A Church the Unchurched Love in Southeast Boise
Eastwind Community Church sits on a park-like, several-acre campus at the entrance to Surprise Valley in Southeast Boise, with the foothills rising just behind the property. The church's stated vision is to be a church that the unchurched love, and that posture shapes everything from the three Sunday morning services to the way newcomers are greeted at the front door. The mission the staff points to is straightforward: inspire people to follow Jesus and deepen their faith and relationship with him.
Lead pastor Carlos DeVitis is supported by a team that includes a children's pastor, a student and college pastor, a worship and life groups pastor, a junior high director, a preteen director, and a nursery and preschool coordinator. Eastwind describes itself as a place for those new to church and those who have been part of one for as long as they can remember, and the building blocks of the ministry are written to make a first visit feel low-pressure and a long-running member feel deeply invested.
Sunday Mornings on Surprise Way
Eastwind meets every Sunday at 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and Noon at 4750 S Surprise Way, Boise. The two earlier services are also livestreamed at 9:00 AM and 10:30 AM for those joining from home, and a full sermon archive is available on demand through the church's YouTube channel and inside the Eastwind App.
First-time visitors are invited to fill out a Plan a Visit form, and the church follows up with directions, parking information, and a quick rundown of what to expect on a Sunday morning. Inside the main lobby, a check-in station handles new families and prints a coded sticker for each child that matches a parent's sticker. The same code is required to pick the child up after the service. If a child becomes distressed during the service, the church discreetly posts their number on a display in the sanctuary so a parent can step out and check on them. For families who think they may need it, pagers are also available.
Little Ones, Kidmission, and Preteens
Family ministry is one of the largest commitments at Eastwind, and it runs all morning long. Little Ones serves infants through preschool, with volunteers who learn each child's name and repeat a simple message: God made them, God loves them, and Jesus wants to be their forever friend. Lori Siffert coordinates the nursery and preschool rooms, and Karissa Davis serves as children's pastor over the broader program.
Kidmission, for kindergarten through fifth grade, builds every week around three core ideas: I need to make a wise choice, I can trust God no matter what, and I should treat others the way I want to be treated. The environment's theme verse is 1 Timothy 4:12, which says, in the words the program emphasizes, don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity. Each week's lesson is paired with the free RightNow Kids app, which sends parents the lesson video their child watched, conversation starters for everyday moments, memory verse exercises, weekly challenges, and a worship video to use at home together.
Child dedications, baptism preparation, and communion conversations are built into the family ministry as well. Parents can request more information about dedicating a child, download a Parent Talk guide for sharing Jesus with their child, pick up a baptism guide, and find a short guide to explaining communion. Every volunteer in children's ministry is screened with an interview and background check, and the team is trained to keep kids safe. Allergies are noted on each child's KidCheck sticker, and snacks are not served during Sunday services, though treats such as donuts and cookies are offered to preteens on occasion.
Preteens in fourth and fifth grade have their own midweek program called Anchored. It meets Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:15 PM and opens with pizza and games before moving into teaching and small groups designed to help students build a solid foundation before they head into junior high. On Sunday mornings, preteens meet in the 4/5 Tribe Room during the 9:00 and 10:30 services; at the Noon service they are welcome to join the K-3rd class in the Portable or to sit with their families in the main service. Emilee Alderete leads the preteen ministry.
Junior High and Senior High Students
D Smith serves as the student and college pastor, working alongside Dominic DeVitis, the junior high director, to build a ministry for grades 6 through 12. Junior high students meet Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:15 PM with pizza, games, biblical teaching that speaks to their stage of life, and small groups broken out by gender and grade. They also sit together in the sanctuary during Sunday worship before moving to a student space for their own time of teaching and discussion.
High school students gather Tuesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 PM in a format that mixes snacks, activities, a message designed to be relevant whether a student already follows Jesus or is just exploring, and time going deep with peers in small groups. Through the year the ministry adds summer and winter camps, Jello Wars, and an annual Lock-in, all aimed at helping students build friendships and have fun around their faith. Students in grades 10 through 12 can apply for SALT, a student leadership team that runs the ministry both behind the scenes and up front.
