Brookside's Longest Worshiping Congregation
Second Presbyterian Church sits in the Brookside neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri, on 55th Street between Brookside Boulevard and Oak Street, about a mile south of the Country Club Plaza. The congregation was established in 1865 as an anti-slavery church and considers itself the longest continuously worshiping congregation in Kansas City. Over more than a century and a half, the people of Second have planted churches, weathered losses, and stayed rooted through waves of demographic change in the city. The church's mission statement sums up its posture: "We exist to love God, ourselves and others - whoever, however and wherever they are - with a love that transforms us all."
The building itself holds layers of that history. Members have marked Second's 161st birthday by displaying architectural drawings from 1914 and 1916 of the current church building, showing how spaces have been used and re-imagined across the decades. The bell tower entrance at the corner of 55th and Oak opens into the sanctuary; a side transept door with ramp access makes that entrance barrier-free. A west-side entry with both steps and a ramp leads from the parking lot to the Community Room, the church offices, and the lower level, with stairs and an elevator rising to the sanctuary above.
Sunday Mornings at Second
Sunday worship begins at 10:15 a.m. in person, with services also livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook. The livestream kicks off shortly before worship; if it does not appear, the church recommends refreshing. Sermons and full services are uploaded to a YouTube archive by Tuesday afternoon for those who want to revisit a service or catch up.
The hour before worship, from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m., is Connection Hour. Sunday School runs September through May for children from age 4 through 5th grade, with a quick breakfast served in Westminster Hall from 8:45 a.m. so families can drop kids off early. During the summer, the same slot becomes Summer Story Lab. A Parents' Group meets in the gallery at 9:00 a.m. during the school year, offering a space for caregivers to talk through how to pass faith along to their kids. Adult classes fill the same hour too, including Bible studies, theology discussions, and pop-up sessions on topics like the local reparations commission or Missouri's Amendment 5.
Worship itself is intentionally intergenerational. A Pray-Ground in the transept offers craft tables, coloring tools, clipboards, and room to move for kindergarteners and older. Children's bulletins walk kids through the service. Fidgets, pillows for nursing parents, and a restroom with a changing table just outside the transept doors are all part of the setup. For children from birth through age 4, nursery care is provided in Room 305 on the third floor, staffed by professional caregivers from Nannies of KC.
Children, Youth, and Families
The Child & Family Ministries program is built around five words: be safe, be known, be loved, be heard, belong. Sam Murphy serves as Director of Child & Family Ministries, and the program spans nursery through 12th grade.
For children in preschool through 5th grade, the rhythm of the year includes a Children's Christmas Pageant in December, an Easter Block Party in the spring, Second Kids Camp each July, and Parents' Night Out events four times a year (October, November, February, April) for kids age 6 weeks through 5th grade. Pre-Teen Hang Outs for 3rd through 5th graders happen on the second Sunday of each month after worship, mixing social and service activities.
Youth Ministry is for students in 6th through 12th grade, led by Pastor Sarah Speed and Jennifer Lynn. On Sunday mornings from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m., Cocoa & Conversation gathers in the youth room on the third floor with a hot chocolate bar and conversation about the week. On Sunday evenings from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., youth group meets and rotates through four weeks of fellowship, creativity, study, and service, anchored in four truths: God is joyful, God is creative, God is with us, God is just. Each gathering includes dinner, connection time, and prayer. Summers bring a lock-in or a longer trip, alternating in-town service days with out-of-town service learning trips for junior high, and domestic or international service learning trips alternating with the Montreat Youth Conference for senior high.
The 20s & 30s Ministry
Whether someone is "swiping through Hinge, cramming for a grad school exam, or rocking a baby to sleep," the 20s & 30s Ministry is built around them. Pastor Sarah Speed and Sophia Thuenemann, Director of Engagement, lead this open and affirming group. Recent get-togethers have included trivia nights at Gaels, an apple-picking trip to Cider Hill Family Orchard, Friendsgiving, a Chiefs tailgate, brewery hangouts at Casual Animal Brewery, Monarchs baseball games, and Sunday morning coffee at Crow's Coffee.
For those who work remotely, every other Thursday morning the church opens as a co-working space from 8:00 a.m. to noon, with coffee, snacks, wifi, and a conference room reserved for Zoom calls. An optional lunch together follows at noon. A WhatsApp group called "Second Pres Young Adults" carries prayer requests and casual hangout invitations between events. Anyone curious about Second, wrestling with faith, or wanting a coffee on the church is invited to email Pastor Sarah.
Member-Led Groups
A wide range of small groups meets at the church throughout the week, most of them led by members rather than staff.
- Second Act gathers people who have moved past the career-and-family-raising years and are ready for what comes next. The group meets for fellowship and for conversations about faithful living in this season.
- A Wednesday morning group from 10:00 a.m. to noon in the Community Room brings artists and would-be artists together with their projects.
- The Cross Stitch Group meets Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. in the Community Room.
- A Bible study on third Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. in the library and on Zoom works through studies like United Through Christ, Bound to Each Other, Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians.
