Tucked into the woods of south Camano Island, Camano Chapel draws families from the Stanwood-Camano area and beyond with two Sunday services and a sprawling midweek calendar that fills the same five-hall campus the church has been adding to since 1949. The vision statement sums up the focus in three short lines: Glorify God. Love People. Make Disciples.
Two Sundays on Camano Island: Heritage and Contemporary Services
Sunday mornings at Camano Chapel offer a choice. A Heritage service begins at 8:30 am, followed by a Contemporary service at 10:00 am. Visitors are welcomed with a single instruction: come dressed as you are.
Both services run in the Worship Center, and both offer the same care for families. Children's bulletins sit in the back of the room, and a family room and a mother's room are open in the back with the service live-streamed for parents who need a quieter space. Nursery care is open before the 10:00 am service begins, and kids ages four and older join their families in the worship center for opening songs before being dismissed to Sunday School mid-service.
Children's Sunday School covers Pre-K through 5th grade during the 10:00 am Contemporary service. Check-in happens at kiosks in the east foyer of the Worship Center, where each family gets a matching security label required for pickup. All volunteer leaders are background-checked, and every classroom has at least two adult leaders.
After each service, a Newcomer Connection meets in the church library at 10:30 am and again at 12:00 pm for visitors and newer attenders who want to meet other church members. That gathering is led by Associate Pastor Greg Gewin. Three adult Sunday School classes meet at 11:30 am: Challengers in Madrona Hall Room 304, Getting Started in The Faith in Saratoga Hall Room 414, and Going Deeper in The Faith in Saratoga Hall Room 416 with Pastor Greg Gewin as facilitator.
From a Two-Acre Lot to a Five-Hall Campus
The story of Camano Chapel began in the late 1940s, when a group of people on Camano Island felt the need for a community church. Two acres of land were purchased, and building began in 1949 at the present site. The leader of that effort, Clarence Dirks, had played football for the Washington Huskies and was a writer for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. His newspaper articles about an island community building a church pulled in donations from across the region.
In 1951, the building now known as Heritage Hall (also called Wayland Sanctuary) was completed. Leaders invited Billy Graham, who was in Seattle for a crusade at the time, to dedicate the new church. Thousands gathered for that dedication, and many came to know Christ. An offering was given to Graham, but he returned it to the church - the gift was just enough to pay the final bills on the building.
By 1967 the church was on the verge of closing its doors. Leaders contacted Village Missions, which agreed to underwrite a pastor's salary so he could work full time reaching the community. Village Missions sent Pastor John Duckworth and family in August 1967; poor health forced his departure in May 1968, and the organization sent Pastor Bill and Gayle Wayland in June 1968. The church began to grow.
Jackson Hall was built for Sunday school classes in 1973. The Worship Center, a gymnasium, was built in 1980 to reach the youth of the community. Construction of the Christian Education Building, Madrona Hall, began in 1985. In 1992 the platform and rooms on the north and east sides of the gym were added to facilitate worship services, which had moved there in 1983.
Pastor Bill and Gayle Wayland retired in 1996 to begin a ministry of encouragement to Village Missions pastors. Pastor Kris and Joyce Kramer arrived in early 1997. Island County approved a site plan for future expansion in 2003, with classroom space the most immediate need. Debt-free construction began in 2008, and Saratoga Hall was completed and officially opened in March 2018, providing lower-floor space for Pre-K, Kindergarten, and Children's Ministry and upper-floor space for adult Sunday school classes. The administrative offices relocated into a remodeled Madrona Hall in the summer of 2020, freeing Heritage Hall to house His Pantry and His Closet and East Hall to hold the church library.
From Nursery through Chapel Youth: Children, Students, and Trail Life
The Children's Ministry is built on the conviction that the Bible is clear about the value of children and the importance of instilling in them a godly foundation from the time they are young. Nursery care opens before the 10:00 am service. Children four and up join their families for the opening songs in the Worship Center and are dismissed for Sunday School mid-service, with their classrooms in Saratoga Hall.
All MOMS, held on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays from 9:00 to 11:30 am, is a gathering for moms with kids from infancy through age 18. A parallel All Kids program serves infants through preschool, and an All MOMS Beyond extends the connection. The Tuesday Night Awana clubs begin at 6:30 pm during Tuesday Night Connect and are free. Puggles is for kids who are three by September 1, Cubbies for preschoolers, Sparks for kindergarten through second grade, and T&T for third through fifth grade.
Chapel Youth, the student ministry, owns Tuesday nights from 6:30 to 8:00 pm, with doors opening at 6:00. Drop-off and pick-up are upstairs in the Madrona Building. The vision is to see students in the Stanwood-Camano area know God, see His Spirit at work, and live out the ways of Jesus. The combined middle and high school group gathers for a group game and then splits for worship, a message from Student Ministry Director Bo Steele or one of the leaders, and small groups separated by grade and gender. Parents are welcome to come and check it out themselves. Summer camps include Summer Breeze for high schoolers and Camp Oasis for middle schoolers. Winter Camp at Camp Ghormley in Naches, Washington, combines middle and high school students for a snow weekend.
