A Downtown Church That Twice Chose to Stay
Westminster Presbyterian Church has stood at 47 Jefferson Avenue SE in Grand Rapids' Heartside neighborhood for more than a century and a half, and the building itself is older than that. The congregation was organized by a church during the first months of the Civil War when twenty-five members from First Presbyterian Church on the west bank of the Grand River crossed over to plant a new church on the east side. They asked the Reverend Courtney Smith, known as a revivalist and an intellectual, to be their first pastor. In 1875 they moved to their present site, and the Gothic Revival sanctuary where they meet today was completed in 1885.
Two moments in the church's later history shaped its identity. In the 1920s, and again in the 1980s, Westminster was offered the chance to relocate to the growing edges of Grand Rapids. Both times, the congregation chose to stay downtown. That choice is the thread that ties Westminster's life together: a downtown presence, sustained week by week, expressed through three long-standing missions that serve the surrounding neighborhood and the wider West Michigan region.
Sunday Worship at Ten
One service gathers the congregation each Sunday, in person and on YouTube at 10:00 a.m. Worship is described as traditional and rich with music, with a printed bulletin that anyone can follow. Each service follows the historic Presbyterian order: a call to worship, readings, prayers, a sermon, and the Passing of the Peace, a moment when the congregation turns to greet one another with phrases like "Peace of Christ" or simply "Peace." Hymn numbers are taken from the purple hymnal in the pew, and visitors are warmly invited to sing along. Services typically last about an hour and fifteen minutes.
Westminster deliberately practices an expansive welcome. Every Sunday the congregation hears something close to this: "Because we follow Christ, absolutely everyone is welcome. We don't assume or presume you to be Christian; we only hope to follow Christ's example of welcome and love to all." Members of the LGBTQ community, many of them longtime attendees, are explicitly named as full participants in the life of the church, and a study paper titled "A Visible Sign of New Humanity" is offered to anyone who wants to read more about the theological grounding for that welcome.
Doubt is welcome, too. The church teaches that questioning is part of faith and that the Bible, while taken seriously as the inspired Word of God, is read and struggled with rather than used to set people aside. "God alone is Lord of the conscience" is one of the church's stated principles; no one is required to agree on every point of understanding to belong at Westminster.
The Building and Its Instruments
Worship takes place in a sanctuary that holds up to 800 people, with pew seating on the main floor and a balcony reached by stairs at the back. There are no projectors or screens in the Sanctuary; the liturgy is held in the bulletin and the hymnal. A smaller chapel, which seats about 100, is used for weddings, smaller services, and adult faith formation.
The organ is an Aeolian-Skinner Opus 965, built in 1937 and later updated by the Lauck Organ Company and the Holtkamp Organ Company of Cleveland. It has three manuals and fifty-eight ranks. The music library also includes a Flemish single harpsichord built by Ernest Miller with chinoiserie decoration, two Steinway grand pianos, two Yamaha upright pianos, a Knabe grand piano, timpani, chimes, Orff instruments, seven octaves of Malmark handbells, and a collection of wind and percussion instruments.
Twenty-three pictorial stained glass windows and three non-pictorial windows line the sanctuary. The Resurrection window on the west wall, installed in the late 1880s, uses pomegranates shown open and ready to scatter their seeds, along with oak leaves, a crown, vines, the Cross, and the Trinity, to picture Christ and the promise of resurrection.
A Music Program for Every Generation
Music is foundational at Westminster, and the program is unusually broad for a single congregation. The Sanctuary Choir, the adult ensemble that leads worship most weeks, rehearses on Thursday evenings and sings a range of music from the Renaissance to the present. The Westminster Festival Orchestra, a professional orchestra of Westminster members and non-members, joins the choirs for services and concerts. Westminster Winds is a wind ensemble open to sixth graders through adults; the Bell Choir, for sixth grade through adults, and Middle School Bells rehearse weekly, and the Westminster Festival Strings brings together volunteer string players from sixth grade on up.
