A Church on a Former Farmstead in Troy
North Hills Christian Reformed Church stands on Adams Road in Troy, Michigan, on ground that was once the farm of the Caswells, one of the city's founding families. Magnificent oak trees and lilacs from the original farmstead still shade the campus, and the church building sits on the actual site of the Georgian farmhouse that once belonged to the family. When construction began, the farmhouse was relocated to what is now the Troy Historical Museum at Wattles and Livernois, but per the family's wishes the Caswell family Bible remains at North Hills, displayed in a glass case in the lobby foyer.
The church's motto, A Church that Glorifies, Gathers, and Grows!, captures the rhythm of a congregation that worships together, studies together, serves together, and welcomes newcomers into a community that has been forming in this corner of Oakland County for more than half a century. Beyond Sunday worship, North Hills is known in the area for its long-running Christian Child Care Center and for its mid-century sanctuary, which has won several liturgical and architectural awards.
A Sanctuary Built Around the Lord's Table
Both the building and the sanctuary were designed by architects Straub and Van Dine, protégés of Eero Saarinen, and were built in 1971, shortly after the congregation was formed. Two later additions followed, in 1980 and 2008. The aesthetic is unmistakably mid-century: brick, oak, and copper, with simple lines and a limited palette of materials. The center of the worship space is a hexagonal communion table around which the congregation gathers in four sloping bays. Soaring walls and clerestory windows flood the room with natural light, illuminating dramatic angles of every description except right.
The arrangement reflects a theological conviction. The North Hills sanctuary has no interior doors or windows separating worship from daily life, an architectural expression of the Reformed conviction that there is no separation between worship and the rest of life. In 2002 the church commissioned Chris Stoffel Overvoorde, Professor of Art Emeritus of Calvin College, to create a series of paraments, the fabric pulpit banners used throughout the church year, with much of the appliqued handwork done by Jean Engle, Pastor Engle's mother. In 2018 the carpet was removed and the original aggregate concrete floor restored, producing a resonant acoustic that fills the 200-seat room when the congregation sings.
Sundays at 9:30
Sunday worship begins at 9:30 AM, both in person and online via livestream on YouTube. The service follows the patterns of the Christian Reformed tradition and includes time for praise through meaningful congregational singing, for confession of sins and assurance of pardon, and for hearing the read and preached Word. The organist plays a two-manual Allen Organ and an 8-foot Yamaha grand piano stands in the worship space. On the first Sunday of each month the sacrament of Communion is celebrated, and all who proclaim Jesus Christ to be their Lord and Savior are welcome to share in it.
Children are welcome in the service, and parents may also choose age-appropriate care during worship. Nursery care for infants through age four is available year-round, staffed by congregational volunteers who engage the children with Bible stories along with loving supervision. During the school year, Sunday School meets at 11:00 AM for elementary students (kindergarten through third grade), middles (fourth through seventh grade), and a Catechism class for eighth grade and up. Middle and high school youth meet together after the service at 11:00 AM as well. Adult Education follows the worship service at the same hour, offered both in person and via livestream, and refreshments and fellowship continue afterward in the Fellowship Room.
The order of worship and weekly announcements are published each week in the This Sunday newsletter, which anyone can subscribe to online.
A Reformation Inheritance
North Hills Christian Reformed Church traces its roots to the sixteenth-century Protestant Reformation. Where German Protestants gathered around Martin Luther and Scottish Protestants around John Knox, the Reformed tradition gathered around the Genevan reformer John Calvin, whose influence reached the Protestants of the Netherlands. Three confessions have organized the Christian Reformed Church since that time and remain foundational: the Heidelberg Catechism, the Canons of Dordt, and the Belgic Confession.
The Christian Reformed Church in North America numbers roughly 200,000 members and is headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary are also located. Unique to the CRC is its insistence on the centrality of the Word of God and on the sovereignty of God over every square inch of creation. As one of the denomination's leaders once put it, devotion to God is not limited to Sunday mornings; rather, all of life is worship. That conviction is visible in the way the North Hills sanctuary flows, by design, into the rest of the building and the rest of the week.
North Hills Child Care Center
Since 1981, the North Hills Child Care Center has been a ministry of the church, serving Troy-area families with Christian early-childhood education from infancy through pre-kindergarten. With capacity for 123 children, the center is licensed and accredited, and the program's mission mirrors the church's: to glorify God, gather children with the kind of nurturing care Jesus modeled, and grow through outstanding opportunities for children, parents, and staff to learn together.
The center is organized into classrooms named Little Fawns, Turtles, Ducks, Foxes, Raccoons, Owls, Bunnies, Bears, and Chipmunks, each led by trained early-childhood teachers. A Spanish teacher and an art and nature teacher round out the specials. Children progress through Infant, Toddler, Preschool, and Pre-K classrooms with a primary-caregiver system that gives each child a consistent teacher who knows them well. Daily communication flows through the ProCare app, with photos, meals, naps, diaper changes, and developmental observations shared in real time.
