A Hundred Years on Main Street
First Presbyterian Church of Glen Ellyn sits at 550 North Main Street, at the north end of downtown Glen Ellyn, Illinois, where the town gathers around the train station and the shops that line Main. The church marked its centennial in 2026, hosting a Homecoming Weekend and inviting back pastors like Rev. Charlie Alcorn, who served as Associate Pastor from 1970 to 1973. For a century, the congregation has walked alongside families in this suburb west of Chicago, raising a generation of children through its Preschool, its choirs, and the rhythms of two Sunday services that ask very different things of the same gospel.
Today First Pres is part of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and what it calls its "More Than Sunday" motto shows up everywhere in its life. Faith is treated as something to be lived in relationships, in study, in service to the DuPage County community, and in partnerships that stretch from Glen Ellyn to the Dominican Republic, Uganda, Central Asia, and the reservations of Montana. Senior Pastor Chris Griggs, who has served the church since 2012, sums up that posture this way: "More Than Sunday means we discover what it means for us to live as followers of Jesus Christ in every aspect of our lives. God's love for us and for the world has implications for our relationships, our families, our calendars, our community, our work lives, and on and on and on."
Two Sunday Services: Classic and Modern
Worship at First Pres is intentionally offered in two distinct expressions on Sunday morning, and the choice between them is one of the first decisions a visitor makes. The Classic service meets at 8:45 am and runs until 9:45 am. It is described as liturgy focused - the steady heartbeat of liturgical practices gently nudging worshipers to be still before God and to reorient their priorities. Music is drawn from the great legacies of the faith: a Sanctuary Choir, a pipe organ, an orchestra that gathers roughly quarterly, a long-running Bell Choir, and the corporate singing of hymns written across the centuries.
The Modern service begins at 10:30 am and ends at 11:30 am. On any given Sunday, the worship band might lead a Bethel-style arrangement, a multigenerational choir might sing, a high schooler might deliver spoken word, or a neighbor might bring out a mandolin. The Modern service pulls from blues, gospel, folk, and creative arts, offering both a challenge and what the church describes as "a hint of what is home." Evening worship services also take place at various times during the year, with a focus on reflection and gathered worship.
Both services are broadcast live on YouTube and Facebook, and an archive of past services goes back for years on the church's online hub. A recorded audio version of the most recent sermon is also available through the church's podcast and YouTube channel, and a Sunday worship bulletin can be downloaded before each service.
A Whole Music Ministry
Music is one of the most visible commitments at First Pres, and the volunteers who staff it are extensive. The Sanctuary Choir leads congregational singing at the Classic service each week from September through May, with Thursday rehearsals at 7:30 pm. The choir welcomes all ages, accommodates flexible schedules, and creates space for section leaders, interns, soloists, guest conductors, composers, and accompanists. A children's choir supplements both services periodically and serves as a training ground for young worship leaders.
The Bell Choir performs from September through May with Thursday rehearsals at 6 pm. It draws on a long heritage at the church, requires basic music reading skills, and offers both contemplative and joyful repertoire ranging from accessible to challenging. Instrumental soloists and smaller ensembles, including string quartets, bluegrass groups, and the "Christmas Brass," fill out the calendar around the orchestra's quarterly appearances.
The Modern side is led by Director of Worship Ministries Lily Serfass alongside Modern Worship Music Director Jerry Goodwin. Worship teams are intentionally intergenerational and rotate in style. The church's director of worship ministries began as a worship intern at First Pres in 2021 and grew into a leadership role as the staff evolved; the music director for the modern service came up through years of playing in prominent churches before joining First Pres as a substitute drummer in August 2021 and stepping into the Music Director role by November 2024. Choir Director Emma Ware joined First Pres as a worship intern in the summer of 2023 before taking on the choir in 2024, and Emily Puntuzs directs the Classic service handbells while also teaching strings at Wheaton College Community School of the Arts. Organist Kevin Wong and Technical Director Guy Roseen round out the team.
Children and Spark
Children's ministry at First Pres is built for the full stretch of a young life, from newborn through fifth grade. Nursery care is provided during both Sunday morning services for children from birth through age 2. From age 2.5 through kindergarten, kids experience Kids' Church - a worship experience designed around play, prayer, creativity, and interactive Bible stories. From first through fifth grade, Kids' Church continues with the same shape but with content tuned to older elementary learners. Children are welcome to stay in the sanctuary for either service as well.