Younger voices have their own choirs. The Cherub Choir welcomes preschool through first grade; the Carol Choir serves second through fifth grade. Kirk Singers is the high school choir, and Chapel Singers is the middle school choir. Children's choir anthems are chosen to extend the Bible story the children are exploring in church school that month and to follow the rhythm of the church year.
Music Minister Robert Ragoonanan directs the Sanctuary Choir, Kirk Singers, Chapel Singers, and Westminster Festival Orchestra. Lindsey Hoekstra directs the Cherub and Carol Choirs. John Martin directs Westminster Winds; Sarah Faasse directs the Bell Choir and Middle School Bells; and Lee Copenhaver directs the Festival Strings. New singers and instrumentalists are welcome at any point in the year.
Children from the Start
Children are part of the worshiping congregation from the beginning. They begin Sunday morning in the sanctuary with their families and stay through the service; worship notebooks and bags are available in the Narthex for younger children, and greeters can help locate them. After a blessing in the sanctuary around 10:20 a.m., children ages three through second grade move to age-appropriate Worship Centers; older children go to Church School exploration workshops and choirs at 11:15 a.m. The Westminster Nursery, staffed by paid caregivers and a parent or volunteer on hand each week, is open from 9:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. during the school year for children age three and under.
The Nurturing Center, for three- and four-year-olds, gathers for a short story, prayer, supervised play, and response time, with art supplies, blocks, puzzles, and Play-doh set out for exploration. Worship Centers, for ages five through second grade, follow the order of worship used in the sanctuary but present the scripture through hands-on story materials. Church School, for first through fifth graders, spends a month on a single story or set of events, rotating through drama, games, art, and Bible skills workshops.
Nancy Greidanus is the Minister for Children and Their Families, and Amanda Schnepp serves as the education assistant. Children's choirs and the annual children's musical are part of the rhythm of the year.
Youth Ministry
Middle and high schoolers are invited into a "brave space" where, in the words of the youth mission statement, "the practices of prayer, worship, learning, and service empower them to live in compassion, peace, justice, and hope." All youth are invited to a meal after worship on Sundays during the program year, and the year includes retreats, choir rehearsals, service weekends, and other social events. A fall retreat at Camp Henry and a Service Weekend in Battle Creek are scheduled each year.
The youth staff is led by Kat Hand, Minister with Youth and Young Adults, and Hailey Malcolm, Youth Ministry Associate. A Youth Committee, made up of youth and adults, guides the work. The program is shaped around six core values: faith journeys, inclusion, friendship, integration, servant leadership, and joy.
Adult Faith Formation and the Westminster Presbyterian Adults
Faith formation for adults at Westminster runs along two tracks. On Sunday mornings, fifteen minutes after the service ends, adults gather in the chapel for sessions that mix learning, reflection, discernment, and spiritual practice; topics range from theology and Bible study to creation care, mental health, justice, and spiritual practices. Coffee and cookies are part of the rhythm, and sessions end by 12:30 p.m. during the program year.
Weekday and evening offerings include book studies like "10 Habits of a Peacemaker" and the Kaufman Interfaith Institute's group on The Road to Wisdom, an "Antiracism as a Way of Being" cohort that meets weekly for six weeks in the fall, a Words and Art Group that begins each session with a poem or a passage and then turns to sketching or other art forms, and a fall retreat at Camp Henry. Westminster Presbyterian Adults, known as WPA, is the congregation's fellowship ministry for older adults, with or without retirement, and meets on the second Wednesday of most months for guest presentations, luncheons, and bus trips.
Three Core Missions: Camp Henry, the WCDC, and the Downtown Food Pantry
Three institutions define Westminster's outward-facing life.
Camp Henry, the church's year-round camp on more than two hundred acres at Kimball Lake in Newaygo, Michigan, has offered summer camping to children and youth since 1937. Camp Henry also hosts retreats, local school groups, and other gatherings throughout the year. Jeff "Jake" Jacobs serves as Executive Director.
