A Church at the Heart of the Swannanoa Valley
Black Mountain Presbyterian Church gathers its roughly 650 members at 117 Montreat Road in Black Mountain, North Carolina, a small town tucked into the eastern Swannanoa Valley. The congregation has worshipped on that same road since 1913 and carries a simple motto across every page of its communications: "Where the welcome never ends." Three Sunday services, a half-day preschool that opened its doors in 1984, and an unusually broad network of local and international mission partners make this PC(USA) congregation one of the most visible anchors of the town's religious and civic life.
From Thirteen Families to Three Sunday Services
The first Presbyterian family to settle in the eastern end of the Swannanoa Valley arrived in 1875 and worshipped at Piney Grove church in Swannanoa. By 1908, thirteen Presbyterian families in Black Mountain decided to organize their own church. In April of that year they met at the home of Mrs. Silas Dougherty to petition the Asheville Presbytery, and on May 17, 1908, meeting at the old Methodist Church, Dr. R. P. Smith formally organized the new congregation.
In 1910 the members purchased a lot on Montreat Road for $200. Two years later, in 1913, C. C. Dougherty and W. C. Greene erected a sanctuary for $1,450, much of their labor given freely. The building was dedicated on April 1, 1914, and for the first six years supply preachers filled the pulpit. An education wing followed in 1919. A larger sanctuary was built in 1958 and demolished in 1984 to make way for a fellowship hall, which was joined by a Church House in 1987. A new education wing opened in 1992, the same construction project that created the columbarium in the central courtyard.
Pastor and Head of Staff Mary Katherine Robinson preaches and leads the staff. Associate Pastor David Carter Florence directs educational, faith formation, and outreach ministries for all ages. Aaron Price is the Director of Music and Worship Arts, Bob Tuttle serves as Parish Associate focused on visits with Highland Farms residents and homebound members, and Ross Verbrugge is Director of Operations.
Three Sunday Mornings, One Pulpit
From August through May, Black Mountain Presbyterian offers three distinct worship services each Sunday. The earliest, FirstLight, gathers at 8:45 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall for an informal, participatory service. The Prophets of Praise band leads with contemporary, contemplative, and global music, plus traditional hymns, on guitar, banjo, drums, and keyboard. A "Kid's Place" area invites young children and their caregivers to settle in.
At 9:45 a.m., adults spread out into three Faith Formation classes that run side by side during the program year: Opening the Word, Faith Builders, and a Parents Gathering. Classes meet September through May.
Family Worship follows at 10:00 a.m., with families gathering in the courtyard in good weather and in the Fellowship Hall otherwise. Pastor David, Brittany Williams, and Aaron Price lead this casual service shaped around music and stories for children.
The 11:00 a.m. Sanctuary Worship is the traditional service, with the Chancel Choir, organ, and piano. The congregation describes this hour as traditional without being boring. FirstLight and 11:00 share a common liturgy and the same sermon. The Lord's Supper is celebrated on the first Sunday of the month and the special A Quarter a Meal Offering is collected on the last Sunday.
The nursery is open from 8:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. for children three and under. Three-year-olds through third graders may leave after Faith Sharing for Extended Session or Godly Play, with a Kids Corner and Faith Formation Cart available in the Narthex for wigglers. During summer the schedule shifts to two services: Sanctuary Worship at 9:00 a.m. and Family Worship at 10:30 a.m.
The 11:00 a.m. service is livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel, and a sermon archive is available going back many years.
Growing Faith Across Every Age
Faith Formation at BMPC, in the words of Luke 10:27 quoted across the church's materials, is about loving God with heart, soul, strength, and mind, and loving neighbor as self. Children's Ministry splits into Preschool and Elementary, with Alice Patton directing Preschool Ministry and Brittany Williams overseeing Children's Ministry.
On Sunday mornings, three-year-olds through first graders attend the 11:00 service and then move to Godly Play, a Bible story time with response and feast. Older elementary and younger middle schoolers in fourth through sixth grades meet at 10:00 a.m. upstairs in Room 11 for Bible Journey, a Confirmation preparation class led by Jane Bannerman and Blake Martin. First and third Sundays feature a Parents Group that meets while children are in Family Worship or the nursery.