Trail Life Troop WA-2026, the church's outdoor adventure program for boys, welcomes boys ages 5 to 17 on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Thursdays at 6:30 pm. The troop encourages fathers and men of the church to come alongside the next generation of men through outdoor adventure and mentorship.
Tuesday Night Connect, S.A.L.T. Groups, and a Verse-by-Verse Midweek
Tuesday Night Connect is the church's midweek hub, running during fall and spring semesters from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. Children's programs (Awana), the student ministry (Chapel Youth), a community group for young parents called Rooted, men's and women's Bible fellowships, and an adult survey class called Storyline all meet simultaneously across the campus.
Storyline - Putting the Bible Together frames Scripture as a single story of redemption running from Genesis to Revelation. Rooted is a community group for young parents that meets while their children are in Awana; it is led by Luke Laures. The Tuesday evening Men's Bible Fellowship meets in Saratoga Hall Room 415 and walks verse by verse through Joshua, Titus, and Hebrews. The Tuesday evening Women's Bible Study uses Jen Wilkin's Every Good Promise Fulfilled, a ten-session study of the Book of Joshua.
Outside of Tuesday Night Connect, in-home small groups called S.A.L.T. Groups (Sharing And Learning Together) meet across the area. The mission is to glorify God by sharing and learning together through prayer, Bible study, and fellowship. Each group is built around Christ-centered study, praying for one another's needs, fellowship, balanced study and prayer time, confidentiality, leadership integrity, and a willingness to welcome new members. S.A.L.T. Groups are under the direction of Pastor Greg Gewin.
A standalone Thursday morning Men's Bible Fellowship meets the 2nd and 4th Thursdays from 9:30 to 11:30 am in Madrona Hall Room 308. Women's morning Bible studies run on Thursdays at 9:15 am and Fridays at 9:00 am; the Friday study focuses on biblical prophecy, working through the Olivet Discourse and The Sign of His Coming by Renald Showers. A Community Bible Study for women meets on Mondays at 10:00 am, an inter-denominational Bible study based in Bothell that holds its lessons on the Camano Chapel campus.
Women, Men, and the 55+ Crowd
Women's Ministry Director Ronda Clawson oversees a wide bench of programs. All MOMS meets twice monthly. Healing Hearts is a gospel-centered, grace-driven ministry for those wounded by abuse, domestic violence, abortion, or other traumas. Its Bible studies include Binding Up the Brokenhearted and In the Hem of His Garment, both written by post-abortive author Sue Liljenberg, as well as teen and young-adult studies called First Love...Embracing a Love That Lasts and The Fight of Your Life. Healing Hearts is led by Susan Owen and Carol Clines. Care Meals provides meals to families going through medical events. Women of Purpose connects with World Concern to support programs that prevent the trafficking of vulnerable women and children. A free women's exercise group meets Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:00 am in the gym.
The Men's Ministry is built around three pillars. Men study Joshua, Titus, and Hebrews together in two Bible fellowships, one Tuesday night at Tuesday Night Connect and one Thursday morning in Madrona Hall. The annual Men's Retreat happens in May on the Camano Chapel campus. Trail Life gives fathers and men an outdoor route to mentor young men.
Chapelites, the ministry for adults 55 and older, meets the 1st and 3rd Thursdays from 9:00 to 10:30 am in the Upper Room. Mornings include breakfast, Bible study, fellowship, worship, and fun. Sports ministries use the gym all week. Open Gym Basketball runs Sunday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 pm for men and women ages 14 and up. Futsal runs Monday evenings from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. ALL In Soccer is the church's summer soccer club for boys and girls ages 3 to 7.
His Pantry, His Closet, Soul Care, Grief Care, and the Care Meals Network
His Pantry and His Closet, housed in the building next to Heritage Hall, are open each Monday from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm. His Pantry provides free food for those in need in the local community; current needs include hearty soup, dry cereal, and toilet paper, along with other shelf-stable staples. His Closet provides free, gently-used clothing. Both are staffed by church volunteers.
His Garden is a flower garden ministry that grows, harvests, and arranges bouquets for Chapel services, pastoral visits, and Peace Haven. No experience is necessary; on-the-job training is offered. Care Meals provides meals for families going through medical events, with volunteer cooks and deliverers prepared on an as-needed basis.
Grief Care Fellowship, based in Madrona Hall Room 308, runs a six-week video series called "Hope Beyond Today" each fall. Gloria Walsh oversees grief care and can answer questions.
Soul Care provides lay counseling through the church. The team listens, sympathizes, and applies the Gospel to the root of the problem. The lay counselors are men and women who have themselves struggled and found help in God's Word and God's people.
The church's care arms also include the Sanctity of Life ministry, the House of Refuge, and the Gayle Wayland Memorial Adoption Fund. The Adoption Fund provides financial assistance and encouragement to adopting families who live in the Stanwood-Camano Island area. It honors the legacy of Gayle Wayland, who came alongside adopting families through prayer, baby showers, financial gifts, and support, and was herself involved in the adoption of several of her grandchildren.