Midweek, Spark runs each Wednesday from 3:45 to 5:30 pm, September through mid-March, for first through fifth graders. The program features Bible stories from both Old and New Testaments, interactive lessons, and small moments of faith lived out at school, at home, and in the neighborhood. The current theme, "Let Your Light Shine," has a Glow Party each fall where kids shine under black lights. Vacation Bible School returns in June, opening up to rising kindergartners through fifth graders, with a preschool track for four- and five-year-olds.
Stephanie Freemyer directs children's ministry and has built First Pres Kids around the idea of children being included in the body of Christ through playful, accessible, deeply relational faith. Brooke Sawyer works alongside her as the Children's Ministries Coordinator. Together they shape a ministry that is also intentionally inclusive: Stephanie has made a point of designing spaces where children of all backgrounds and abilities feel seen, loved, and valued.
Student Ministries: TNT, FPGEY, and Confirmation
Middle school and high school students have their own world at First Pres. TNT, the junior high program, meets on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 8:00 pm in the Gym and Youth Lounge, September through May. The night includes a $5 dinner, a high-energy kickoff activity, large-group Bible teaching, and small-group discussion split by grade and gender. During the school year, students dig into the life of Jesus; parents are invited to help serve dinner and, on designated Wednesdays, to come early and see what a TNT night feels like.
High schoolers gather on Sunday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 pm in the Youth Lounge for FPGEY. Each week, students open the Bible together and explore real-world questions about mental health, technology, food insecurity, and the place of faith in their daily lives. Smaller Life Groups meet during the summer in people's homes for more relaxed, topic-based discussions. Students who play or sing are invited into a Student Worship Team led by Lily Serfass.
An 8th grade Confirmation class meets Sundays from 9:00 to 10:00 am in room LL8, alongside an October retreat at Timber-Lee. Confirmation is described as highly experiential, exploring identity, purpose, and belonging as students consider affirming their baptism and joining First Pres as members. Parents are expected to participate in several classes during the year.
Director of Student Ministries Ben Hancock grew up 25 minutes west of Glen Ellyn at First Presbyterian Church of River Forest and returned to the area after completing a master's in New Jersey. The entire student ministry team works under the umbrella of Senior Director of Family Ministries Jen Bradbury, who oversees children's, student, and family ministries as a whole and has authored several books on youth ministry, including Faith Beyond Youth Group and The Jesus Gap.
Westminster Preschool
Westminster Preschool has been a ministry of First Pres since 1956 and now serves children from age 2 through kindergarten. Lori Gapinski leads the preschool as Director, with Kelly Michel serving as Coordinator. Two certified teachers share every classroom, and class sizes are kept small so that each student can be known by name.
Families can choose mornings from 8:45 to 11:15 am or afternoons from 12:30 to 3:00 pm, with the school year running from September through the week before Memorial Day. Westminster follows the academic calendar of Glen Ellyn School District 41 for most holidays and closings. Programs include an On My Own option for three-year-olds, a Two-Day Program for threes, a Three-Day Program for fours, a Four-Day Program, a Pre-K / Junior Kindergarten for fives, and a half-day Kindergarten Enrichment for children attending neighborhood elementary schools.
Music classes for ages 3, 4, and 5 and PE classes for ages 4 and 5 are taught by dedicated staff and culminate in an annual Christmas Sing. Children's Church takes place once a month during class in the sanctuary, where students experience a worship space through a song, prayer, Bible story, and an offering that supports a local agency - everything from granola bars for the Glen Ellyn Children's Resource Center to books for Partners in Mission in Uganda. Summer camps in gardening, cooking, STEM, and sensory science keep the youngest learners engaged between academic years. Scholarships are available on a confidential basis for every program.
Adult Ministries: Catalyst, Small Groups, and Equipped
Adults at First Pres can plug into the congregation through Catalyst, the church's onramp for new or exploring faith. Catalyst is a nine-week experience designed to be a comfortable entry point where people can explore what faith looks like in everyday life. Catalyst for Men meets Thursdays from 8:00 to 9:30 pm. Catalyst for Women meets either Thursday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00 am or Tuesday evenings from 7:30 to 9:00 pm. Director of Community Formation Shana Frederick oversees Catalyst and many of the church's relational ministries.
Small groups meet all week in a wide range of formats. Women's groups include morning Faith Builders on Thursdays, Evening Faith Builders on Wednesdays, and a Zoom Bible Study on Wednesday mornings at 7:00 am. Men's groups include a Saturday morning book group and two Bible studies - one Saturday morning in the Gathering Place, the other by Zoom on Wednesday mornings. There are also co-ed groups, couples groups, family groups, and a six-week Grief Support Group that runs in the Parlor in the evening, facilitated by Jonathan Hancock.
