A Regional Church Family on Southeastern Avenue
Southeastern Church of Christ sits at 6500 Southeastern Avenue on the southeast side of Indianapolis, a single-campus congregation that draws members from across central Indiana. Worshipers come from towns as far apart as Fishers to the north, Franklin and Mooresville to the south, and Greenfield to the east, a twenty-mile radius that makes Southeastern less a neighborhood church than a regional one. The congregation's motto - "Love God, Love People, Make a Difference in the World" - shows up across the church and shapes everything from its Sunday schedule to its Tuesday food pantry and its overseas mission partnerships.
What marks Southeastern most is the way its ministries reach well beyond the building. The same church that sings a cappella on Sunday mornings runs a community food pantry two days later, hands out diapers on the third Monday of each month, and supports preschool classrooms five days a week. The leadership describes the church as "a diverse congregation with a warm, welcoming environment" and a place where members are expected to live out the gospel in their giftings and passions.
Sunday Mornings: Classes at 9:30, Worship at 10:30
Visitors who arrive on a Sunday morning will find a full morning of activity centered on a tall glass-fronted main lobby. Bible classes for all ages begin at 9:30 AM, and the whole congregation gathers again at 10:30 AM for worship.
The adult class meets in the Fellowship Hall, a women's class gathers in the Friendship Room, a parenting community class meets upstairs in Room 501, the teen class for grades 6 through 12 meets in the Teen House, and children gather in Kids Town for Kids Praise. After the classes wrap up, attendees make their way to the sanctuary for the main service.
A Cappella Worship, the Lord's Supper, and the Word
The worship service at Southeastern is unmistakably Church of Christ in character. Singing is a cappella, led by a worship leader named Mike and supported by a praise team. Lyrics are projected on a screen for those who prefer to follow along, with songbooks also available for those who like to hold a book.
Each service includes a time of sharing the Lord's Supper, with trays passed among the congregation, and an opportunity to give. A preaching minister named Joey then brings a message from Scripture, and the service closes with a chance to linger and chat.
For those who cannot attend in person, services are livestreamed on the Southeastern YouTube channel, so the same a cappella worship and sermon are available online.
Southeastern Preschool: 35 Years of Growing Hearts Toward God
Tucked into the church's ministry lineup is a long-running preschool that has served Indianapolis families for more than 35 years. Southeastern Church Preschool is a State of Indiana Registered Childcare Ministry that takes children from 6 weeks old through Pre-Kindergarten, with before- and after-school care also available. The program accepts CCDF vouchers.
The preschool describes its mission as providing "a safe, Christ-centered academic environment where children's hearts are drawn closer to God through love, learning, and service." Each classroom has a lead teacher - Miss Nicole, Miss Leanna, Miss Karen, Miss Amanda, Miss Laura, Miss Holly, Miss Allison, Miss Michelle, Miss Kathy, and Miss Melissa - and the school posts a year-specific supply list for each one, from diapers and wipes for the infants to crayons, glue sticks, and backpacks for the older twos and Pre-K.
Families interested in enrolling can register online, and the preschool office can be reached at 317-352-9298. Submitting an application does not guarantee a spot; families are contacted to confirm availability and process the enrollment fee, with a waitlist used when classrooms are full.
The Tuesday Food Pantry
On Tuesdays from 11 AM to 2 PM, the church building opens for one of its most visible ministries: the SECOC Food Pantry. The pantry offers supplemental food assistance to both the congregation and the wider community, and it serves Acton, Wanamaker, and parts of Indianapolis - the 46203 and 46237 zip codes, bordered by Brookville Road to the north, Sherman Drive to the west, Southport Road to the south, and County Line Road to the east.
Recipients need proof of residency and may visit every other week. Sheila, who has directed the pantry for six years, has grown its capacity through partnerships with Gleaners Food Bank and Indy Hunger, and won the Jefferson Award in May 2024 for her service to the community. Food donations can be dropped off on Sunday mornings, Wednesday evenings, or Tuesday mornings between 9 AM and 2 PM, and checks can be mailed to the church with "Food Pantry" in the memo line. The pantry's own verse, posted on its page, is 2 Corinthians 9:11: "You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God."
