A Welcoming United Methodist Church in Olathe
Aldersgate United Methodist Church sits on the south side of Olathe at 15315 West 151st Street, a short drive from neighboring communities in the Johnson County stretch of the Kansas City metro. The motto that appears on every page of its communications sums up the spirit of the place: "God Loves Everyone, and So Do We!" The congregation describes itself as "a Christian community that believes God is calling us to be spiritually ALIVE, socially INVOLVED, and selflessly SERVING," and those three words - alive, involved, serving - shape nearly everything the church does through the week.
Aldersgate is a member congregation of the international United Methodist Church and is part of the Great Plains Conference, the regional body that connects Olathe to United Methodist churches across Kansas, Nebraska and beyond. The church campus includes a sanctuary, classrooms on a lower level, and an attached preschool. Pastor Shelly McNaughton-Lawrence, who joined the staff in July 2006, brings more than two decades of ordained ministry in Kansas and other states to the pulpit; her long tenure has helped stabilize the rhythm of a congregation whose calendar covers everything from preschool graduations to international mission trips.
Sunday Morning at 9:30, In-Person and Online
The principal Sunday worship service gathers at 9:30 AM Central Time. It is offered both on-site and via the church's YouTube livestream, so members in town, snowbirds, college students away from home, and anyone traveling can worship together. Services are Bible-based and built around the pattern of traditional Wesleyan worship: meaningful and dynamic preaching, communal and personal prayer, readings from the Old and New Testaments, and a variety of music that the church describes as running "from traditional to contemporary but always enriches worship." On the first Sunday of each month, the congregation celebrates open-table Holy Communion, to which all who believe in Christ are invited to come, regardless of church membership. Worship is followed by a brief transition, and at 10:45 AM the church opens its classrooms for Sunday School.
Sunday School at 10:45 for Every Age
Sunday School is treated as a core part of the week, not a sideline. The 10:45 AM hour offers classes for children, youth, and adults meeting simultaneously throughout the building. A computerized check-in system on the lower level prints nametags for children ages 3 through fifth grade, providing peace of mind for parents dropping kids off in the basement classrooms. Volunteer teachers who work with children and youth at Aldersgate complete Safe Gatherings, a Biblically-based boundary awareness and abuse prevention program endorsed by the Great Plains Conference.
Music Across the Sanctuary
Music is a defining feature of Aldersgate worship. Four standing groups keep the music program running.
- Aldersgate Choir is open to adults and senior high students; they sing worship anthems of all styles at both Sunday worship services and rehearse Wednesdays at 7:00 PM. No audition is required, and any skill level is welcomed.
- Bells Angels is the bell choir, which rehearses Tuesdays at 7:00 PM; a second bell choir also meets Tuesdays at 6:00 PM, and youth as well as adults are invited. No prior experience is required.
- Gateway Band provides a contemporary flavor through acoustic and electric guitars, keyboard, drums, and tambourines, leading worship on a monthly schedule.
- Children's Choir includes children from age 4 through fifth grade and rehearses on Sundays; questions go to Worship Art Director Becky Waters.
Much of the vocal and instrumental work is coordinated through Becky Waters, the church's Worship Art Director, who also oversees Children's Choir, Congregational Care, and several other ministry teams.
Children's Ministry from Age 3
The children's wing of Aldersgate is built on the Deep Blue Connects: At Home with God curriculum, a series that invites children to explore families in the Bible, build loving relationships, and discover what it means to be part of God's family. Younger children drop in at the basement classrooms a few minutes before 10:45; older children join Kids Church during a separate time. Children's Sunday School is structured around four ideals: Be with God, love God and neighbor, understand themselves as children of God, and explore faith and the Bible.
Kid Creator
During the 9:30 worship service, children ages 3 through third grade are invited after the Children's Time to walk to the east end of the building (the Preschool area) for Kid Creator, a gathering with a story, an offering, praise songs, and activities designed for early elementary ages.