College Nights, Life Groups, and the MomCo
For young adults ages 18 to 23, whether they are in school or not, College Nights meets on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. The gathering mixes worship, honest conversation, and teaching grounded in biblical truth, with the goal of building real friendships and growing in a relationship with Jesus. The church's own framing of the room is that everyone is welcome, no matter where they are in their faith journey.
Life Groups are the church's small-group ministry and one of the main on-ramps for adults who want to go deeper. Each group is made up of roughly 10 to 12 adults who meet weekly in homes during three annual sessions in the fall, winter, and spring, with the shared work of building relationship, caring for one another, and inspiring one another to grow deeper in Jesus.
For moms of preschoolers, the MomCo (formerly Mothers of Preschoolers) provides a separate community built around the same age group. The gathering is hosted in connection with Eastwind and is open to moms from the church and the wider Southeast Boise area. Over 100 people at Eastwind volunteer to serve in kids and student ministries, greet guests, run production, or lead life groups, and the church invites newcomers to step into a serving role as one of the first next steps.
Follow Jesus, Be Baptized, Read the Bible
The Follow Jesus pathway lays out a few starting points. For those curious about faith, new to it, or returning after time away, Starting Point is an eight-week class with sessions running 75 minutes and groups of 8 to 12 people plus 2 to 4 leaders. The class is offered several times a year and is described as a great place to start.
Baptism is presented as a public declaration of a personal decision, and Eastwind will baptize anyone again, even if they were baptized as an infant, because this time it is their own choice. A baptism form is available for those who want to take that step, and the church follows up to walk through the next details.
For daily Bible reading, Eastwind points people to the free YouVersion app and recommends starting with the Gospel of John, ten minutes a day, paired with prayer. Romans 10:9 is quoted as the simple shape of the decision: if you declare with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. The church's short framing of the moment is that you don't change in order to gain God's love, you change because you have experienced his love.
Let's Build Together
Eastwind is in the middle of a capital campaign called Let's Build Together, aimed at expanding the church's footprint on the 2.5-acre Surprise Way campus to serve the growing number of families in Southeast Boise. The first phase adds 15,000 square feet of multi-functional ministry space, an approximately 650-seat auditorium, and the repurposing of 7,500 square feet of existing space for kids and teens. A later phase envisions a 12,500-square-foot building dedicated to students and children on the east side of the property.
Recent updates shared with the congregation include a completed curb cut that opens up access to leased Idaho Power land on the western side of the property and permitting underway for a relocated Kidmission portable and a new yurt classroom on the eastern side. The campaign's anchor verse is Ephesians 3:20, which the church cites as the reason for the project: God is able to do far more than people can ask, think, or imagine, according to the power that works within them.
Seven Values, One Staff
The culture at Eastwind is described in seven values the staff commits to: we take it personally, we make it better, we choose impact over process, we love collaboration, we invest in others, we stay healthy, and we remain open handed. Behind those commitments, the team includes Carlos DeVitis as lead pastor, Karissa Davis as children's pastor, Leif Brandt as worship and life groups pastor, D Smith as student and college pastor, Dominic DeVitis as junior high director, Emilee Alderete as preteen director, Lori Siffert as nursery and preschool coordinator, Neil Boel as owners representative for campus expansion, and Mary Baer in administration.
How to Get Connected
Eastwind Community Church is located at 4750 S Surprise Way, Boise, ID 83716, just as you enter Surprise Valley from Southeast Boise. Service times are 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and Noon every Sunday, with the two earlier services also livestreamed. Giving is available online through the church's giving page, by texting any amount to 84321, by mail to the Surprise Way address, by setting up Eastwind as a bill payment through a personal bank, and through stock donations arranged by emailing info@eastwindcc.com. The office phone is (208) 387-0818.
Newcomers can plan a visit, sign up to serve, register for events, or join a life group, all through the church's online hub, with the Eastwind App tying the same tools to a phone. The church is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and qualifies for employer matching programs.