Since 1879 on East Main Street
In the small village of Pine Grove in 1879, with about 300 residents, a few stores, a grist mill and a post office, a visiting preacher named Rev. W.B. Barr rode a mule in from Pardoe to hold the first service. That April 6 gathering in a second-story room of the Pine Grove School House was the beginning of what is now East Main Presbyterian Church, still on East Main Street in Grove City, Pennsylvania, more than 145 years later.
Before the church had its own roof, it met in five different spaces around the growing town: a sinking schoolroom, a borrowed hall with no floor or furnishings, the Pine Grove Academy chapel, a short-lived $5,000 frame building lost when a spark from a neighboring fire landed on it, and then in October 1893 a red brick chapel built in 17 months on the same East Main Street site. The original bell from the 1883 frame church was saved and hung in the brick tower, and it still hangs in the present building. By 1907 the congregation had outgrown the 1893 chapel, and a building committee secured three lots across the street for the present brownstone house of worship at 120 East Main Street. The bell moved to the new tower. Classrooms were added in 1930, and a gathering space for adults and teens in 1991.
Two Sunday Services, One Sanctuary
At the heart of the church's life are two Sunday morning services in the same sanctuary.
At 9:15 AM, the Classic Service leans on hymns, organ, choir or bell choir, and liturgical elements woven around a Bible-based sermon. At 10:45 AM, the Contemporary Service uses a worship band with contemporary songs, again paired with liturgical elements and a Bible-based sermon.
Children are welcome in both services. Anyone who would rather have a place to wiggle is pointed to the Cozy Play Zone, a play space in the Welcome Center where parents can still see and hear the service. JAM (Jesus And Me) classes run during both services for children age two through fifth grade, with a one-hour faith formation time during the school year. Preschoolers use the HYFI curriculum to learn about their identity in Christ; elementary students move into a chronological study of Scripture through The Gospel Project Curriculum. Teachers and teen helpers are background-checked and work in teams. A staffed nursery is available for infants and toddlers during both services in the school year, and a "Mommy Suite" for nursing moms is now located in Room 301 on the corner balcony.
Parking is available all around the building, with handicap and special-needs spots marked on the church's parking map. Visitors are invited to "Wear What You Want, Dress Up or Dress Down," and the congregation describes itself as Welcoming, Thoughtful, Biblical, Family Friendly, Intergenerational, Christ-centered and Caring.
Children from Birth Through Grade 5
Children's ministry is built on five core values: that the Word is central, because Scripture is inspired by God and authoritative for faith and discipleship; that Jesus is the model to imitate; that healthy relationships are at the core; that safety is the priority, with background checks, check-in and check-out, and a security team; and that fun is part of the design.
Sunday mornings are the heart of the program. In addition to the JAM classes during both services, the children's wing offers a staffed nursery for infants and toddlers, a Mommy Suite for nursing mothers, and the Cozy Play Zone in the Welcome Center. During the school year, first through fifth graders can also join 10-week Tuesday-evening small groups for an extra hour of study. Parents are encouraged to be their children's primary disciple-makers, with the church walking alongside.
Youth in Grades 6 to 12
The youth program follows the same four-part pattern as the larger church: Show Up, Grow Up, Step Up, Reach Out. Its four program tracks run from weekly to annual.
Large Groups are monthly outreach and fellowship nights with a theme, generally open to friends students want to bring along. Small Groups meet weekly during the school year for catch-up, prayer, and a study of the essentials of Christianity. Service Projects happen about once a semester and have included backyard cleanups, gift bags for more vulnerable neighbors, and the IJM Freedom Fast. Mission Trips are typically regional or local and run about a week.
The youth ministry frames the year around three pressure points: identity and self-worth (we are God's beloved, not what we do or look like), belonging (every student has a place), and purpose (God has wired something into every student to live out). The verse at the center is from Ephesians 2:10: "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."
A Mission and a Four-Step Rhythm
The church's stated mission is simple and direct: "East Main Church exists to honor God by being disciples and making more disciples of Jesus Christ."
Five values explain why the church pursues that mission. The gospel of the crucified and risen Jesus transforms the whole person. Every generation and every segment of the surrounding community needs to encounter that power. A person's identity is defined by God's grace in Christ, not by flaws, failures or achievements. The love of Christ compels prayer and service in the wider community. And coaching children, youth and families to follow Jesus renews hope.