- A Thursday book discussion at noon in the library works through theological texts, currently William Barclay's commentary on Paul's Letter to the Philippians.
- The Downtown Bible Study, started by Second Church in the 1980s, still meets Thursdays at noon in the San Francisco Tower in Crown Center, currently studying Psalms and Proverbs.
- The Widows' Support Group meets Tuesdays and Fridays at 9:00 a.m. at HJ's Youth and Community Center on Wornall.
- Dinners for 7 small groups form over the summer, then gather for an end-of-season happy hour in the courtyard.
Care and Support
Second takes seriously what the author of Galatians called "bearing one another's burdens." A prayer list goes out in the Tuesday newsletter each week, prayer cards sit in the sanctuary pews for sharing requests with Pastor Sarah, and after worship two deacons pray under the large transept window with anyone who has a joy or a heartache to lift up. Pastor Sarah sets aside time weekly for one-on-one coffee meetings.
The church supports a monthly Faith and Grief gathering for those who have lost a loved one, in partnership with the wider Faith and Grief network. A board of 15 deacons is paired with individuals or families for three-year walks of care. The congregation organizes temporary meal trains for new parents, those recovering from surgery, or anyone weathering a temporary illness, offering up to three meals. Medical equipment - wheelchairs, canes, walkers, shower chairs, and more - is available to check out from the church. Memorial services and funerals are a regular part of congregational life, and a pre-planning form lets members record their own wishes in advance.
Standing for Inclusion and Justice
Second identifies as a More Light congregation and a member of the Covenant Network, both of which promote the full inclusion and affirmation of LGBTQIA+ individuals in the church. A Thursday evening Pride Worship service in June gathers the community for a service of joy, celebration, and affirmation. The congregation also affirms the longstanding PC(USA) stance of welcoming refugees, supporting their resettlement, seeking family reunification, and opposing policies that endanger or forcibly return them.
The Racial Justice Group maintains an active blog sharing articles, book reviews, and resources on racial justice, Indigenous rights, and historical reform. Recent posts have covered Kansas City's reparations commission, the restoration of a historic Black church in Parkville, a Black flight school carrying on the Tuskegee tradition, and the fight to save Haskell Indian Nations University. A Solidarity and Social Change class has hosted leaders like Terri Barnes, chair of the Mayor's Commission on Reparations.
The church is also a certified Earth Care Congregation through the PC(USA), reflecting a commitment to environmental stewardship alongside its other justice work. As a Matthew 25 congregation, Second has committed to three denominational priorities: eradicating poverty, dismantling structural racism, and building congregational vitality.
Serving Kansas City
Faith at Second shows up in hands-on service around the city. Volunteers cook and serve at Cross-Lines on second Mondays. On the second and fourth Wednesdays, a crew works the BackSnack line at Harvesters - a commitment of more than a decade. The Covenant Food Pantry receives ongoing donations of staple foods and cash, with Front Porch Concerts serving as drop-off points during the summer.
Once a year, in October, "Be the Church Sunday" replaces the usual worship service. The congregation gathers for breakfast at Second and then fans out to mission sites around Kansas City for a day of service, compassion, and solidarity with neighbors and other local churches.
Music, Art, and the Building
Sharee Thompson serves as Music Director and Organist, with Bill Krusemark as Interim Choir Director. The Sanctuary itself is available for weddings, funerals, and concerts, alongside a roster of rental spaces: Westminster Hall, the Courtyard, the Chapel, the Community Room (capacity 40), the Front Porch, the Gallery, the Third Floor Lobby, the Lounge, the Library, and the KC Room. Members of Second Presbyterian receive a 20% discount on rentals.
Art is part of the church's regular rhythm. Art on Oak, a quarterly show in the gallery, runs over a Friday evening and Saturday afternoon with local musicians, wine, and appetizers. The gallery also hosts solo exhibitions, recently featuring textile artist Michelle Bono. In the summer, Front Porch Concerts bring free performances to the front steps - past guests have included the Mighty MO Jazz Orchestra, Columbia Blue, the Heart of America Barbershop Chorus, and Sean McNown.
ECLC: An On-Site Preschool
Second houses the Early Childhood Learning Center (ECLC), a weekday preschool directed by Trish Jones. The preschool is woven into church life, with splash pad meet-ups at Roe Park and other seasonal gatherings for ECLC families.
Visiting and Getting Connected
The address is 318 East 55th Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64113. Visitor parking is reserved in the west parking lot; accessible parking is in the north lot. Street parking is also available on 55th and surrounding neighborhood streets. The southeast entrance at the bell tower (corner of 55th and Oak) has ramp access to the side transept door. The west-side entry, with both steps and a ramp, leads to the Community Room, offices, and first level, with stairs and an elevator to the Sanctuary.
For newcomers, a "First Look at Second" session in the library after worship gives a chance to learn about the congregation's history, values, and ministries. Three times a year, a New Member Breakfast welcomes those who want to make Second their church home. The office phone is (816) 363-1300. The general email is staff@secondpres.org, and connect@secondpres.org is the address for prayer requests, meal trains, newsletter sign-ups, or a coffee with Pastor Sarah. Giving is available online through Pushpay.