Third Grade Bibles
Each fall, Aldersgate continues the long Methodist tradition of presenting every third grader with a Bible of his or her own. The presentation happens during a worship service in September, with a personalized bookplate placed inside each Bible.
Across all of this, Children's Faith Formation Director Kara Stanley leads the program's planning, supported by Julie France, the Childcare Director, who manages the church's nursery care during worship and programming. The nursery is open during selected large events and stays open for younger children during major mission assemblies like Hygiene Kit packing.
Youth: AUMY, Confirmation, and the Pumpkin Patch
Sixth grade and older make up AUMY, the Aldersgate United Methodist Youth. They meet for Sunday School in the youth room downstairs at 10:45 AM, then continue with a regular calendar that includes game nights, movie nights, Christmas parties, an annual Youth Sunday, retreats, and a mission trip. The group identifies as "open and affirming" and affirms that "All Means All." Preschool through eighth graders can be picked up at 11:50 AM in the sanctuary.
Confirmation
Confirmation classes are open to students in sixth grade or older. Weekly studies run through the program year and conclude in April on Confirmation Sunday, when confirmands become full members of Aldersgate. A confirmation information meeting is held each fall to walk families through expectations.
The Pumpkin Patch
One of the most visible youth traditions is the Pumpkin Patch each October. Youth and adult volunteers operate the patch as the youth program's main fundraiser; proceeds defray the cost of mission trips, including the international trip the church organizes every few years.
The Bridge for Young Adults
Recognizing a gap between youth ministry and traditional adult ministry, Aldersgate launched The Bridge for adults who consider themselves young adults (often 18 to 40, though "all who consider themselves a young adult are welcome"). The Bridge is organized around three anchors: games, food, and fellowship. Events are added as the group grows, with the team inviting anyone interested to call the church office at 913-764-7560 for the next gathering.
Adult Sunday School and Midweek Bible Study
Adult education is built around four Sunday morning classes that meet during the 10:45 AM hour.
- Side by Side meets in Rooms 1 and 2 downstairs and pursues four- to eight-week studies that range from Bible studies to social issues and spiritual growth.
- Christians in a Secular World (CISW) gathers in Room 4 in the basement and discusses Christian responses to current events through the lenses of science, history, and politics.
- Genesis, in Room 3, studies the Bible verse by verse starting with the book of Genesis and welcomes every perspective.
- Wellspring, the newest class in Room 6, is built for parents raising children and explores how to weave faith into family life.
A separate Midweek Bible Study runs Tuesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 PM in Room 110. Past studies have ranged from Adam Hamilton's Confronting the Controversies to the book of Matthew, Angels, Revelation, and The Gospel according to Dr. Seuss. The class welcomes questions; inquiries go to John Hall.
Women at the Gate, Anna's Circle, and a Monthly Book Club
Women's ministry at Aldersgate is organized under the banner Women at the Gate, which connects the local group to United Women of Faith, an organization of roughly 800,000 members in United Methodist churches across the country and especially within the Great Plains Conference. The local chapter runs small groups, studies, and special events including catered lunch meetings, Saturday breakfast programs, retreats, and mission fundraising projects. Several standing offerings are part of the rhythm:
- Anna's Circle meets the first Wednesday of every month at 10:00 AM in the Youth Room for fellowship and spiritual enrichment.
- Monthly Book Club gathers once a month, usually at 7:00 PM on the third Friday, at members' homes; the year's reading list is chosen in January.
- Annual events include the catered luncheons and retreats that link Women at the Gate members to regional United Women of Faith gatherings.
United Methodist Men and the FOGYs
Men of the church gather as Aldersgate United Methodist Men, a chapter that supports the congregation and community through outreach. The group sponsors an annual golf tournament to raise money for area nonprofits, plans and serves the Easter SonRise Breakfast, works on Habitat for Humanity projects, and supports the Salvation Army and other community partners. The men also schedule work retreats at Camp Chippewa, helping repair and maintain that United Methodist camp. Their stated purpose is to provide a forum for men of all ages to grow spiritually together, to support one another, and to serve as mentors and role models. A weekly Midweek Devotion meets Thursdays at 7:00 AM at the McDonald's at 151st and Black Bob for a short devotional and fellowship.