Covenant Partners (members) are asked to show up at worship services, grow up in a small group or Bible study, step up through giving and serving, and reach out by inviting friends and family into the same path.
The Deacon Care Ministry
East Main's deacons form the elected care ministry of the church. Meeting monthly to pray, plan and tend the congregation, their work runs through ten standing ministries:
- Hospital visits to anyone admitted to the local hospital
- Caring meals, short-term and delivered, for those recovering from surgery or illness
- A New Baby Welcoming Ministry with gifts and a meal for new families
- Monthly Visitation Ministry to homebound, disabled, widowed or bereaved friends
- Handmade Prayer Blankets given to those who are hospitalized or recovering at home
- A Senior Celebration dinner every three to five years for members eighty and older
- Driving Needs, including rides to local doctor and hospital appointments as far as Pittsburgh
- Holiday Flower deliveries at Christmas and Easter to parishioners who are ill or homebound
- Funeral Meals hosted at the church for families after a loss
- Shared Healthcare Equipment, including wheelchairs and walkers, available to those in need
Greeting cards are sent for milestones, encouragement and grief.
Skeptics Welcome and Grief Resources
A page called Skeptics Welcome lays out the Christian message in ordinary language for people still working through the questions. The argument runs that we are God's creation, that we have also chosen our own way and become sinners, that idols and other substitutes for God leave us in spiritual bondage, and that in Jesus God acted to bring us back. Three things follow for someone considering Christianity: repentance, or admitting that we have lived as our own master; belief, or trusting Christ's work instead of our own; and follow-through, including prayer, Bible study and fellowship with other Christians. An on-site library lends out titles such as C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, Tim Keller's The Reason for God, John Stott's Basic Christianity, Francis Spufford's Unapologetic and John Lennox's Gunning for God.
For those walking through grief, the church points to books such as Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor, Prayer in the Night by Tish Warren, and Good Grief by Granger Westberg, and offers prayer and encouragement from the pastoral team.
Baptism is offered at the baptismal font (water sprinkled or poured) or by full immersion, and a parent may also choose infant dedication instead of infant baptism. Anyone who has been baptized before can reaffirm baptism vows in front of the church with the help of a pastor.
Church Has Left the Building and the No Barriers Renovation
Once a year the whole church disperses for "Church Has Left The Building," a workday in which teams fan out across Grove City, Slippery Rock, Mercer and Harrisville to do yard work, painting, clean-ups and small home repairs at no cost to homeowners who need a hand.
The 19th-century building is also the focus of an ongoing capital and accessibility project called No Barriers. A long-time member writing about the campaign put it plainly: a hip fracture from a fall in this older building could be life-altering for an older friend, and he wants the building maintained and made as safe as possible for every member. Pledges are tracked toward the project's budget, and the church posts a brochure, a one-page summary and an FAQ along with a fillable commitment letter.
ECO and the Pastoral Team
East Main is part of ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians, founded in January 2012. Four words shape the name: Covenant (God initiated a relationship that then connects us to each other); Order (a shared theological core); Evangelical (witnesses to the hope of the gospel, engaged in culture and planting missional communities); Presbyterian (representative government by elders).
In the Presbyterian tradition, governance flows through elected elders, called the Session. East Main's Session meets roughly every other month and is currently led by President Lori Bishop, Treasurer Heather Reed and Secretary Gary Krenzer, with elders Chad Baumgartner, Mike Jackson, Dan Kulp and Jay Roth. An Administrative Team formed by the Session in 2023 supports the staff and pastors. A Finance Committee, chaired by the Treasurer and including Dan Bishop, Eric Bishop and Mark Hazy, oversees the building, grounds, capital expenditures and the budget.
Pastor Bill Hoffman shapes much of the church's public voice, including the letter that opens its Welcome and a personal note to anyone walking through grief. Pastor Melissa Danielson serves as Associate Pastor and oversees the volunteer clearance process for children's and youth ministry.
Giving and Getting Connected
Worship is livestreamed each Sunday, with an archive on the church's YouTube channel. "Digging Deeper" sermon notes and a Mid-Week Videos playlist help people keep going through the week.
Giving is available in three ways: online through a one-time or recurring gift, in person by check on Sunday, or by stock transfer through the financial secretary. Visitors and members can stay connected through the Church Center app and the weekly Friday email, and prayer requests can be submitted through the church office.