Bayshore Baptist Church sits on the corner of West Morrison Avenue and South MacDill Avenue in Tampa's Parkland Estates neighborhood, a century-old congregation of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship whose members describe their life together with three words: Welcoming, Transforming, Serving. The church calls itself a community that unites to serve, agrees to disagree, values diversity, and stays rooted in its Baptist heritage while working ecumenically across denominational lines. From the parking lot, greeters meet visitors at the Main Entrance on West Parkland Avenue, and inside the Sanctuary each Sunday the congregation gathers around a pattern of worship that mixes hymns, scripture from the Revised Common Lectionary, weekly communion, and sermons that take seriously the needs of the city just beyond the building's walls.
A Century on Morrison Avenue
In 1925, the Tampa Baptist City Mission, under C. C. Bums and Dr. George Hyman, organized a committee to find property in Southwest Tampa. A lot at the corner of Deckel, DeSola and South Howard Avenue was purchased, and Dr. Hyman resigned from the Mission to become the first pastor of the new church. A four-hundred-seat chapel was built, and on March 26, 1926, the first worship service was held there. On that day the name Bayshore Baptist Church was chosen.
A year later a loan financed an educational building south of the chapel. The stock market crash of October 28, 1929, and the years of Depression that followed made it nearly impossible for members to meet their pledges; the loan was refinanced in December 1931. The 1940s brought new growth and the chance to retire debt. In June 1945 a building program was launched to relocate the congregation to its present address, and on Thanksgiving morning of 1956, the first service was held in the current Sanctuary.
Through the 1970s, Bayshore's outreach widened. The church launched a program in Robles Park Village, helped start the Christian Coalition Clinic that offered free healthcare to those without resources, ran a kitchen that prepared Meals on Wheels from 1975 to 1992, and began a kindergarten that grew into the current preschool.
Bayshore had been a Southern Baptist congregation from its beginning. In the 1990s, internal conflicts within the Southern Baptist Convention prompted many churches to take public positions they found troubling. Bayshore, especially valuing the gifts of women in places of church leadership, chose to leave the Convention and align with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
A century on, the church continues to support affordable healthcare and housing efforts, food and clothing programs, substance abuse recovery, advocacy for people with disabilities, and other places where the congregation's neighbors find practical help and care.
Sunday Mornings at Bayshore
Sunday worship begins at 10:30 a.m. in the Sanctuary. The service is rooted in traditional Christian liturgy while remaining open to new expressions of faith. The congregation follows the Revised Common Lectionary and is shaped by the seasons of the church year. The Chancel Choir, organ, and piano lead the singing of hymns, and the service includes times of musical meditation, congregational prayers and litanies, sermons of challenge and encouragement that engage the needs of the wider Tampa community, and communion every Sunday.
Before worship, a variety of Sunday School classes for all ages meet at 9:30 a.m. Greeters are available during that hour to help newcomers find a class that fits. Bible Study is also held on Sunday mornings at 9:30 as part of the Sunday School hour.
Children are part of the life of the whole church. Elementary-age children begin worship with their families, taking part in the music and prayers, and are invited halfway through the service to step into the ShoreKids program, where they sing, hear a lesson, and enjoy time with one another. Younger children are cared for in the nursery throughout the morning.
When You Visit
Two entrances lead into the parking lot. The front entrance is at the corner of West Parkland and South MacDill, and a back entrance opens onto West Morrison. Once parked, visitors can use the Main Entrance door facing West Parkland Avenue, where greeters are ready to answer questions.
The Sunday morning worship service begins at 10:30 a.m., with Sunday School for all ages at 9:30 a.m. Childcare is provided during both hours. The nursery is available for children from birth through age three. Children aged four through eleven are welcome in ShoreKids Sunday School at 9:30 and may step into ShoreKids during the 10:30 worship hour. First-time visitors are asked to register children ahead of time so the team can prepare.
Worship is a one-hour gathering that mixes familiar liturgy with the warmth of a neighborhood congregation. Communion is shared every Sunday, and visitors are welcome to participate. Those who would prefer to simply observe are at ease doing so. There is no dress code. Parking is available on site.
For those who want to give, online giving is available, and recordings of recent Sunday services are posted for anyone who wants to revisit a sermon or catch up on a missed Sunday.
ShoreKids: Children from Infants through Fifth Grade
Bayshore takes the safety and formation of its children seriously. All volunteers and staff who work with children are background checked.
- Infants through PreK 4: The nursery is staffed by trained, background-checked caregivers who provide a loving and secure environment for the youngest children during both Sunday School and the worship hour.
- Kindergarten through 5th grade: Children join ShoreKids for age-appropriate Bible lessons and worship. On Wednesday evenings at 6:30 during the school year, ShoreKids shifts to a missions focus. Children learn about mission partners around the world and participate in hands-on projects, including packing weekend backpacks for students at a local partner school who depend on school breakfast and lunch during the week.
Children's Ministry Director Melissa, who oversees ShoreKids alongside Director of Music and Children's Ministry Julie Sylvestre, often says the same thing to her team: she wants the children to know God loves them, and that the church loves them.
The LOFT: Students in Grades 6 through 12
The youth ministry, called the LOFT, meets on Wednesday evenings at 6:00 p.m. under the leadership of Associate Pastor Chris Kravitz. Each Wednesday the students share a meal, usually pizza from a local shop, and then gather for a time of highs and lows where everyone names something good and something hard from their week so the group can learn to support one another. A short Bible study follows, moving through the unfolding narrative of Scripture.