Sunday morning adult education, called Equipped, meets from 10:00 to 10:45 am, September through May, in the Parlor. Classes are taught by Wheaton College faculty, local pastors, and pastoral counseling staff, and they cover theology, scripture, missions, soul care, marriage, parenting, and current events. Adult Ministries Coordinator Nancy Cavanaugh curates the schedule and encourages people to come to the Parlor to listen and learn. The church also hosts seasonal gatherings, including a Men's Breakfast series, a Morning Apart retreat for women, Mom's Morning Out, an Advent evening, a Summer Book Club, and Family Ministry gatherings for parents of young children and middle schoolers.
Missions: Local, National, and Global
Missions are at the heart of how First Pres practices its faith. The church supports a long list of partner organizations - each with a designated liaison from the congregation - and offers structured ways for people to engage as mentors, tutors, donors, drivers, or trip participants.
Locally, First Pres walks with Bridge of Hope, a transitional housing program through Bridge Communities for homeless families with dependent children in DuPage County. The church also partners with the Central DuPage Pastoral Counseling Center, a faith-rooted counseling center that offers mental health services on a sliding scale; Emmaus Ministries, which supports male survivors of commercial sexual exploitation; ESSE Adult Day Services, which provides daytime programming for older adults; Exodus World Service and the church's own Refugee Mission Ministry, which connect volunteers with newly resettling refugee families; the Glen House Food Pantry, a 14-church ecumenical effort to feed DuPage neighbors; the Glen Ellyn Walk-In Ministry, which helps with emergency needs like gas, utilities, and food; Outreach DuPage, which supports tutoring, Jubilee Furniture, and a Christmas Store; and the Young Men's Educational Network in North Lawndale, where First Pres families serve meals and tend a community garden.
Nationally, the church sends an annual family-friendly, intergenerational mission trip to the Ft. Peck Reservation in northeastern Montana, hosting a Vacation Bible School in Ft. Kipp and completing construction projects at the Red Eagle and Macaicu Churches. The Dakota Partnership extends similar trips to Sisseton, South Dakota.
Globally, First Pres supports a stable of long-standing missionaries and organizations. Frontiers missionary Dan McNerney focuses on Middle Eastern and Muslim-background ministry. Kids Alive International runs the Ark Constanza in the Dominican Republic, where residential homes and a K-8 school serve up to 40 children who have come from hard places. Living Hope for Children cares for orphans and vulnerable children in Uganda. Partners in Mission supports the Kamwenge Secondary and Vocational School and Good Shepherd Kindergarten in Uganda through an annual bike ride and student sponsorship. Pioneers International missionaries work with an indigenous Central Asian people group, supporting an orchard business as a means of mission. Tom and Dora Becker serve with ReachGlobal's Roma Ministry Team in Europe.
Mission trip scholarships are available so that financial burden does not keep people from participating, and the church's missions council actively matches kids and families to service opportunities that fit their interests and capacity.
Staff and Beliefs
The First Pres staff reflects a mix of long-tenured leaders and newer voices. Chris Griggs holds a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Seminary and a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, and previously served as Associate Pastor of Adult Discipleship at Sammamish Presbyterian Church in Washington. Jonathan Hancock, Associate Pastor for Congregational Care, holds an MDiv from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and was previously Executive Director of Emmaus Ministries. Lily Serfass holds a Bachelor of Music in Classical Voice and Theater from Wheaton College. Shana Frederick holds master's degrees in counseling from Concordia University and in English and education from Drake University.
The church's mission statement frames the congregation as an externally focused community that prioritizes discipleship and joins Christ in transforming work in its own families, in the wider community, and in the world. Its values name Transformation, Scripture, Unity, Visible Faith, Compassion, Witness, and Relationships as the equally important commitments that guide life together. Within the PC(USA), First Pres describes itself as a family-centered congregation that has wrestled with denominational and congregational issues over the years and has chosen to remain centered on Jesus Christ.
Visiting First Pres
The building is at 550 North Main Street, Glen Ellyn, Illinois 60137, with parking lots on the west side of the building and at the northeast corner, both reached from Cottage Avenue. On Sunday mornings, the northeast corner lot is reserved for seniors and people with disabilities; visitor parking is available in the west side lot. Street parking is plentiful south of the building and on surrounding neighborhood streets.
The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and Fridays from 9:00 am to noon, with a single phone line serving the whole campus. Visitors planning a first visit can fill out a short online form to reserve a seat, and a church member will follow up to help coordinate the morning. Anyone who wants to stay connected after a visit can join the More Than Sunday e-list, which carries general news, children's updates, junior high and senior high news, missions news, and a podcast called "More Than Sunday."