A Congregation Born from the Lower Yakima Valley
Sunnyside Christian Reformed Church sits on North 16th Street in Sunnyside, a town at the heart of Washington's Lower Yakima Valley. The congregation's stated goal is to connect the valley to Christ - to reach the families, children, and neighbors of this farming region with the good news of Jesus. With around half the surrounding community under age eighteen, the church has built its ministry around children and youth while still holding a full slate of adult Bible studies, small groups, and global mission partnerships.
Roots on Cemetery Road: The Early Decades
The story of Sunnyside CRC begins long before the doors opened. Dutch farmers came to the Yakima Valley to work the irrigated land that had turned the region into what was once called the Fruit Bowl of the Nation. Six families settled in Sunnyside and worshipped in their homes, with Pieter Van Belle leading Dutch songs and reading sermons aloud. Travel to the parent church in Zillah, organized in 1901, was difficult over miles of dirt and gravel, so visits were saved for communions and baptisms.
In 1910, seven more families sailed directly from the Netherlands, and Pieter Van Belle returned from a trip to Holland with nineteen additional settlers. The families pooled resources and purchased a lot on Cemetery Road, where they built a one-room church building. By the late 1920s the small group had grown enough to seek its own organization. On April 26, 1932, Sunnyside organized as a separate Christian Reformed Church with 43 confessing members and 71 baptized members. The congregation soon outgrew its first home and in 1936 purchased a stately gray stone-block building on Eighth Street and Franklin Avenue for $1,500, complete with two flights of stairs leading up to the sanctuary.
From the Stone Church to 16th Street
The first resident pastor arrived in 1938 when Rev. Malefyt accepted the call from Edmonton, Alberta. His six-year ministry helped move preaching and singing from Dutch into English, began printed bulletins, and started Daily Vacation Bible School. After World War II, a wave of Dutch immigrants arrived in the valley, and the congregation grew again. Under Rev. Walter Hekman (1948-1953), the church launched a building fund, switched to individual communion cups, started a thirty-member choir, and opened a lending library in the basement of the Stone Church.
In 1963 the congregation moved to its current home on 16th Street, a building constructed by skilled members of the church and designed to seat 600. The cornerstone was laid in August 1962 with the hymn "I Love Thy Church, O Lord." Subsequent pastors shaped the life of the church in different ways - Rev. Wildeboer's "I Found It Campaign" in the late 1960s reached out door-to-door, while Rev. Griffioen's patient guidance carried the building program. In 1962 Jan Friend was ordained at Sunnyside CRC and went on to serve twenty years as a U.S. Army chaplain. More recently, Senior Pastor Joel Sheeres and his wife Christine moved from a 17-year pastorate in Crown Point, Indiana, to lead the congregation beginning in the summer of 2019.
Beliefs: Three Creeds and Three Confessions
Sunnyside CRC holds to the basic truths of the Christian faith: the Bible as God's holy and inspired Word, the virgin birth of Jesus Christ as the only Son of God, His death on the cross for our sins, His physical resurrection, His heavenly reign and imminent return, and the promise of new and eternal life for all who confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
As a Reformed congregation, the church also subscribes to the three ecumenical creeds - the Apostles' Creed, the Athanasian Creed, and the Nicene Creed - and the three historic Reformed confessions: the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dort, and the Heidelberg Catechism. The congregation is a member of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, the denomination founded in 1857 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and these confessions give shape to the church's teaching and life.
A Vision for the Valley
The congregation's vision statement, "Connecting the Valley to Christ," sets the tone for everything the church does. The first aim is to help people who do not yet know Jesus, or who have drifted from faith, enter a relationship with him. The second is to reach everyone in the Lower Yakima Valley, an area that the church recognizes is ethnically diverse. The third is to point to Jesus Christ himself as the one who gives love, grace, and peace.
The mission that flows from this vision is to help children, families, and individuals believe and belong through relevant and engaging ministries. Because nearly half the local community is under eighteen, much of the church's energy goes into children and youth programming designed to reach young people and their parents at the same time. Adult ministries, mission support, and worship then enfold the whole family in discipleship.
Sunday Morning at 10:30
Sunday morning worship begins at 10:30 a.m. and is open to anyone regardless of age, gender, race, or culture. The service is described as designed to glorify God, engage believers, and proclaim the truth of Jesus to unbelievers. Music is a blend of modern and traditional hymns and songs, and teaching is straightforward and accessible. Services are livestreamed on YouTube and Vimeo for those who cannot attend in person, and recent services are archived for later viewing.
An hour before worship, at 9:30 a.m., Sunday School classes meet from September through May for everyone age three through twelfth grade and for adults. Children are grouped by age in dedicated rooms: preschoolers (ages 3 and 4) in Room 147, kindergarten and first grade in Room 148, second and third grade in Room 151, fourth through sixth grade in Room 146, seventh and eighth grade in Room 152, ninth and tenth grade in Room 157, and eleventh and twelfth grade in Room 165. Adults gather in Room 154.
During the 10:30 service, infants and toddlers through age two are welcomed into the nursery, staffed by cleared volunteers from the congregation. Children may be dropped off at any point during the service. Three-year-olds through kindergartners are invited to Sprouts, a Bible-based program that combines music, stories, games, and crafts during the worship hour.
