On the eastern edge of Woodinville, just off NE 143rd Street, Bear Creek Community Church has shaped its corner of King County since 1984. The motto painted across its home page - worshiping together, growing together, serving together - is more than a slogan for the people who gather there each Sunday. Members describe the congregation as a caring church family loving people on a journey toward Jesus, and that language of journey shapes almost everything the church does, from the way greeters welcome first-time visitors to the way small groups meet in living rooms across Redmond and Woodinville through the week.
A Sunday Morning Around the Family Table
The Sunday gathering is built around a 10:00 AM service that runs a little over an hour. The atmosphere is intentionally casual. Dress runs the full range - dresses and slacks alongside jeans and shorts - and visitors are encouraged to come exactly as they are. Greeters stand at both main entrances and are happy to point out the worship center, the nursery, and the children's classrooms.
The service follows a steady rhythm. A few songs open the gathering, followed by prayer and announcements. The announcements and prayer are sometimes followed by a greeting time, a brief Kids' Minute, or a short message from one of the elders. Another song leads into the sermon. On the first Sunday of each month, the church celebrates Communion together, and any follower of Jesus is welcome to participate - membership at Bear Creek is not required.
Bulletin and welcome card in hand, a first-time guest is invited to share contact information so the church can say thank you with a small gift. Live-streaming continues for those at home, but the church's hope is that anyone able will join in person.
Children Welcome in the Room, and in Their Own
Bear Creek is big on inter-generational worship, which is why school-aged children stay in the service alongside adults and students. The children's team has worked out age-appropriate corners for the little ones, though, with rooms named after Cascade peaks.
The Mount Si Room is set up for infants and toddlers up to age 2, with attentive care, Bible stories, and activities near the sanctuary. Preschool and early elementary children (ages 2 to 5 in the Mount Baker Room, and grades K through 2 in the Mount Adams Room) join their parents in the sanctuary for the singing portion of the service, then are dismissed before the sermon for a Bible lesson and craft. Upper elementary children participate in the service with their parents, and the ushers keep age-appropriate activity pages in the foyer for those who want them. Children's Ministry Director Melissa Dideriksen oversees the program and welcomes questions from parents.
Student Ministries: Wednesdays, Retreats, and a Lot of Corn Mazes
Junior high and high school students meet at the church on Wednesday nights from 7:00 to 9:00 PM during the school year for Youth Group, where the goal is for teenagers to authentically follow Jesus and find their place in God's Kingdom. The student ministry calendar also includes service opportunities, camps, retreats, and seasonal outings. Robby Plasencia, the Youth & Family Pastor, sends a monthly email newsletter for families who want to stay in the loop.
Two annual anchors give the year its shape. The Fall Retreat pulls students away for a weekend of teaching, worship, and outdoor fun, and the fall season often includes a trip to a local corn maze and pumpkin farm. Both are designed to be the kind of memories that draw teenagers back to the church long after the event is over.
Men's and Women's Ministries
Men's and Women's ministries at Bear Creek are built around three things: study of God's Word, relationship across generations, and food. Men meet on Thursday mornings from 9:30 to 11:30 at the church for a Bible study that pairs serious study with what the group cheerfully calls frivolous fun - including outings to eat, bowl, or play mini-golf once a month. The men's ministry also gathers for a Men's Breakfast on the first Saturday of each month (October through May) from 8:00 to 9:30 AM, where men share a meal and hear a testimony from one of their brothers. A biannual men's retreat takes the group to Cascades Camp and Conference Center.
The women's ministry meets on Thursday mornings for a parallel Women's Bible Study from 9:30 to 11:30, with childcare provided. The women also gather on the second Saturday of each month from 9:30 to 11:00 AM for a rotating-host Women's Breakfast, where a different woman each month shares a story or a piece of Scripture. The ministry's stated mission is to encourage, support, and equip women to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and its leadership is shared among a Women's Ministry Leadership Team.
Home Fellowship Groups: Church in Living Rooms
Beyond Sunday morning, Bear Creek is a church that happens in homes. Home Fellowship Groups meet throughout the week in Redmond, Woodinville, and at the church itself, gathering for a shared meal, Bible study, prayer, and conversation. Several of the groups reflect specific rhythms.
- The Rosen Home Group meets on the first and third Sundays from 5:00 to 7:00 PM in Redmond, sharing a meal and letting the conversation drift toward what God has been doing in their lives.
- The McCuistion Home Group also meets on the first and third Sundays from 5:00 to 7:00 PM in Woodinville, gathering around a potluck dinner and exploring questions of faith together.
- The Plasencia Home Group meets on the second and fourth Sundays from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at the church and is geared toward younger adults, couples, and families - the current study is Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, and childcare is provided.
- The Jordan Home Group meets on Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 PM in Woodinville and is walking through Ephesians for the year.
- The Erickson Home Group meets on the first and third Sundays from 5:30 to 8:00 PM in Redmond for a potluck and discussion of a book, a Bible passage, or a chosen topic.
