Forest Grove Reformed Church sits at the corner of 32nd Avenue and Perry Street in Hudsonville, Michigan, directly across from Forest Grove Elementary. The congregation gathers every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM for a single worship service, and a livestream on YouTube reaches those who cannot attend in person. What began in 1869 as a gathering of Dutch emigrants in a Jamestown schoolhouse has grown into a multigenerational church serving the Hudsonville community with a strong children's and youth ministry.
A History from the Netherlands to Jamestown
The Forest Grove story is tied to the Dutch emigration of 1846, when families left the Netherlands seeking religious freedom. The Hollanders, as they were called, arrived on the shores of Lake Michigan and slowly migrated east, forming new communities. Until 1869, the Dutch-speaking emigrants traveled roughly five miles to Drenthe for worship.
That changed on September 12, 1869, when the consistory held its first meeting in the Jamestown schoolhouse. Three days later, on September 15, 1869, the First Reformed Church of Jamestown, later known as Forest Grove Reformed Church, officially began. Services were held in the school until 1873, when a 36-by-50-foot church was built. English services were introduced once or twice a month as early as 1875, and by 1943 all services were conducted in English. In 1969, after years of additions and growing attendance, the congregation decided to build at the present location on the corner of Perry Street and 32nd Avenue.
Sundays at Forest Grove
Worship begins at 9:30 AM, signaled by the church's historic bell. The service includes music, prayer, scripture reading, and a message, and usually wraps up around 10:45 AM. Music is led by the Praise Team, with the worship team occasionally changing the style to keep things fresh. Dress runs the spectrum from jeans and t-shirts to dressier outfits. Before and after the service, guests are invited to stay for coffee and conversation in a space designed for connection.
Children are always welcome in the service. A nursery is available for infants through age 2 for the entire service, and a cry room with a livestream of the service lets parents stay with their child while still participating. After the singing portion of worship, children ages 3 through kindergarten are dismissed to 4:19 Kids, an age-appropriate program. All volunteer staff working with children are background-checked and trained, and a volunteer at the nursery desk walks families through a secure check-in process. Sunday School runs from September through May for children in preschool and up.
Students in the ARC
Forest Grove has long invested in its youth, and several programs meet in the ARC, the church's activity wing. GEMS, which stands for Girls Everywhere Meeting the Savior, brings together girls in grades 3 through 8 two to three times a month for devotions, crafts, and mentoring relationships. Cadets is the parallel program for boys in grades 3 through 8, meeting in the ARC basement where they have their own workshop for hands-on projects and outings.
Middle schoolers in grades 6 through 8 gather for BASIC (Brothers and Sisters in Christ) every other Sunday evening from September to May, digging into scripture and building friendships. High schoolers in grades 9 through 12 meet weekly for Frontline on Sunday nights, a Bible study and fellowship group that runs September through May. Sunday School for all youth ages follows the worship service during the school year.
What Forest Grove Believes
Forest Grove Reformed Church is part of the Alliance of Reformed Churches, a denomination rooted in the historic Reformed confessions. Alongside most Christian churches, Forest Grove affirms the three ecumenical creeds written in the early centuries after Jesus' death: the Apostles' Creed, the Athanasian Creed, and the Nicene Creed. The church also holds to the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dort as classic Reformed expressions of the Christian faith. Two additional statements are held as addendums: the Belhar Confession, attached to the Belgic Confession, and the Great Lakes Catechism on Marriage and Sexuality, attached to the Heidelberg Catechism.
At the core of Forest Grove's teaching is belief in the Triune God revealed in the Bible, consisting of the Father as Creator, the Son Jesus Christ as fully God and fully man who redeems creation through His perfect obedience, and the Holy Spirit who empowers believers and confirms their identity as God's children. Scripture, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is understood as the inspired Word of God and the ultimate authority for faith and life. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, made possible by Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. The church teaches that believers are made new in Christ and that Jesus' resurrection guarantees a future bodily resurrection to eternal life with God.
Selfless Generosity
The church frames its giving philosophy around selfless generosity. Following Jesus is understood as living with open hands and open hearts, offering time, kindness, words, and resources for the sake of God's kingdom. Giving can take many forms, from welcoming others and lending a helping hand to financial contributions that support the church's mission locally and globally.
Online giving is available for one-time, weekly, or monthly donations through the church's giving portal. For those who prefer to give in person, offering boxes sit by the center aisle each week.
A Family Church on 32nd Avenue
From its origins as a Dutch Reformed congregation in a Jamestown schoolhouse to its present-day home at the corner of 32nd Avenue and Perry Street, Forest Grove Reformed Church has remained a community shaped by family and faith. The historic bell still rings each Sunday at 9:30 AM, calling neighbors, longtime members, and first-time visitors alike into a service marked by worship, scripture, and warm conversation over coffee.