On a stretch of South Drake Road on the west side of Kalamazoo, Michigan, a single church building hosts three Sunday-morning congregations in three languages. Calvary Bible Church has stood at 855 S. Drake Rd. since 1929, and what began as one English-speaking assembly now includes Calvary Bible en Español and Calvary Hope, a Swahili-language service that meets at 12:30 p.m. The sanctuary fills with more than 1,300 worshippers across the two identical 9:00 and 10:30 a.m. English services alone, and the same sermons are livestreamed on YouTube each week. Calvary describes itself as an independent, non-denominational church and a member of the IFCA International fellowship of churches, with a mission to multiply disciples who glorify God by going to all peoples, gathering in community, and growing in Christ.
Three Congregations Under One Roof
Sunday at Calvary begins early and runs late. Two identical morning services in English fill the Sanctuary at 9:00 and 10:30 a.m., each followed by a LifeGroup hour. At 10:30 a.m. the chapel (Room 125) becomes Calvary Bible en Español, a Spanish-speaking congregation that grew out of a Bible study Pastor Santiago Martínez began in the Edison neighborhood of Kalamazoo. By noon the Swahili-language service Calvary Hope, which draws East African believers from the surrounding community, meets in the Sanctuary at 12:30 p.m. The day closes with an English evening service at 6:00 p.m., typically centered on praying for the lost in the families and neighborhoods of the congregation. Go Groups, smaller prayer circles that focus on specific friends and neighbors for whom members are burdened, meet at 6:45 p.m. after the evening service.
The building has a wide footprint to make this work. Visitors step into a Sanctuary with a full choir loft, a platform for the orchestra, and projection screens. Beyond the Sanctuary is the Fellowship Center, where the Open Door Ministry hosts a welcome reception after every morning service. Look for the blue door: greeters there will help newcomers find a LifeGroup, pray with them, and walk them to the right classroom. Sunday morning children’s programs run for infants through fifth grade during both the morning and evening services.
Wednesday Nights Around the Table
From September through early May, Wednesdays at Calvary are built around a sit-down Family Dinner at 5:30 p.m. in the Fellowship Center. The dinner gives way at 6:30 p.m. to a full evening of discipleship for every age. Adventure Club, the church’s flagship children’s program, runs from 6:15 to 8:00 p.m. for children two years old through fifth grade, broken into four clubs by age (Little Backpackers, Trackers, Scouts, and Trailblazers). Each club rotates through a teaching time, small group application, and high-energy games. The curriculum walks through systematic theology on a three-year cycle - one year on God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, another on man, sin, and salvation, and a third on the Bible, the church, and the future. Every child memorizes the same weekly Bible verse, and families receive a workbook to take home.
At the same hour, REACH gathers middle and high school students for an evangelistic outreach. Calvary designed REACH primarily for students from low-income and unchurched homes, with Bible teaching, small groups, and games woven together. The Calvary Choir and Orchestra rehearse on Wednesday evenings as well, preparing to lead worship in two or three Sunday services each month between mid-September and early May.
Core Training and Growth Groups
The 6:30 p.m. hour is also the anchor of Calvary’s adult discipleship program. Growth Groups meet across the building, offering Bible studies in a variety of formats, but the centerpiece is Calvary Core Training, a structured curriculum of sixteen seven-week courses plus electives. The material is divided into four areas: Bible Knowledge (hermeneutics, Old and New Testament surveys, theology), Christian Living (stewardship, marriage, parenting, work and vocation), Practical Ministry (evangelism, local church ministry, discipleship and counseling, global outreach), and Electives (church history, eschatology, biblical languages, grandparenting, and more). Courses are taught by pastors and qualified laypeople and typically run in sequence, with sessions such as Theology 1: The Bible, God, the Son, and the Spirit and Principles of Bible Interpretation offered in fall 2026. Past Core Training lectures are available as a podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, with course handout PDFs hosted online.
