A progressive church at the edge of Sebastopol
The Community Church of Sebastopol sits on Gravenstein Highway North, a few blocks north of Sebastopol's plaza and the apple orchards that ring this part of west Sonoma County. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest congregations in town and the spiritual home for a strikingly diverse group of people who describe the church in the same breath as a sanctuary, a community center, and a progressive Christian voice in the region.
Three commitments shape nearly everything the church does. It is an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ, formally declaring that people of every religious background, family composition, sexual orientation, ability, ethnicity, age, gender identity, and expression are welcome in the full life of the church. It is also a Sanctuary Congregation, a status the membership adopted on March 30, 2025, placing the church in active partnership with the Sonoma County Sanctuary Coalition. And it calls itself a place to grow in love, faith, and service, a refrain that shows up in its mission statement, in its publications, and in the way the building is used seven days a week.
Rooted in the United Church of Christ
The Community Church is one of more than five thousand congregations of the United Church of Christ, a denomination that traces its roots to early advocacy for religious freedom, the abolition of slavery, and the ordination of women. The UCC's posture of extravagant welcome shapes everything at Community Church, from the open communion table held on the first Sunday of each month to the conviction that God is still speaking. The local church lives out that identity in concrete ways: a long-standing welcome to LGBTQ members, a history of calling the first woman pastor to a Sebastopol congregation in 1983 and the first openly LGBTQ pastor in 2001, and a Sanctuary declaration rooted in the conviction that members of the church and their wider neighbors are targeted by unjust policies.
The church's own statement of belief is short and direct. It proclaims that the diversity of its people is a gift, that every person has worth as a special and unique creation made in God's image, and that as Christians, members experience God's reconciling love and seek to embrace justice alongside those who suffer discrimination, isolation, and alienation. The values come down to three words. Love names the welcome extended to all. Faith names the freedom to question, explore, and grow. Service names the conviction that faith is meant to be lived out in the wider community.
From nineteen founders to a 290-seat sanctuary
The congregation traces its beginning to 1889, when nineteen Sebastopol residents came together to start a Sunday school for the town's children, even before they had a sanctuary of their own. For more than a decade they met in borrowed spaces, finally building their first church on South Main Street in 1901.
By the 1960s, the church had outgrown its downtown home, and the congregation moved out to what was then open country on North Gravenstein Highway. The first service was held there in 1961, and the present sanctuary was dedicated in 1967. In the 1970s, under Rev. Philip Anderson, the church launched its still-beloved Family Camp, changed its name from its original denominational designation to the Community Church of Sebastopol to reflect its inclusive spirit, and helped establish Burbank Heights, an affordable housing community for seniors that the church developed in partnership with Sebastopol United Methodist Church. A second partnership with the same Methodist church led to the founding of Burbank Orchards in 1987.
Over the decades that followed, the campus grew. Memorial Hall, a large gymnasium-style space, was added in 1997. In 2013, under the long tenure of Rev. Gene Nelson, the church built a new chapel and classroom wing called the Pilgrim Center, with the intimate Faith Chapel at its heart. For more than a decade, Rev. Dr. Benjamin J. Broadbent has served as Lead Minister, and the church has deepened its commitment to progressive Christian faith formation, intergenerational community, and active justice work.
The church's longer history also lives on in a few stories its members still tell. In 1942, youth from the church's Pilgrim Fellowship maintained a 24-hour vigil to protect Sebastopol's Enmanji Buddhist Temple from arsonists during a period of anti-Japanese sentiment. The Interchurch Food Pantry was founded here in 1983. The Ceres Project, which now supplies healthy meals to people facing serious illness across the North Bay, got its start in the church's commercial kitchen in 2007, the same year the Graton Day Labor Center began meeting in the church's facility. From 2002 to 2019, the church hosted the annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner in Memorial Hall, feeding hundreds of neighbors in the weeks before the holiday. The Community Band, founded at the church, still rehearses in the Music Room, and the local high school's choral director has long ties to the church's music program.
Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m.
Worship is the rhythm around which the rest of the church's life turns. Services take place every Sunday at 10:00 a.m. in the sanctuary, with a livestream available on Facebook and YouTube for those who cannot be present in person. The weekly service program and announcement insert are also posted online, so anyone can follow along at home.
The atmosphere is described by the church itself as carrying a traditional vibe with an inclusive spirit. The Chancel Choir, the Handbell Ensemble, the in-house band All Things New, and soloists take turns providing music. Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of each month, and the table is open to all who wish to participate. The service is intentionally intergenerational, with a Children's Message that gives even the youngest worshipers a moment of their own. Children in kindergarten and younger may remain in the sanctuary or go to the nursery after that message; older children can participate in Godly Play, a Montessori-based approach to spiritual formation offered the second and fourth Sundays of the month during the school year.
First-time visitors will find a congregation that takes the phrase come as you are seriously. There is no dress code. The church is wheelchair-accessible, with handicap-designated parking close to the buildings. The two parking lots sit on either side of Danmar Drive, the larger one to the north and a smaller one with accessible spaces to the south, and the church provides clear directions online for anyone driving in from anywhere in west Sonoma County.
A musical congregation
Music runs through the life of the Community Church. The Chancel Choir, directed by Andy DelMonte, rehearses on Thursday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 in the choir room and sings in worship roughly twice a month between late August and early June. DelMonte, who is also the choir director at the local high school in Sebastopol and was named Director of the Year by the Northern California Band and Choir Directors Association in 2017, brings both school-level and parish-level experience to the work. All ability levels are welcome to join.
The Handbell Choir, founded in 1986 under Joyce Morrow and led today by Karna Roa, plays once a month in worship plus special services at Easter and Christmas. The ensemble rings with five octaves of Schulmerich handbells, two octaves of Malmark bells, and three octaves of Suzuki handchimes. Roa herself has been ringing at the church since 1986 and became a member of Sonos, the Bay Area's professional handbell ensemble, in 2021. New ringers do not need to read music fluently, though the ability to count and a healthy dose of determination are encouraged.
The keyboardist, J. Althea, has been playing piano since age four, when her grandmother taught her the repertoire of the late 1800s and early 1900s, along with Methodist hymns. Althea's career has spanned more than five decades as a professional pianist, music director, arranger, composer, and theatre director, and she looks forward to continuing to serve at the Community Church for as long as she is able. For a more contemporary sound, the in-house band All Things New, coordinated by Michael Ost, takes its turn leading music on select Sundays. During the summer months, the regular groups take a break and a rotating roster of soloists and ensembles fills the music.
Children, youth, and family faith
Children are a visible part of worship at Community Church. Worship tools for children are kept in the narthex, the area between the entrance and the pews, and families are encouraged to bring their children into the service. Childcare is available for infants and toddlers up to age three in Room 4 of the Teaching Building, beginning at 9:45 a.m. and running through 12:15 p.m., so parents can attend the adult Faith Formation hour after worship and enjoy coffee and fellowship. All nursery workers are trained and screened under the church's Safe Church policy, and parents check children in at the door of Room 4.
The children's ministry centers on Godly Play, a Montessori-inspired program that creates a sacred space for children in kindergarten through fifth grade to encounter the stories of the Christian faith through storytelling, wondering, and hands-on engagement with the stories on their own terms. The church also offers Our Whole Lives (OWL), a comprehensive sexuality education program developed by the UCC and the Unitarian Universalists, with age-appropriate curricula for grades K-1, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12, young adult, and adult. The OWL program supports participants in clarifying values, building interpersonal skills, and understanding the spiritual, emotional, social, and political aspects of sexuality in an affirming setting.