The Westminster Child Development Center (WCDC), founded in 1969, provides high-quality childcare for infants through school-aged children. Fees are based on income so that the WCDC can serve households of all income levels, and the program has been a part of the neighborhood for more than fifty years. Amber Marz-Momany directs the Center.
The Downtown Food Pantry, created in 1990, provides an emergency supply of food and personal care items to people in need in the Heartside neighborhood and promotes self-sufficiency through referrals. The pantry is open on Thursdays from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and operates two sub-pantries, one at Central Reformed Church and another in the Ransom Towers apartment complex. Key partner congregations include LaGrave Christian Reformed Church, First United Methodist Church, St. Mark's Episcopal Church, St. Andrews Cathedral, and Fountain Street Church. Cindy Zajic is the Food Pantry Coordinator.
Open Door and the Heartside Neighborhood
Across the street and around the block, Westminster is a neighbor first. The Open Door Ministry opens the south entrance of the church as a day space for Heartside neighbors on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Guests can come in to stay warm in winter or cool in summer, with coffee, tea, snacks, restroom access, and a smartphone charging station. The program does not offer a meal or direct phone use, but it offers what its leaders describe as a place to relax and feel welcomed. The program is led by Brian Kamstra, Westminster's Community Resource Coordinator, and is a return of an earlier ministry that operated before the COVID-19 pandemic. Westminster is working with Dégagé, Mel Trotter, and other area congregations to grow Open Door into a Community Service Center.
Justice, Broad-Based Organizing, and Mission Partnerships
Westminster's identity as a justice-focused congregation is as central to its story as its music. Westminster places social justice at the heart of the gospel's demand, and in 2020 the Session approved approximately one percent of the church's operating budget to be paid annually as dues to Together West Michigan, a broad-based organization affiliated with the Industrial Areas Foundation, the nation's oldest network of faith- and community-based organizing. Together West Michigan, which launched in October 2021, builds relational power across lines of race, socioeconomics, and faith to address social problems at their root. Westminster is one of more than twenty local institutions committed to the work.
Westminster's Mission Partnerships Committee supports additional partnerships, including work in Cuba with First Hand Aid and the Güines Presbyterian Church, and relationships with A.Y.A. Youth Collective, the Grand Rapids Center for Community Transformation, the Community Food Club, Dégagé Ministries, Guiding Light, the Haiti Nursing Foundation Scholarships, the Kaufman Interfaith Institute, Mel Trotter Mission, and United Campus Christian Fellowship. The church's public statement on racial justice is unambiguous: "To insist that black lives matter, for followers of Jesus, is to believe that all are created in the image of God," and the church offers a substantial anti-racism reading and resource list for adults and parents.
Pastoral Care and the Molhoek-McPheeters Fund
Pastoral care at Westminster is a shared ministry of pastors, deacons, and staff. Susan Jennings, Minister for Pastoral Care, Mission, and Membership, leads the team and is the first call for members and non-members alike. The Reverend Jen Porter and the Reverend Lynette Sparks also respond to pastoral needs. Care is confidential and is provided to anyone who asks for it, whether or not they are members of the church.
The Barbara Molhoek-Callum McPheeters Fund for Mental and Spiritual Health, established in 2015 through the generosity of John Molhoek, helps members of the faith community and the wider neighborhood cover the cost of outpatient mental health services with providers on a vetted referral panel. The fund is available to anyone seeking help, whether or not they are members of Westminster, and can cover copays and deductibles up to a maximum of $520 per person for up to six sessions.
Leadership and Governance
Westminster is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), part of the Reformed Tradition, and sits within the Presbytery of Lake Michigan. Leadership is shared between the staff and the congregation, following the Presbyterian pattern. The Senior Pastor and Head of Staff is the Reverend Lynette Sparks; the Associate Pastor is the Reverend Jen Porter; the Parish Associate is the Reverend Kyle Kooyers.