LifeGroups for Every Season
Sunday-morning LifeGroups are the church’s small-group backbone. Classes meet at 9:00 or 10:30 a.m. and range from young marrieds to empty nesters to a class specifically designed for adults with special needs called Friends. At 9:00 a.m. in the Chapel, NextSteps gathers post-college and career-minded young adults through age 35, while Kingdom Seekers in Room 214 focuses on empty nesters and retirees, and Wisdom’s Disciples in the Reception Room invites senior adults to study God’s Word with an eye toward leaving a legacy of faithfulness. Young Marrieds, Inc. (YMI) in Room 212 equips engaged and newly married couples to build God-honoring marriages.
At 10:30 a.m., the 1711 class discusses the morning sermon in Room 212, Crossroads draws college-age and young career adults (ages 18 to 25) into Room 126, and Family Foundations (Room 206) is designed for families with young children. His Branches (Room 122B) is a women’s class, Inheritors (Room 215C) is for parents of mostly post-high-school children, and Forged in Faith in the Reception Room brings together married couples and single parents in their 30s to 50s raising children in a morally challenging world. There is also a LifeGroup that meets in the Choir Room to accommodate those serving on the platform each week. Members are encouraged to attend a worship service and a LifeGroup each Sunday; children grade two and younger receive care during both morning services.
Crossroads and NextSteps for Young Adults
Two dedicated ministries serve young adults in their late teens and twenties. Crossroads, the college and young career ministry for ages 18 to 25, meets for LifeGroup at 10:30 a.m. on Sundays in Room 126, gathers again on Sunday evenings at 7:30 p.m. for Bible study and praise (host locations vary), and meets monthly on Friday nights at 6:00 p.m. for food, games, and a Gospel-centered challenge. A related registered student organization, Crossroads Campus Fellowship, meets at various times on the Western Michigan University campus for prayer, fellowship, and evangelism equipping. Each fall, the ministry hosts a young adult retreat at Camp Living Waters.
NextSteps picks up at the post-college stage. With elders Sam and Karen Logan and Mike and Kay Ruiter providing oversight, NextSteps meets in the Chapel at 9:00 a.m. on Sundays for relaxed, topical Bible study and discussion, joins the larger Calvary worship service at 10:30 a.m., and gathers in homes on Sunday evenings at 7:30 p.m. for separate men’s (Bros with Bibles) and women’s (Gals with Grace) studies. Young Christian Professionals, another young-adult option, meets year-round on Tuesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. NextSteps young adults serve in many of Calvary’s outreach ministries, including the Angel Tree, leaf-raking, window installation with Healthy Homes, and nursing home caroling.
Children and the Next Generation
The Next Generation Ministries (NGM) umbrella at Calvary covers everything from nursery through high school and rests on Colossians 1:28 - to present every child complete in Christ. The team works toward four marks in every child: knowing Jesus as Savior, growing in relationship with Him, showing love through service, and going out to make disciples. The NGM staff coordinates nursery care on Sunday mornings and evenings, Sunday morning programming for older children, Adventure Club on Wednesdays, REACH for middle and high schoolers, and Live44, a student ministry program.
Kid’s Praise!, Calvary’s children’s choir for grades one through five, rehearses on Sunday evenings during the school year, helps lead worship in services several times a year, and produces a Spring musical each second semester. The children’s ministry team, led by Children’s Ministry Director Hannah Haney, maintains a Next Generation LinkTree that funnels parents to registrations, forms, and ministry updates.
Worship That Is God-Centered and Theologically Rich
Worship Ministries at Calvary are built on the conviction that gathered worship should be Christ-centered, doctrinally rooted, and engaged with heart and mind across generations. Music is a blend of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, drawing on Ephesians 5:19. Associate Pastor of Corporate Worship Ryan Whitaker oversees the ministry, and the Sunday morning services typically feature the Calvary Choir, the Calvary Orchestra, the Praise Band, and the Praise Team together.