Middle school youth in grades 6 through 8 meet regularly with youth leaders to deepen their understanding of the Christian faith, build friendships, and serve others, with a year-end S.A.L.T. service trip to Sacramento or San Francisco. The high school youth group emphasizes community building, faith exploration, recreation, and service, with leaders creating a safe place to explore teen issues on a solid biblical foundation. Both groups participate in wider denominational events, including the UCC's National Youth Event, Camp Tamarack, Fall Fest, Mid-Winter Retreats, and the youth leadership program at the Annual Gathering. Many current members trace their own faith formation back to Camp Cazadero and the church's summer Family Camp, programs that have shaped multiple generations of Sebastopol families.
Adult faith formation and care
For adults, the church's life is structured around small groups and ongoing learning. The Online Bible Study meets on Wednesdays from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. on Zoom, with participants bringing their questions and leaving the week with them. A meditation group gathers on Thursdays at noon for an hour of stillness and mindfulness practice. A drop-in dream group meets on Thursdays from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. in Room 6, exploring dreams as a path to insight and creativity. The Men's Discussion Group meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in Faith Chapel, and the Women's Discussion Group gathers on the second Saturday of the month at 2:00 p.m. in the Fireside Room.
Two retreats punctuate the year, with a men's retreat in the fall and a women's retreat in the spring, alongside an all-church family camp weekend each fall. Faith Formation classes after worship on Sunday mornings cover a rotating range of topics. Nine-to-Dine dinners bring the congregation together in small groups for food and fellowship in the spring and the fall, and apple pie season each August, when the church produces pies for the Sebastopol Apple Fair, is one of the most anticipated traditions of the year.
The care ministry includes a Visitation Ministry Team that makes monthly home visits to elders and homebound members, a Prayer Shawl Ministry that knits and crochets shawls for those in need of comfort, and a Women's Fellowship Card Care Ministry that meets on the second Thursday of the month. Easter lilies and Christmas poinsettias are delivered to homebound members at the holidays. Prayer requests can be sent to Pastor Benjamin through an online form, and a Pastor's Discretionary Fund provides assistance with utility bills and other urgent needs for people in the wider community.
Working for justice in west county
The church's Mission and Outreach ministry touches the wider community in many directions. The Interchurch Food Pantry, founded in 1983 in partnership with St. Stephen's Episcopal Church and Sebastopol United Methodist Church, distributes groceries and food staples to people in need. On the second Saturday of each month, Community Church members prepare and host a community lunch, and on other Saturdays the church's volunteers rotate into the wider local network. Several mornings a week, volunteers from the church prepare bag lunches that are brought to Sebastopol Christian Church for distribution to people experiencing homelessness every weekday.
The church runs a Safe Parking and Conestoga Hut Program, accommodating unhoused neighbors in two Conestoga huts and people sleeping in their cars on the church lot, with volunteers managing the program and driving through the lot each evening to monitor safety. Showers are open to people in need every Tuesday morning. The West County Accompaniment Team, working through the North Bay Organizing Project, supports immigrant families seeking asylum. Each year, the congregation puts together Christmas gift bags for residents of Sam Jones Hall, the local homeless shelter, and collects school supplies for children in foster care.
A Faith in Action Team, formed in January 2025, coordinates the church's relationship with the North Bay Organizing Project, a coalition of faith, environmental, labor, cultural, student, and community-based organizations working for social, economic, racial, and environmental justice. The team also serves as the Sanctuary Task Force, carrying forward the work of the Sonoma County Sanctuary Coalition through public signage, lobbying, march hosting, and direct accompaniment. Initiatives and task forces include Deep Democracy, Civil Liberties, and Immigration.
The church's justice commitments stretch back decades. Members organized and supported the Graton Day Labor Center, which began meeting in the church's facility in 2007. The Ceres Project, which now supplies healthy meals to people facing serious illness across the North Bay, got its start in the church's commercial kitchen in 2007 as well. The community's first Alzheimer's respite program launched from Community Church, and the church is among the original sponsors of Rebuilding Together Sebastopol. The church also hosts an unusually large network of 12-step recovery groups, with as many as 35 weekly meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon, Overeaters Anonymous, and Adult Children of Alcoholics taking place on the campus, making the building a quiet but essential hub for recovery in west Sonoma County.