Baby Diaper Depot: Third Mondays
Just down the hall from the food pantry, the Baby Diaper Depot operates the third Monday of each month from 5:00 to 6:15 PM in the East Lobby. The depot gives out up to two bundles of diapers per family, often with diaper wipes, books, clothes, formula, and toys when donations allow. David, who oversees the program along with the church's produce garden and other projects, leads the work.
Life Groups, Family Bible Camp, and the Wider Church Family
Outside the Sunday morning rhythm, Southeastern's life together is organized around Life Groups of 10 to 12 people who meet for prayer, Bible study, fellowship, and spiritual support. A Family Bible Camp pulls the wider church into a week of worship, study, and family fellowship around God's Word, and Hearts Still Growing offers a Bible study and fellowship track for senior members.
The Benevolence Ministry walks alongside individuals and families in need inside the church and the surrounding community, providing prayer, support, and practical help, while the Children's Ministry builds a fun and safe space for kids to learn about Jesus. Together these ministries are what the church calls its core and additional ministries, a distinction that signals both what the building is best known for and the long list of ways members serve one another.
Wednesday Nights: Kids, Youth, and an Adult Class
Wednesday nights have their own schedule at Southeastern. The Adult Wednesday Night Class meets at 6:30 PM in the Friendship Room and is taught by David McElwain. Wednesday Night Kids begins at 6:30 PM in Kids Praise for children who are potty trained through 5th grade, and the Youth Group meets at 6:00 PM in the Teen House for students in 6th through 12th grade.
The Sunday school hour is also structured by age, with adult, women's, teen, parenting community, and children's classes meeting across the building, so kids, students, and adults each have a place of their own before the whole church comes together for worship.
Missions Close to Home and Around the World
Southeastern's missions work is split between a Foreign Missions Committee and a separate Domestic Missions effort. The Foreign Missions Committee, chaired by Frank Black, supports four long-term missionary families: Mission Lazarus in Honduras and Haiti led by Jarrod Brown, the Schreck and Davenport families serving with Kigali International Community School in Rwanda, and Dr. Kent Brantly and family at Mukinje Mission Hospital in Zambia. Short-term teams made up of Southeastern members have served in Honduras, Haiti, Kenya, and Tanzania over the years, and the church has supported various other members in locations around the world.
On the domestic side, teams have responded to disasters - including flooding in the Houston, Texas area - and have run vacation Bible schools at a Hispanic church in Fort Worth, Texas for several summers running. Locally, the church partners with food and clothing ministries through the food pantry and the diaper depot, and its preschool serves as one of the primary ways the congregation meets its neighbors.
Leadership: Elders, Preaching Minister, and Ministry Staff
Southeastern is led by a team of elders: Steve Faidley, who has attended the church since 1981 and was baptized here in 1982; Adrian Goss, a retired Marine and Eli Lilly operations manager; Rick, a former elder and deacon at the Rochester Church of Christ in Rochester Hills, Michigan; Mark McKee, a long-time member and former Deacon of Finance; and John W. Wright, who has been at Southeastern since he was an infant. Each elder shares a short biography and a prayer for the church, from Faidley's vision of "a community church and less of a commuter church" to Wright's hope that Southeastern will be "a Jesus church" whose love for God and neighbors is evident to the world.
Joey serves as the preaching minister, Mike leads the praise team, David McElwain teaches the Wednesday adult class, and David oversees the diaper depot and the church's produce garden. Sheila directs the food pantry, and together they keep the building open seven days a week for ministry and care.
Plan a Visit
Anyone planning a first visit will find that the church keeps things simple. Pull into 6500 Southeastern Avenue, step into the tall glass-fronted main lobby, and a greeter will hand you a bulletin and point you to the coffee and welcome center. Pick up a songbook or follow the projected lyrics, share the Lord's Supper when the trays come by, listen for the message, and stay or leave as you wish. Services stream on the Southeastern YouTube Channel for those watching from home, and donations can be given online, by texting GIVE to 317-754-7463, or by mail to the church address.