The Calvary Choir is an auditioned ensemble for singers of high school age and above that rehearses on Wednesday evenings and leads the congregation in worship two to three Sundays a month, with the season running from mid-September through early May. The Calvary Orchestra, also auditioned, adds woodwinds, strings, brass, and percussion for the same services, plus the annual Calvary Christmas concerts and the Worship Ministries Spring Concert in late April or early May. Kids Praise!, the children’s choir, joins the sanctuary platform several times a year.
In the summer of 2024 the choir and orchestra produced a full-length Christmas album, The Light Still Shines, recorded at Western Michigan University and released with an accompanying short documentary. CDs are available in the church office, and digital downloads are sold through HearNow. Worship Ministries Director Mark Duncan said the goal of the project was to share a message of hope whose truth has not changed since Christ came.
Global Ministries and the Great Commission
Global Ministries is one of the most distinctive ministries at Calvary. A significant portion of the church’s giving is dedicated to overseas mission work, and Associate Pastor of Global Ministries Jeff Whitaker, who served 26 years with SEND International in church planting in Taiwan before joining the staff in 2007, leads the program. Three priorities shape the work: mobilizing Calvary members to the Lord’s commission, strategically sending workers to plant reproducing churches among unreached people groups, and long-term relational and financial support for those who are sent. The Launch Program exists to support and send thoroughly equipped global partners.
Every November, Global Impact Weekend gathers Calvary around its global partners. Guest speakers teach, encourage, equip, and challenge the congregation to be involved in proclaiming Christ to all peoples. The church selectively partners with parachurch organizations that help with intensive local and domestic ministry in West Michigan and the United States, alongside its focus on the unreached. Mission organizations mentioned by name in the church’s teaching include Slavic Gospel Association, SEND International, The Master’s University, The Master’s Seminary, The Master’s Academy International, IFCA International, Cornerstone University, Appalachian Bible College, and Liberty University.
Local Outreach: Bread of Life, Healthy Homes, Angel Tree, and More
Calvary’s call to local evangelism flows through a roster of long-running compassion ministries. Bread of Life partners with South Michigan Food Bank to distribute 150 boxes of fresh food, a gospel tract, and an invitation to church on the fourth Tuesday afternoon of each month; volunteers deliver more than 125 of those boxes to homes in the area. Healthy Homes sends teams of volunteers, usually one Saturday a month in spring and summer, to install new vinyl double-hung windows in the homes of Kalamazoo-area families in need. The Elders and CBC families cover the cost of windows and materials, and workers share a meal with the host family at each job.
Angel Tree shows the love of Christ to children of inmates and their families, reaching them through the Wednesday-night AWANA and REACH programs, an Annual Christmas Cookie Bake, Christmas gifts, and scholarships to Camp Michawana along with a backpack of supplies. Calvary Compassions, a women’s ministry, visits and ministers to older women and widows of the church on a monthly or weekly basis. Local Outreach to the Aging sends volunteers to lead morning devotionals, hold Sunday afternoon church services, and visit residents of long-term care and assisted living facilities throughout the week. GriefShare runs as a Bible-based program for those who have lost a loved one, and the Care Closet keeps donated clothing available to any attender who asks, sorted weekly and set out by season. The Kitchen Ministry provides both the Wednesday Night Family Meals and funeral luncheons, while the Library loans out Christian books, movies, and audiobooks to the congregation.
Men’s, Women’s, and Senior Saints
Men’s Bible Study meets every Tuesday morning at 6:30 a.m. year-round, drawing men from college age through retirees for in-depth study of God’s Word. The Tuesday morning study is led by Elder Mike Ruiter and has been running for more than a decade. A Women’s Bible Study gathers on Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. in fall and spring sessions.
For senior adults, Koinonia is a monthly fellowship that meets once a month for activities both on and off campus. The group travels by church van to local and regional destinations like the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, the Hackley and Hume Historical Site Museum in Muskegon, the W.E. Upjohn Peony Gardens in Ann Arbor, Frankenmuth and Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, the Lavender Fields in Caledonia, Studebaker National Museum in South Bend, and Shipshewana, with a potluck and hymn sing rounding out the year.