Senior Adults: FOGYs
Older adults in the church have their own circle called FOGYs - Far Out Golden Years. The group meets roughly monthly at area restaurants around Olathe, from Joe's BBQ to Third Street Social to K Macho Mexican. Past projects have included serving dinner at the Salvation Army and helping fill Easter eggs for the Aldersgate Lenten Fair; the gathering is described as open to "anybody who is young at heart."
Congregational Care
Aldersgate's congregational care program is a newer chapter that has replaced the Stephen Ministry program the church ran for several years. A current team of Congregational Care Ministers is trained through Stephen Ministry and additional coursework offered by Church of the Resurrection. Their focus is active listening, caregiving, prayer, mentoring, and sacramental support grounded in scripture, tradition, experience, and reason. They walk alongside members and friends who are going through seasons of stress, crisis, or change. Training for new Care Ministers is offered annually. Anyone with a care need is invited to reach out through the church office to Rev. Shelly McNaughton-Lawrence.
Mission: Olathe Schools, Kenya, Guatemala, and Beyond
Aldersgate's mission footprint stretches from the surrounding neighborhoods to half a world away. Locally, the church maintains a long partnership with Westview Elementary, a 60-year-old Title 1 school near Olathe. Each year church members help students go on special field trips, provide Christmas gifts for students and their families, and serve teachers a soup-and-salad appreciation meal. The church also partners more broadly with Olathe Public Schools through a newer relationship, including summer reading programs that collect books for children birth through age 11 (through Reach Out and Read Kansas City and the Olathe School District), and a back-to-school gift-card drive for returning students.
Other mission work includes:
- Hygiene Kits assembled on-site for Heart to Heart International, distributed locally, across the U.S., and worldwide.
- Habitat for Humanity volunteer days at Pathways at Heritage Park and other local job sites.
- Numana food packaging, an annual assembly-line event that has produced tens of thousands of sealed, vitamin-enriched rice-and-bean meals for distribution through Convoy of Hope, with most boxes headed to East Africa.
- Kenyan Mission Outreach, which Aldersgate sponsors in partnership with others.
- Guatemala Mission Trip, a recurring international trip the church organizes; an information meeting each summer or fall walks prospective travelers through details.
- The annual Rummage Sale, which raises funds for the Music Ministries program, and an Aldersgate Recycles program that funnels reusable goods into Habitat ReStore.
- A Westview Christmas Sponsorship table in the commons each November where members adopt a child from the school's community.
Community Food Drive
The church also runs a monthly food drive; September's collection focuses on Ramen Noodles to support local food shelves.
Aldersgate Preschool and Children's Choir
At the east end of the church building, Aldersgate Preschool offers weekday early-childhood education under Director Mary Rigdon, sharing facilities with the church and connecting preschool families to the wider congregation through events like Kid Creator and Children's Choir. The Preschool is part of the church's ministry to neighborhood families and a natural entry point for younger parents into the life of the church.
Leadership and Visiting Aldersgate
Senior Pastor Rev. Shelly McNaughton-Lawrence oversees the staff, which also includes Worship Art Director Becky Waters, Director of Discipleship Janet Loos, Children's Faith Formation Director Kara Stanley, Worship Media Manager Brittany Ball, Childcare Director Julie France, and Preschool Director Mary Rigdon, alongside Office Assistant DeEtt Hobbs, who fields calls and schedules visits. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM at 913-764-7560.
First-time visitors are welcomed into a Sunday that begins at 9:30 AM with worship (livestream available on YouTube), moves at 10:45 AM into age-appropriate Sunday School, and includes Holy Communion on the first Sunday. Children's check-in is by nametag at the bottom of the stairs; the nursery is open during selected events and during large assembly projects. Giving is available online through the church's secure giving portal, and a weekly newsletter is offered by email for those who want to keep up with everything from the Pumpkin Patch to the Lunch Bunch.