From Camano Island to the World: Local and International Missions
Camano Chapel Missions, directed by Joe Clapper, frames its work as mouth, feet, and hands - proclaiming the kingdom of God, going locally and to the ends of the earth, and building relationships that serve, disciple, and plant churches. The church partners with more than a dozen missionaries and mission organizations.
International missionaries include Ryan and April Beck in the Asia-Pacific region; Ricardo and Andrea Bolanos in Baja California, Mexico; Joanna Jozil (Coleman) in La Revoir, Haiti; Josh and Amber Harrington, who serve with Wycliffe in Papua, Indonesia; Bryan and Mari Eygabroad, who work in Lesotho, Africa with aviation, communications, and learning technologies; Scott and Leslie Walt in Vienna, Austria; Todd and Debbit Kramlich in Thailand; the Myrte Family and Vali and Era Nikolli in Albania; Cilem and Harley Suprint and the Dolans in Haiti, where Mission of Grace runs an orphanage, school, church, medical clinic, elderly home, and a new men's ministry; Osi and Jennifer Halalilo with Youth With A Mission in Tonga; and Raymond and Ruby Mensah in Ghana, West Africa, where they reach out to the deaf community.
Local missionaries and partners include Clayton and Becky Howie with Mission Aviation Training Academy (MATA), Roger and Tonya Haskin with Family Life, Chris and Tammy Immer on Lummi Island, Brian and Bethany Meaden with Camp Bighorn in Plains, Montana, Ken and Charlotte Schmidt serving as Village Missions District Representatives for the Pacific Northwest, Kris and Joyce Kramer with Peace Haven Ministries on Camano Island (which hosts pastors and missionaries for rest and renewal in two houses on the island), and Haley Galletly with Chi Alpha Campus Ministries.
Mission organizations include Abundant Life, a hub that connects gospel-centered, life-affirming work in Washington; Cascade Women's Health in Everett, which offers free services for women facing unexpected pregnancies; Camano Island Women of Purpose, which supports World Concern's work to prevent the exploitation of vulnerable women and children living in extreme poverty; Safe Harbor Free Clinic, which offers free acute care in Stanwood and Smokey Point for the uninsured and under-insured; and two partner churches in Kathmandu, Nepal, Bethesda Church and Eternal Fountain Church.
A Copper Island short-term mission trip is part of the rhythm of the year, and a youth mission trip to Vicente Guerrero, Baja California, gives high schoolers and young adults a cross-cultural experience in house-building and ministry alongside the Bolanos family.
Weddings, Memorials, and Getting Connected
Weddings at Camano Chapel are a part of the church's ministry. The church believes marriage is the joining of one man to one woman, that marriage is for life, that sexual purity is expected before marriage, and that couples are encouraged to be walking with Christ. Pastors reserve the right to decline any wedding in conflict with the Bible-based nature of Camano Chapel. Pre-marital counseling extends over several weeks. There are four reception and rehearsal dinner venues on campus: the Hearth Room in Heritage Hall (table-and-chair seating for 50), the Upper Room in Saratoga Hall (120), the Chapel in Heritage Hall (125), and the Worship Center (300). Weddings may be scheduled 6 to 12 months in advance; Sundays and major holiday weekends are not available. Alcohol is not permitted on campus; birdseed and bubbles are allowed outside, and rice is not.
Memorial services are supported by the pastors and a Memorial Host. There are no facility costs to families, though honorariums are suggested for those serving.
Baptism is for believers who have come to faith and want to publicly identify with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Children through high school meet with their youth leader (Bo Steele or Cessy Dillon) before baptism to walk through the meaning of the step.
The church's Statement of Faith affirms the supernatural and complete inspiration of Scripture; the personality of God as the personal, uncreated Creator; the Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit; the sinfulness of humanity; the atonement accomplished by Christ's death on the cross; the resurrection and ascension of Jesus; the necessity of new birth through faith in Jesus Christ; the literal resurrection of the body; the eternal life of the saved and the eternal punishment of the lost; the evangelization of the world as the church's supreme mission; and the bodily return of Christ.
Online giving is available through the church's giving partner. Users set up and control their own accounts. The first ten percent of income - the tithe - is directed to the General Fund, which, after its own ten percent tithe to missions, supports all ministries, salaries, and administrative expenses. Recurring gifts can be scheduled weekly, on the 1st and 15th of each month, or monthly. RightNow Media, a free streaming library of Bible studies and faith resources for every age group, is available to the church family by texting "Camano" to 49775.
The Camano Chapel Preschool, Pre-K and Kindergarten is an integral part of the church, with a planned curriculum that runs from September through mid-June. The PreK teacher is Becky Vargas, the Kindergarten teacher is Jamie Whitney, and the Preschool teacher is Shannon Stevenson. The Cedar Closet and Cedar Salon also offer family and child-care resources through a Preschool/Pre-K and Lighthouse Co-Op track.
Newcomers can take a next step by filling out a Connect Card, requesting prayer, asking about baptism or baby dedication, joining a S.A.L.T. Group, signing up for Tuesday Night Connect, or simply walking through the doors on Sunday morning. The church office at 867 SW Camano Drive is open Monday through Thursday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, and the phone is answered at 360-387-7202.