The educational approach is built on six core values: Faith, Excellence, Partnership, Responsiveness, Community, and Integrity. Faith is not treated as a separate subject but is woven through daily routines, Bible stories, prayer, creation-care activities, character development, and the simple experience of being loved by consistent adults. The center emphasizes play-based, hands-on, developmentally appropriate practice and is committed to ongoing assessment, family partnership, anti-bias education, and continuous improvement.
Parents who enroll their children here often stay for years; several current families have enrolled a second and third child after their first. The center is housed in the same building as the church and shares staff and a calendar with the congregation, an arrangement that gives families an unusually seamless bridge between weekday education and Sunday worship.
Bible Study for Every Season of Life
Adult formation at North Hills is built around three weekly Bible studies and a Sunday-morning Adult Education hour.
Coffee Break meets on Wednesday mornings at 10:00 AM in the church library. It is a women's Bible study that has been a long-standing part of the congregation, and the current season's study focuses on Elijah, Elisha, and James. No preparation is required; participants only need to bring a Bible. If Troy Schools have a snow day, Coffee Break is cancelled.
The Men's Bible Study gathers on Thursday evenings at 5:30 PM in the church library, also with no preparation required. The group uses the Discover Your Bible series from Faith Alive Resources and is currently working through the book of Acts. A light supper is served, and the group meets roughly every other week through the school year.
Adult Education meets at 11:00 AM on Sunday mornings, after worship and via livestream, with classes rotating through the year.
Choir, Music, and a Singing Congregation
Music is central to worship at North Hills. The North Hills Choir sings twice a month from September through May, rehearsing at 8:30 AM on Sunday before the service. The ensemble is open to all adult and high school students, and the church is actively recruiting new members. Mary Baker has served as organist for nearly twenty years, and Noah Cherry directs the music and social media programs. Together they lead a congregation that, in Baker's words, loves to sing, supported by an Allen Organ, a Yamaha grand piano, and the resonant concrete floor that returns every note to the room.
Youth and Sunday School
Children's ministry at North Hills begins with the year-round nursery during worship and continues through a structured Sunday School program that runs from September through May. Elementary students in kindergarten through third grade meet together; middles in fourth through seventh grade have their own class; and eighth grade and up are formed in Catechism, a hallmark of Reformed catechetical tradition.
The Youth Group, led by Director of Youth Michelle Konik, is open to middle and high school students and combines engaging Bible study with service projects, game nights, and community outreach. The goal, in the church's words, is to give young people a place to grow in faith, build friendships, and have fun, supported by leaders who care.
Recovery Groups and Open Doors
Two recovery groups call North Hills home. Alcoholics Anonymous meets every Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM in the Fellowship Hall, and all are welcome at any time with no advance notice required. Narcotics Anonymous meets every Monday evening at 6:30 PM at Pilgrim Congregational Church, the congregation's friends across the street, also open to all who come. The willingness of the church to host these meetings reflects its broader commitment to fellowship as a ministry of the gospel, whether that means softball leagues, pinochle nights, the Thursday senior fellowship, or simply opening the doors of the Fellowship Hall to people working a program.
Weddings and Building Use
North Hills offers its sanctuary, Fellowship Hall, and Atrium for weddings and other events. The sanctuary seats 200 in its nave-in-the-round layout, with the Lord's Table, pulpit, and baptismal font at the center. The 8-foot Yamaha grand piano and the two-manual Allen Organ are available for services. The sky-lit Fellowship Hall accommodates up to 130 for a sit-down dinner and many more for a stand-up reception, with access to the adjoining Atrium, kitchen, chairs, and tables. The Atrium's floor-to-ceiling windows look out onto a memorial garden with a brick walkway, teak benches, and a bronze sculpture by the late Douglas Chick, canopied by thirty-year-old redbud trees planted by the church's first pastor. The church's pastor must officiate at weddings held in the sanctuary and is also available for pre-marital counseling. The Fellowship Hall is not available on Saturday nights.
The People Who Lead
The church is served by a pastoral staff headed by Rev. Dr. Randall Engle, who also serves as Council President. Jenna Patten is Director of Youth and Administration. Noah Cherry serves as Associate Music and Social Media Director. Mary Baker is the organist. The Council includes Vice President Michael Lopez, President of the Diaconate and Treasurer Leo Ortel, and Clerk Ray Rowell. Six parishes organize the congregation geographically, with paired elders and deacons covering the east side, Birmingham and West Bloomfield, Royal Oak-Ferndale-Berkley, north and Rochester, Troy, and the west side.
The Child Care Center is led by a Director and supported by an administrative assistant and a teaching team across its infant, toddler, and preschool classrooms.
Joining In
Worship is at the center, with Sunday morning services at 9:30 AM in person and via YouTube livestream. A weekly newsletter carries each Sunday's order of worship and announcements. Giving is available online through a secure portal, and prayer requests can be shared through an online form. For families exploring early-childhood education, the Child Care Center accepts inquiries through its enrollment page.
Whatever the entry point, the invitation is the same one visitors have been hearing since the church was formed in the years just after the Caswell farmhouse came down: come and experience for yourself what makes North Hills a great place for adults and children to grow in their walks of faith.