Children and Youth: The Heart of the Ministry
The children's and youth ministries reflect the church's conviction that reaching kids for Christ is the most strategic work in a community where half the population is young. Programs run throughout the week, not just on Sunday morning.
CityWide is the high school ministry, run in partnership with Sunnyside First Baptist Church and Young Life. Meeting every Wednesday evening and alternating between the CRC and FBC buildings, CityWide welcomes both longtime believers and students looking for a safe place to belong. Campaigners, a deeper Bible study for committed teens, meets the first and third Wednesdays one hour before the main gathering. Eduardo Gallo leads the local Young Life work, and updates are posted on the Young Life Lower Valley Instagram page.
WyldLife is the middle school counterpart, also run with Sunnyside First Baptist and Young Life. It meets on alternating Tuesdays, alternating between the two host buildings, and is designed to be a fun, welcoming place for junior high students.
Two long-standing clubs serve elementary and middle school students on Wednesday afternoons. Cadets is the Calvinist Cadet Corps for boys in grades four through eight, meeting the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month from September through May. Built on Luke 2:52, Cadets helps boys grow spiritually, mentally, physically, and socially through Bible study, outdoor skills, and mentoring by adult men. GEMS Girls' Club welcomes girls in grades three through eight at the same rhythm, offering small groups of six to eight girls per counselor, badge activities, service projects, and large-group singing and creative movement.
Sprouts, for children ages three through kindergarten, meets each Sunday during the 10:30 service and combines music, Bible stories, games, and crafts in an age-appropriate environment. Parent resources through the Parent Cue app help families reinforce the lessons at home.
Adults: Bible Study, Prayer, and Friendship
A robust set of adult ministries runs alongside the children's work. The Men's Bible Study gathers on Thursday mornings at 7:00 a.m. in the church lobby from September through May, drawing men from several Sunnyside churches to study Scripture chapter by chapter together. The Women's Bible Study meets on Tuesday mornings at 10:30 a.m. in Room 157 and on alternating Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in the same room, using studies such as Jen Wilkin's "God of Deliverance" and Lifeway's "The Names of God." Both groups are open to women of all ages.
Young adults between eighteen and thirty are invited to a Bible study that meets on alternating Sundays at 6:00 p.m. in various locations. The group currently walks through the book of Acts together.
The Devoted Bible Reading Challenge invites the whole church to read through the entire Bible in one calendar year. The Old Testament portion starts at the beginning of January and the New Testament in September. Two discussion groups meet each week to talk about the readings: Mondays at 4:00 p.m. in the library and the first Tuesday of each month at 8:45 a.m. in the lobby. Reading plans are available as downloadable PDFs.
Activity Groups offer a lighter connection point for the wider community. Sunday afternoon Pickleball at 4:00 p.m. in the church gym draws players who bring their own paddles or borrow one. Monday afternoon board games at 1:00 p.m. in the gym features everything from Apples to Apples to Zombie Dice.
Missionaries: From the Valley to the World
The congregation supports four missionary families. Mike Lotter serves with CRU in South Africa. Samuel and Brenda Souleymane serve in West Africa. Eduardo Gallo leads Young Life ministry in Sunnyside itself. Benjamin and Tricia Groenewold serve in Lithuania. The church encourages members to support these missionaries not only financially through the Faith Promise giving fund, but also through prayer and personal notes of encouragement.
Giving and Supporting the Mission
Online giving is handled through PayPal, and donors can direct their contributions to one of several funds. The General Budget supports ministry, staff, and operations. Debt Reduction gifts pay down the building mortgage. Faith Promise supports the missionaries listed above. The Farmer to Farmer fund helps farmers from the congregation teach and mentor farmers in Africa. SCS Help assists families with children at Sunnyside Christian Schools who struggle with tuition. Benevolence gifts help people in the community meet basic needs. The church also maintains a Christian Burial Association, formed in 1934 to help members and the wider community bear the cost of funerals, an outreach that continues today.
Safe Church and Community Trust
All staff and volunteers who work with children at Sunnyside CRC complete annual protection policy training and a background check every two years through Protect My Ministry. The Safe Church program walks volunteers through a short training video, a written policy, a confirmation form, and the background check process, with incident report forms available if needed. The annual Children and Youth Permission Slip form, completed by parents at the start of each school year, covers emergency treatment consent, media permissions, and medical information.
Where the Church Stands Today
Sunnyside CRC is a mid-sized congregation with a deep history, a strong children's ministry backbone, and a global outlook. The current Senior Pastor, Joel Sheeres, came to Sunnyside after twenty-five years of ministry in the Chicago area and most recently Crown Point, Indiana, and he and Christine live in the broader Yakima Valley.
Office hours run Monday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., with the church reachable by phone at 509-837-5371 or by email at office@suncrc.org. Whether visitors come for worship on Sunday morning, drop a child at nursery or Sprouts, join a Wednesday night Cadets or GEMS club, or tune in online from home, the church's aim is the same one it has held since 1932: to point the people of the Lower Yakima Valley to the love, grace, and peace of Jesus Christ.