Elders, deacons, and trustees are elected by the congregation. Elders sit on the Session, the church's governing board, along with the installed pastors. Deacons, organized as Caring Deacons and Supporting Deacons, reflect the heart and service of Christ in care for those in need. Trustees oversee the property, fiscal, and legal obligations of the congregation. With more than 1,000 members, Westminster is a congregation-led community in which a wide circle of members serves on committees for Adult Faith Formation, Children and Family Ministries, Communications, Facilities, Justice, Membership Growth and Development, Mission Partnerships, Music, Stewardship, Technology, Worship, Youth, and Westminster Presbyterian Adults.
What Visitors Should Know
Westminster is handicap accessible throughout. Handicap parking spaces are in the main parking lot off Jefferson Avenue, and a T-coil-compatible hearing loop is installed in the sanctuary; large print hymnals and Bibles are available from the ushers. Ushers and a welcome center in the Gathering Place can help with seating, including the balcony, which is reached by stairs at the back of the sanctuary. The bulletin gives the order of service and the hymn numbers, so visitors can follow along without prior preparation.
The church's parking lot is on the south side of the building, off Jefferson Avenue, across from State Street and the Public Museum High School. Street parking around the church is free on weekends. There is a second lot along LaGrave on the west side of the building that is free on Sundays until 1:00 p.m., and on Sundays visitors may also enter through the Sanctuary doors at the corner of Weston and LaGrave or through the doors on Weston across from the Grand Rapids Fire Department. The Rapid bus system stops nearby, with Route 14 and Route 15 one block north on Fulton, and Route 1 two blocks west.
Building hours are Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The building is closed Saturday and Saturday. Visitors who want to be greeted personally can fill out a request on the visitors page, and a member of the congregation will be in touch before they arrive.
Baptisms, Weddings, and Funerals
Baptism is offered approximately every other months. The baptismal font in the sanctuary has been in continuous use since 1887; the first child baptized in it was Oden Hughart Howard on July 17, 1887, and the font was given to Westminster by his grandmother, Jane Alanson Howard. Parents of infants and young children meet with a member of the pastoral staff and the Minister for Children and Their Families prior to a baptism.
Weddings at Westminster are open to members and their families in the sanctuary, which seats up to 800, or the chapel, which seats up to 100. Westminster Presbyterian Church clergy, or approved Presbyterian pastors, officiate; visiting clergy may assist with prior approval. The church does not host weddings for non-members.
Funerals are scheduled through the pastoral staff.
Getting Involved
Westminster runs on the gifts of its members, and there are many ways to participate. Visitors and members can volunteer with Camp Henry, the Downtown Food Pantry, or the WCDC; serve as a greeter, usher, or worship leader; teach in children's church school or lead in the youth program; sing in a choir or play in one of the ensembles; join Together West Michigan's organizing work; or help with the AV or Tech Assistance teams. A 2026 Giving Intentions form is available online for those who want to support the church financially; gifts can also be made online, by check, through the offering plate, as gifts of stock, through a qualified charitable distribution from an IRA, or as a legacy gift through an estate plan. Online giving is processed through the Engage platform. The Deacon Fund, supported by the congregation, assists members with short-term financial needs such as utilities, transportation, and insurance.
Tea for Two, a digital engagement initiative, pairs members for one-on-one virtual or in-person meetings - over coffee, a Google Meet, a Discord call, or at a neighborhood restaurant - to nurture the friendships that hold a hybrid community together.
The Westminster Welcome
Westminster's own way of describing what it is comes from its statement of welcome: "Because we follow Christ, absolutely everyone is welcome." That welcome is visible in the words spoken from the pulpit on Sunday mornings, in the rainbow of members who have belonged there for decades, in the food pantry's Thursday hours, in the day space offered to those who need a warm and a chair, in the choirs that rehearse every century, in the stained glass that has watched over the sanctuary since the 1880s, and in the decision, made twice, to keep the church where it is.