A campus built for the community
The Community Church campus reflects the way the congregation thinks of itself, less as a single-use worship space and more as a shared resource for the wider community. The Sanctuary, with its cushioned pews, seats 290 people and can accommodate up to 100 additional chairs, with classic architecture, natural light, and a professional sound system that supports full choirs, handbells, and a contemporary band. Memorial Hall, the large gymnasium-style space built in 1997, hosts events of up to 300 seated at tables and 600 in a chair-only setup, with twelve 72-inch round tables, sixteen eight-foot rectangle tables, metal chairs, and an attached commercial kitchen. The space hosts quinceaneras, receptions, concerts, and the church's own larger gatherings.
Fellowship Hall seats 55 for dinner or 80 to 100 for a meeting, with ten six-foot tables, 100 padded chairs, a roll-down screen, an attached full kitchen, and access to a courtyard garden. The Pilgrim Center's Faith Chapel provides an intimate setting for small weddings and quiet services, and the building also houses the Media Room, with audio, projection, and Wi-Fi, plus two classrooms that seat up to 20 each.
These spaces are available to rent for weddings, memorial services, concerts, meetings, and conferences, and the church is one of Sebastopol's most popular wedding venues. As an Open and Affirming congregation, the church joyfully hosts weddings of all couples and honors diverse backgrounds, faith traditions, and family compositions. Three wedding packages are available, ranging from a $1,200 simple ceremony to a $3,800 full-day experience that includes Memorial Hall, a reception host, live music by the church keyboardist, and additional setup and cleanup time. A non-refundable 25 percent deposit secures the date, with the balance due four weeks before the wedding. Memorial services and funeral services can be planned in close partnership with the pastor and staff, with music, scripture, and personal remembrances shaped to honor the life being celebrated.
Becoming a member
The church keeps the path to membership open and unhurried. Anyone is welcome to attend worship, join small groups, and take part in the life of the church for as long as they wish, with or without becoming a member. When the moment feels right, the process is simple. Attend worship services. Attend an Inquirers' Class offered every few months. Step into the full life of the congregation, which includes a commitment to regular attendance, participation in at least one program, service in the wider community, financial support, and openness to leadership or volunteer roles. Children are welcome at the Inquirers' Class and the joining ceremony, and local church membership itself is available from around age 14. Anyone unable to make the next class or the joining ceremony can be welcomed in absentia and introduced on a following Sunday, and the pastor is available during the week, in person or by phone, to continue the conversation for anyone who still has questions.
Leadership and staff
Rev. Dr. Benjamin J. Broadbent has led the Community Church as Lead Minister since August 2016. A graduate of Harvard Divinity School, where he earned his Master of Divinity in 1998, and of Chicago Theological Seminary, where he completed his Doctor of Ministry in Preaching in 2012 with a dissertation on preaching as an embodied practice, he first came to the church in 1997 as a counselor for Camp Cazadero, where he met his wife, Brooke Bell. They live in Sebastopol with their son, Marin, and daughter, Sophia. The lead minister is supported by an Associate Minister, by a Choral Director, a Handbell Director, a keyboardist, a bookkeeper, and a congregational administrator. The church's lay governance is led by a Leadership Council, and the day-to-day life of the office is held together by a small, dedicated staff.
The Community Church of Sebastopol, founded in 1889, stands as a congregation that sees its work as inseparable from the wider life of its town. Its sanctuary fills with music on Sunday mornings. Its parking lot shelters neighbors in transition. Its kitchen feeds those who are hungry. Its classrooms host recovery groups, school programs, and Bible studies. And its advocacy and prayer sustain a community that, in the words of longtime members, simply makes room.