Worship Services: What to Expect
More than 1,300 people fill the Sanctuary on a typical Sunday morning. The two morning services are identical, with corporate singing led by the choir and orchestra, congregational praise led by the Praise Band and Praise Team, prayer, fellowship, and expository preaching. Communion, the Lord’s Supper, is celebrated twice each month as a shared time of remembering Christ’s sacrifice. Baptism, by immersion and in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is a public testimony of faith; baptism classes are scheduled periodically, with evening baptisms held as a part of the regular evening service schedule.
For those who cannot attend in person, services are livestreamed on YouTube; the search term is Calvary Bible Church Kalamazoo. The channel can be reached directly through smart TVs, Apple TV, Chromecast, or Roku. Visitors joining by livestream are invited to fill out a contact form so the church can follow up.
What Calvary Believes
Calvary’s Statement of Faith sets out sixteen articles, with the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments held as the inerrant, authoritative Word of God and the Elder Board as the final interpretive authority for faith and practice. The church teaches one God in three Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, His substitutionary death and bodily resurrection, and the present ministry of the Holy Spirit in indwelling, sealing, and gifting believers. The church holds to a cessationist view of the miraculous sign gifts, while affirming that God hears and answers prayer for the sick according to His will.
Salvation is by grace through faith in Christ alone, with the true believer eternally secure. The church observes two ordinances - water baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper - as symbolic acts of obedience rather than means of salvation. Calvary holds to a pre-tribulational rapture, a future thousand-year reign of Christ, and a literal fulfillment of the Old Testament promises to Israel. The statement also affirms that gender is created by God, that marriage is the union of one man and one woman, and that sexual intimacy is reserved for that union.
Leadership and Governance
Calvary is led by a team of pastors and ministry directors, overseen by an Elder Board and served by a board of Deacons. Bret Laird has served as Senior Pastor since December 2017, coming to Calvary after eleven years of missionary service in Ukraine with Slavic Gospel Association, two years at The Master’s University, and two years as Executive Assistant to Dr. Robert Provost at SGA. He holds a B.A. in Biblical Counseling from The Master’s University and an M.Div. in Expository Preaching from The Master’s Seminary. David Kaneversky joined as Senior Associate Pastor in 2023 with nearly thirty years of pastoral experience. Dan Johnson, Member Care Pastor, has been on staff since 2005 and previously served as Shepherding and Member Care Director. Santiago Martínez Leal pastors the Hispanic congregation, having started what became the Calvary Bible en Español ministry and now pursuing further training with the Expositors Seminary. Jim West, the Disciple Making Pastor, came on staff in 2021 with thirty-three years of pastoral ministry. Jeff Whitaker leads Global Ministries, and Ryan Whitaker leads Corporate Worship while pursuing a Master of Divinity at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Lay Elders include Josh Andrews, Dan Bowman, Bob Drenth, Dan Haney, David Scranton, Phil Smith (Chairman), Randy St. John (Vice-Chairman), and Jim Trombley. Mark Zigterman serves as Treasurer. Peter Manring chairs the Deacons, with Neil McCormick as Vice-Chairman, and a team of twenty-one deacons carries out various ministries assigned by the Elders.
Giving and Practical Information
Calvary Bible Church is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit. Members and friends can give online through Realm, the church’s database for contributions, by ACH direct bank account withdrawal (preferred) or by debit card; credit cards are not accepted at this time. Gifts may be designated to the General, Mission, Building, or Benevolence funds and can be scheduled as one-time or recurring. Text-to-Give is available by texting Calvarybible to 732-56.
Office hours run 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Friday; the office closes for lunch Monday through Thursday from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. and on Tuesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The church office phone number is (269) 372-1130 and the email address is contact@calvarybible.org.