- The Harrison Home Group meets on Mondays from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM in Redmond and is built around retirees who gather for lunch and a video-based Bible study with Ray VanderLaan.
Worship Together, Serve Together
The Sunday morning service is supported by a network of ministry teams that anyone in the church can join. The Worship Ministries team includes vocalists, instrumentalists, and the people who run sound, PowerPoint, and the Sunday morning livestream. Ushers & Welcome hand out bulletins, connect visitors to ministry leaders, and collect the offering. The Hospitality & Member Care team prepares coffee and snacks after the service and coordinates the meal train that brings meals to families in need.
The Facilities & Benevolence team is led by the deacons and handles general maintenance and grounds work while also overseeing the church's financial and material support for members in need. The Prayer team responds to prayer requests that come in through the prayer chain and gathers for an every-other-Tuesday evening prayer time.
Children's Ministry and Student Ministry each have their own volunteer teams - rocking babies, teaching preschoolers through early elementary, befriending teenagers, and helping with special events. Women's Ministry and Men's Ministry each organize their own leadership and planning.
Outreach: The Storehouse and Operation Nightwatch
The church's commitment to serving together extends well beyond the building. Two partnerships have become defining parts of who Bear Creek is.
The Woodinville Storehouse is a community food bank operated by several eastside churches, and Bear Creek sends a volunteer team to serve a 90-minute shift on the fourth Tuesday evening of each month. The Storehouse serves residents of Woodinville, Redmond, and Kirkland.
Operation Nightwatch is a ministry that serves homeless men and women in Seattle, and Bear Creek's team prepares and serves a meal there for about four hours on the third Thursday evening of each month. IT Director Shane Bateman and his wife Nancy serve with Operation Nightwatch as part of their regular rhythm.
Each fall, the church also rallies around Operation Christmas Child, gathering families or groups of friends to pack gift boxes for children around the world. The church's Benevolent Fund provides financial and material help to members and regular attenders who are in need, and the pastoral team and elders are the first point of contact for those who need assistance.
What They Believe
Bear Creek's Statement of Faith sets out a straightforward evangelical and reformed understanding of Christianity. The Bible, made up of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, with supreme authority in matters of faith and conduct. There is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - equal in every divine perfection and executing distinct but harmonious offices in creation, providence, and redemption.
The church confesses the historic Christian doctrines: the virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension, perpetual intercession, and personal visible return of Jesus Christ; the work of the Holy Spirit to convict, regenerate, sanctify, and empower believers; and the salvation of sinners by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
The church is understood both as the universal body of Christ and as the local gathering of believers for worship, fellowship, and the spread of the gospel. The church observes two ordinances - baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper - and believes that Christian conduct should be blameless before the world and marked by faithful stewardship. The statement also looks forward to the personal and visible return of Christ, the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, and the eternal felicity of the righteous.
The mission Bear Creek has set for itself is, in the church's own words, to know and worship God, to mature in faith and love, and to make Jesus Christ known.
The Story of the Church
Bear Creek Community Church was planted in 1984 by Crossroads Bible Church in Bellevue. It began with thirteen families and met in a local school for its first seven years. In March 1991 the congregation moved into its current building at 18931 NE 143rd Street. Rev. Dave Chapman served as the founding pastor until 1990, and Rev. Norm McLean led the church from 1991 through 2006. Pastor Mike San Martino became Lead Pastor in 2007, and Dr. Mark Erickson assumed the role in January 2020, having previously served as the church's Youth Pastor starting in 2005.
Bear Creek is affiliated with Converge Northwest, a strategic network of churches focused on transforming lives and communities with the hope of the gospel both locally and around the world.
Leadership
The pastoral team is led by Dr. Mark Erickson, who holds a Doctor of Ministry from Western Seminary and serves as Lead Pastor. He is joined by Robby Plasencia, the Youth & Family Pastor, who joined the staff in 2020. Sherry Clark has led worship at Bear Creek since 2004 and has been on staff as Worship Director since 2018. Melissa Dideriksen directs the children's ministry, partnering with families to introduce children to Jesus. Shane Bateman, an Air Force veteran and Microsoft retiree, serves as IT Director. Carol Smith supports the staff and congregation as Ministry Assistant. The deacons oversee the benevolent ministries, and the elders share in shepherding the congregation.
Practicalities for Visitors
Sunday service is at 10:00 AM at 18931 NE 143rd Street in Woodinville. The phone number is 425-861-9005 and the general email is office@bccc.org. Services are livestreamed on the church's Facebook page for those who can't attend in person. Giving can be done online through the church's giving page, with options for one-time or monthly gifts to the general fund, benevolent funds, Operation Nightwatch, the Woodinville Storehouse, and other designated causes. The church maintains an active calendar of events and a sermon archive going back several years, with messages available in both video and audio formats.