 2,400 items.
- Habitat for Humanity - Members pitch in on build days and feed other build teams; recent projects have included feeding Wyoming National Guard members and partnering with Highlands Presbyterian Church to feed 120 house builders.
- Angel Tree Project - Christmas gifts for children of incarcerated parents.
- Salvation Army - The church supports the local soup kitchen, which serves hot meals Monday through Saturday at noon and Sundays at 2 p.m.
- Day Center-Cheyenne (formerly the Welcome Mat) - The church runs collection drives for sunscreen, water bottles, hygiene items, and other supplies for this day center for people experiencing homelessness.
- Gas cards - Every quarter, the Outreach Team distributes $1,500 in gas cards through USI, Laramie County School District 1, Safehouse, and COMEA, mostly to COMEA residents.
- Faith and Blue - The congregation has hosted a Faith and Blue event connecting law enforcement with the community through activities like pumpkin painting, a movie night, and a blood drive that yielded 10 units of donation blood.
- Disciples Mission Fund - The church supports the worldwide mission and ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
- Colorado Christian Home / Tennyson Center - Annual support for treatment of abused and neglected children and their families.
The same congregation that serves meals and builds houses also gathers to pray. The youth have led prayer walks at local parks, asking strangers how the church can pray for them.
Building Dreams, Transforming Lives
For its centennial, First Christian Church has partnered with the Unaccompanied Students Initiative (U.S.I.), a Cheyenne-based nonprofit that also serves Casper and Laramie, on a campaign called U and I 4 U.S.I. The goal: raise $202,600 to help U.S.I. build a second home on its existing property - one that will house four homeless teen mothers and their babies, alongside U.S.I.'s current residence for unaccompanied students ages 16 to 20. U.S.I. requires its residents to stay enrolled in school and teaches life skills alongside academics.
The church has noted that an average of three homeless teen mothers are enrolled at any given time in Laramie County School District 1, and that there is no current resource in Cheyenne to give these young women the stability they need. Donations to the campaign have crossed the original $202,600 goal, with the church inviting additional support to help cover the full cost of the building. Donations can be made through the church's online giving page.
Beliefs and Becoming a Member
First Christian Church describes its beliefs through the language of the wider Disciples movement. Disciples stress freedom and diversity. There is openness to Christ and the Gospel without dogma or doctrine, and a desire to recover the values found in the New Testament accounts of the early church. Each person is free to explore and interpret the Scriptures according to his or her own experience, and is encouraged to do so within a nurturing faith community.
The church teaches that God is revealed in the Bible and through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is both the Son of God - part of God's own divinity - and fully human, the Savior who is with us always. Membership and ministry rest on a public confession of belief in Christ and repentance; on the unity of all Christians across doctrine and difference; and on the conviction that all members are ministers, entitled to interpret Scripture and perform church functions. Baptism is for mature individuals old enough to make their own decision, with immersion in water as the accepted New Testament practice and other forms accepted as valid.
The Lord's Supper is the heart of worship, celebrated on Sundays and at special occasions, administered by lay people, and open to all Christians.
The church offers three freedoms to its members: freedom and diversity in worship, in service, and in fellowship. Anyone who wants to become a member can simply talk to Senior Pastor Aerii Smith.
The Campus Downtown
The church sits directly across from the Herschler Building, close to downtown Cheyenne, with a parking lot that the church describes as a convenient and affordable option for downtown parking - monthly spaces are available to lease. The campus is also available to rent for meetings and events; interested groups can contact the church office. Inside the building, the Fellowship Hall hosts everything from coffee hours to the annual Ladies Spring Tea, the narthex carries a bulletin board of children's photos, and a chapel provides a quieter space for smaller services.
Sunday services are held in person and online. Online giving is handled through Tithe.ly. Sermon recordings are archived on the church's YouTube channel under "Pastor Aerii's Sermon Archive."