Youth ministry, directed by Katie Duvall, is open to all sixth through twelfth graders. A youth elder serves on Session and the Worship Ministry Team, and youth regularly join intergenerational mission trips and local mission projects. Weekly small groups create room for honest questions, meaningful friendships, encouragement, deeper spiritual growth, games, and plenty of fun.
Wednesday nights anchor the congregation's shared-table rhythm. Spaghetti Dinner is served from 5:15 to 6:00 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. The menu is spaghetti with meat or meatless sauce, bread, salad, vegetables, and dessert, with vegetarian and gluten-free options, and a suggested donation of $5 per person or $20 per family. After the meal, RAD! Wednesday programming continues the evening for many groups.
A Preschool Rooted in the Congregation
The BMPC Weekday School has been an integral part of the Black Mountain community since 1984. It is a half-day preschool serving children ages one through five, open from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., September through May. The school is organized by age-based classrooms with names from the animal kingdom: Lambs for one-year-olds, Raccoons for two-year-olds, Kangaroos for three-year-olds, and Giraffes for the four-year-old Pre-K.
Tuition varies by classroom and the number of days a child attends. The Lambs, Raccoons, and Kangaroos classes offer two-day, three-day, and five-day schedules, while the Giraffes meet five days a week. Payments can be made annually, bi-annually, or in nine monthly installments through Brightwheel, and a limited amount of scholarship money is available. Registration for returning families begins in early February, with new student registration opening February 15. Cindy Capps directs the school, and families interested in the program can reach her at wkds@bmpcnc.org.
Presbyterian Women and Adult Learning
Presbyterian Women at BMPC carry out a long Presbyterian tradition of prayer, Bible study, mission support, and justice work. Six Circles meet September through May: Lydia on the second and fourth Tuesday evenings at the Church House; Dorcas on the first Tuesday morning; Esther on the first Tuesday at Highland Farms; Naomi on the first Tuesday afternoon; Priscilla on the first Tuesday morning at the Church Parlor; and Ruth on the first Tuesday afternoon at Highland Farms. PW Bible study videos are available on the church's YouTube channel going back to 2020.
Lenten programming expands the rhythm of the year. Past offerings have included Wednesday and Sunday Opening the Word classes on the sermon scripture, contemplative hiking on Thursdays, Lenten Yoga, Tea and the Theopoetics on Thursday evenings, a thirteen-week Artist's Way group, a Barbara Kingsolver food-and-faith study, a Witness at the Cross study with the Faith Builders class, and single-session introductions to Laughter Yoga and the Enneagram.
Local Mission and the Work of the Table
The congregation's stated question shapes everything: "Has everyone been fed?" As they describe it, BMPC seeks to feed the body through advocating that all be fed, caring for the earth, extending the table of fellowship, and building healthy lives and relationships. They feed the mind through theological curiosity, spiritual and intellectual development, and challenging non-inclusive views. And they feed the spirit through worship, music and the arts, and service in the community and the world.
Locally, the church works alongside Swannanoa Valley Christian Ministry (SVCM), a nonprofit BMPC members helped organize in 1975. BMPC members donate about 170 volunteer hours a month to SVCM, contribute over 350 cans of food monthly, and give more than $10,000 annually. Bounty & Soul, Habitat for Humanity, Black Mountain Counseling Center, Room in the Inn, Helpmate, the Ministry of Hope at the Swannanoa Correctional Center for Women, Black Mountain Home for Children, Youth and Families, Hand in Hand, ABCCM, and Bread for the World all draw on BMPC volunteers, prayers, and financial support.
Two ongoing hunger campaigns invite participation year-round. The Blessing Box on the sidewalk invites neighbors to take what they need and give what they can. Can in Each Hand collects canned beans, flour, and sugar in the Kindness Corner in the narthex, with donations delivered to SVCM. A Red Cross Blood Drive comes to the Fellowship Hall several times a year. Bus drivers are also needed to bring residents of Highland Farms to Sunday worship.