The LOFT space is set up for hanging out, with comfortable seating, ping pong, pool, foosball, and video games alongside room to just be together. On the first Sunday of each month, the LOFT hosts a worship gathering from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. that includes dinner, singing, and a sermon-style lesson from Pastor Chris.
Each summer the LOFT runs two signature programs. Pursuit Service Camp is a week-long day camp where students earn volunteer hours through games, reflection, food, and hands-on projects with Bayshore's local partners and schools. PASSPORTchoices is a six-day, five-night summer camp in Spartanburg, South Carolina, run through Cooperative Baptist Fellowship camps, where rising seventh through twelfth graders pick a focus such as mission service, leadership, music, creative arts, or photography.
Formation for Adults
Bayshore's adult formation is built around the conviction that the spiritual life is best lived in community. Several rhythms repeat each week.
- Wednesday Evening Small Groups at 6:30 p.m.: A book study that has worked through titles like Jimmy Carter's A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power, alongside the Women's Wellspring group, a weekly tea-and-conversation gathering that takes up any topic members bring.
- Wednesday Evening Choir at 7:30 p.m.: The Chancel Choir rehearses weekly and welcomes new voices. Singing in the choir is a way to deepen friendships and to share the gift of music on Sunday mornings.
- Women's Wednesday Morning Bible Study at 10:30 a.m.: A women's Bible study that gathers weekly on Wednesday mornings.
- Tai Chi on Mondays and Thursdays at 10:30 a.m.: A weekly movement class held in Room 2237, open to all.
- Book Club on Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m.: A long-running reading group that meets in the lobby.
- Baby & Me on Tuesdays from 8:30 a.m. to noon: A playgroup for parents and young children, hosted in Room 2237 in partnership with Champions for Children's Baby Bungalow program.
- Genealogy Club on the second Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m.: A gathering for those tracing their family histories.
Adults also gather around seasonal offerings like the Wednesday Lenten Discussion Series and short-term book studies that change throughout the year. The congregation's weekly newsletter, This Week at Bayshore, lists everything currently on the calendar.
A Community with a Mission
Bayshore understands neighbor as a moral category that extends well beyond geographic proximity. The church partners with a wide network of organizations, both local and global, in putting that understanding into practice.
Local Partnerships
- Coffee Uniting People (CUP): A nonprofit coffeehouse that employs people with and without disabilities in five Tampa locations, including CUP South Tampa on South Dale Mabry Highway and shops inside Tampa General Outpatient Center and St. Joseph's Hospitals.
- Hillsborough Organization for Progress and Equality (HOPE): A multi-issue, grassroots, interfaith organization of twenty-nine congregations working on criminal justice, affordable housing, education, and other local concerns. Associate Pastor Chris Kravitz serves on its Executive Committee.
- Faith Cafe: A food and clothing ministry for neighbors experiencing homelessness. Bayshore is a founding congregation, serves as a drop-off site for non-professional clothing, and fills volunteer positions one Sunday evening each month.
- New Life Warehouse: A ministry that delivers furniture and household goods to families recovering from homelessness, foster families, resettled refugee families, survivors of domestic violence and trafficking, and others starting over.
- The Drop: A daytime drop-in center in Seminole Heights offering showers, laundry, mail services, coffee, and internet to the community's most vulnerable neighbors, open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Hillsborough House of Hope: A residence that has supported women transitioning out of correctional institutions since 1998.
- Hyde Park Assisted Living Facility: Bayshore provides transportation to church services and special events for residents, hosts an on-site Christmas party, and offers spiritual counseling and communion on-site as needed.
- Love INC (In the Name of Christ): A network that mobilizes local churches to address gaps in social services.
- Dress for Success Tampa Bay: Bayshore serves as a drop-off site for gently used business attire for women re-entering the workforce.
- Kingdom Kids: A faith-based children's advocacy organization.
- Champions for Children: Bayshore is a host site for Baby Bungalow playgroups.
- Judeo Christian Health Clinic: Free, compassionate medical care for Tampa Bay residents without other resources.
- Metropolitan Ministries: Services for those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Global Partnerships
As a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation, Bayshore partners with CBF Global Missions, which works on global poverty, global migration, and the global church. The church also supports Amani Sasa, which provides holistic care to vulnerable refugee families in Kampala, Uganda.
Staff and Leadership
- Rev. Dr. Scott Stearman serves as Senior Pastor. He also directs the International Advocacy Baptist Collaborative, which amplifies the advocacy work of the global Baptist family at the United Nations and in Washington, D.C., and serves as vice chair of the board of trustees for the Parliament of World Religions. His theological degrees are from Southwestern and Princeton Seminaries, and he holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Oklahoma.
- Chris Kravitz is Associate Pastor, leading the LOFT and supporting adult education. He is active with Hillsborough Organization for Progress and Equality and is currently earning a Master of Divinity from Duke Divinity School.
- Julie Sylvestre is Director of Music and Children's Ministry. A lifelong member of Bayshore whose family has been part of the congregation since 1960, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Palm Beach Atlantic College and brings twenty-seven years of music education experience to her role.
- Victer Chesmore is a Pastoral Assistant and a full-time hospital chaplain at St. Joseph's Hospital. He holds degrees from the University of South Florida and Southeastern University and is completing a Master of Divinity at Central Baptist Theological Seminary.
A first-Sunday Benevolence Offering is taken each month to support neighbors in need, and a Third Sunday Prayer Service is held in the chapel at 6:00 p.m. for those who want to pray together in a quieter setting. Members also gather throughout the year for special observances like Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, and Pentecost.