An International Reach
BMPC's global mission work stretches to dozens of retired Presbyterian missionaries who have served in countries including the Congo, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Brazil, Zimbabwe, India, and Indonesia, with a combined 250 years of service in the world. For more than twenty years the congregation has partnered with Ebenezer Church in San Antonio, Guatemala. Members travel to visit their sister church at least every two years; the most recent trip included visitors from age 7 to 78. A scholarship program sends twenty young Guatemalans to school, with BMPC children and youth serving as pen pals, and the partnership has also supplied water filters for the community of San Antonio.
The congregation supports five PC(USA) Mission Co-workers: John McCall in Taiwan, Robert Daniel and Elizabeth Turk in Madagascar, and Gary and Marlene Van Brocklin in South Asia, plus Frank Dimmock, an Africa specialist with the Outreach Foundation. Other international partners include Pilgrims of Ibillin in the Middle East, Ministry of Hope Malawi/Lesotho, and Christian Friends of Korea.
Rebuilding the Valley After Hurricane Helene
The day after Hurricane Helene swept through Black Mountain, the church began serving hot meals to the community. The effort expanded to feed restaurant workers and townspeople without power or water, and donations poured in from forty cities across North Carolina, twenty cities across South Carolina, and twenty-one other states. The valley continues to recover, and BMPC describes itself as happy to be part of that rebuilding. Two dedicated giving links, the Helene Relief Fund and Support BMPC Operations, channel contributions through Realm.
Weddings, Baptisms, Memorials, and a Columbarium
Weddings, baptisms, and memorial services are part of the congregation's life together. Weddings are scheduled for members and affiliate members who have been active, contributing, and participating in the life of BMPC for at least three months; others may be scheduled with approval from the Pastor, Worship and Music Team, and Session. Baptisms are arranged through the Baptism Information Form submitted to the office, and funerals and memorial services are scheduled through the pastors.
The columbarium in the central courtyard was begun with the 1993 building addition, and the Session decreed it would never become a money-making operation. Members, associated ordained members, their spouses, children, parents, and stepchildren are eligible for interment, along with ordained ministers who have served BMPC and, with prior approval, friends, former members, and affiliate members with their immediate family. Three Niche Units (A, B, and C) hold 224 niches in total, and a Plaque Unit (P) offers 56 plaques for those interred elsewhere. Pricing ranges from $200 to $400 per niche and $100 per plaque. Sam Webber handles inquiries.
Music, the Arts, and the Library
Music runs through every corner of BMPC's life. The Prophets of Praise lead FirstLight, the Chancel Choir sings at the 11:00 Sanctuary Worship, and Aaron Price plays for the Weekday School children, with the RAD! Wednesday program, and at all services on guitar and piano. Worship and Music Exploration workshops, including a session led by Eric Wall of Austin Theological Seminary, give members space to imagine the future of music at BMPC.
Two libraries keep that intellectual and spiritual life within reach. The Traditional Library draws on more than one hundred retired pastors, missionaries, and educators in the congregation, with biblical commentaries, devotional books, social justice titles, and a robust children's section. The newer Earth Care Library, located in Conference Room 1, brings together Biblical ecology, nature writing, and practical advice for living gently on the land, in keeping with the Earth Care Ministry Team's call to celebrate creation, teach stewardship, reduce the facility's environmental impact, and leave a better world for future generations.
Joining the Community
Membership is open to all who recognize a need for the grace and love of God revealed in Jesus Christ. New members are received after attending a Discovery class or meeting with Pastor Mary Katherine. The church receives members by certificate of transfer, profession of faith, profession of faith with baptism, reaffirmation of faith, or as affiliate members. Visitors and newcomers can connect with the staff through the Connect With Us form, the weekly email sign-up, or the Realm Connect app, and can drop a Connection Card in the pew pocket during worship so a member of the team can follow up after their visit.