A Half-Century on Knox Drive in the Lamorinda Hills
Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church sits on a leafy campus at 49 Knox Drive in Lafayette, California, in the rolling Lamorinda hills east of the Caldecott Tunnel. Founded in 1954, the congregation has grown into one of the larger Presbyterian Church (USA) churches in Contra Costa County and is known across the region for blended worship, a deep music program, a long-running preschool, and an unusually broad portfolio of ministries for children, youth, families with special needs, and seniors. The church's mission statement is simple: A welcoming and loving community of faith that learns, grows, and serves together.
That mission rests on six scriptural values - sharing the gospel, seeking that transformation in Christ, showing the fruit of the Spirit, working humbly for justice and equity, striving for unity rather than uniformity, and breaking down barriers of separation and exclusion. The congregation describes itself as Christ-centered, graciously inclusive, intellectually stimulating, inter-generational, diverse, active, service-oriented, and genuinely friendly. It belongs to the Presbytery of San Francisco within the PC(USA).
Sunday Worship on Knox Drive
Two Sunday services are offered in the Sanctuary at 9:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., both in person and livestreamed on Vimeo and YouTube. Worship is described as Reformed Christian in conviction and blended in style - holding fast to traditional Presbyterian hymns and classical music while also embracing contemporary songs, gospel, and folk influences. Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of each month using bread and grape juice. Anyone who considers themselves part of the Christian family of faith is welcome to participate; for those worshiping from home, the church invites them to have bread and juice on hand.
Visitors can dress however they feel comfortable - the full range from collared shirts and slacks to shorts and denim shows up in the pews. A printed bulletin, a Connections weekly newsletter, and a Focus monthly magazine help newcomers follow along and stay informed. The weekly Connections email and a devotional video by mail are easy ways to keep up with the congregation's life between Sundays.
A Sanctuary Shaped by Music
Music sits at the heart of LOPC's identity. The all-professional Praise Band, made up of the finest jazz and contemporary musicians in the area and led by Praise and Worship Leader Steven Hall, brings a wide-ranging repertoire of gospel, blues, folk, and pop to Sunday services. The Chancel Choir, open to anyone who loves to sing, rehearses on Thursday evenings in the Sanctuary and sings about three Sundays a month from September through June, supported by paid section leaders and accompanied by the congregation's pipe organ - the Kenneth Z. Mansfield organ, built by Swain and Kates in 1968, a large instrument that fills the front of the church with many tonal colors and accompanies both congregational singing and recital repertoire. A Children's Choir for ages 4 to 12, directed by Olivia Eukel, performs in worship twice a year.
Children from Babies Through Fourth Grade
Children's Ministry is led by Co-Directors Susan Wentworth and Emily Austin, with pastoral oversight from Pastor Jaime Polson. Two Sunday morning programs run concurrently with worship, so families can worship together without worrying about their children. Bloom and Belong (9:00 to 10:00 a.m.) gathers elementary-aged children in the Christian Life Center for Bible stories, crafts, games, and a circle time to share prayer requests. The Garden (10:30 to 11:30 a.m.) offers faith formation for PreK through 4th grade using the Sparkhouse curriculum, leading children through Old Testament stories in the fall and the New Testament in the winter and spring, with weekly take-home materials for families.
Beyond Sunday morning, the ministry runs Kids Helping Kids, a monthly service project on site for kindergarteners through fifth graders who assemble care packages and support LOPC mission partners. Vacation Bible Camp takes place after school lets out in June, with songs, stories, games, and art for children in the community. Children's Choir is offered for kids ages 4 to 12. All volunteers working with children, youth, and vulnerable adults must complete an LOPC background check.
Middle and High School on Wednesday Nights
Youth Ministry, directed by Cynthia Purvis and Associate Director Aeden Barnett, centers on two Wednesday evening programs in the Christian Life Center. YOW (Youth on Wednesday) gathers 5th through 8th graders from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., with an optional $5 dinner at 5:30 p.m. in the Davies Room. BTW (By The Way) gathers 9th through 12th graders from 7:15 to 9:00 p.m., with optional pizza at 7:15 p.m. Both groups blend games, worship, Bible-based devotions, and small group discussions led by consistent adult advisors and teen leaders. YOW includes regular fellowship and service-learning outings.
Sunday morning adds Youth Alive at 10:30 a.m. for 5th through 8th graders. Confirmation classes meet seasonally for 8th through 12th graders. In summer, the youth ministry sends students on service-learning trips that have included the Raleigh, North Carolina area; Salinas and San Diego, California; and Guatemala to work alongside LOPC's partner Fotokids. Adult and family trips have reached India with Children of Faith. The youth program commits to walking alongside youth of every race, culture, education, economic background, gender, sexuality, ability, and belief so they can together grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.
Special Needs Ministry: Friendship Circle and Friday Fun Night
LOPC's Special Needs Ministry, also led by Susan Wentworth, welcomes children, youth, and young adults with disabilities into the life of the congregation. Friday Fun Night, held the first Friday of each month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Fellowship Hall, is a respite evening for children ages 5 to 22 with arts and crafts, movies, recreation, and games, supported by one-on-one buddies. Friendship Circle meets on the third Thursday of each month from 4:00 to 6:30 p.m. for high school students and young adults up to age 22, with crafts, games, a pizza snack, and buddies drawn from local high schools and colleges.
Seedlings Preschool in the Hills of Lamorinda
Seedlings Preschool, an outreach ministry of LOPC operating since 1983, is a state-licensed learning center serving children from 6 months through 5 years old in classrooms set in the Lamorinda hills. The program is play-based and child-centered, with a low teacher-to-child ratio, age-specific classrooms named Sweet Peas, Sprouts and Rosebuds, Poppies and Tiger Lilies, Snapdragons and Daffodils, Petunias, and Tulips. Tuition varies by classroom and days attended. Hours of operation are 9:15 a.m. to 2:15 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.
Director Coleen Moulton has led Seedlings since 1999, having started as an assistant teacher in 1991. Assistant Director Kathy LaPlante oversees daily operations. While Seedlings is a ministry of LOPC, religious doctrine is not part of the preschool curriculum; rather, Children of Faith is honored through optional Wonder Time visits from the LOPC Children's Ministry team. Admission is not limited by religion, race, or national origin, and registration priority is given to currently enrolled Seedlings families, then siblings, then LOPC members, then waitlisted families, then community families. School tours are offered on select Mondays and a video tour of the Poppies classroom is available for those who cannot visit in person.
Stephen Ministry and a Web of Care
Congregational Care at LOPC draws on Stephen Ministers, a Prayer Team, Deacons, and several support groups. Stephen Ministers are congregation members trained through 50 hours of course work in emotional and spiritual care who then meet weekly with a care receiver for as long as there is a need. The next Stephen Minister training cycle runs January through April 2027 on Tuesday evenings via Zoom with a few Saturdays in person. The Prayer Team meets Wednesdays at 9:00 a.m. in the Library and Mondays at 11:00 a.m. in the Conference Room to pray for every request received from Sunday worship.
Deacons serve as the caring, compassionate arm of the church: providing meals through the Helping Hands freezer ministry, visiting members in homes and care facilities, serving home communion, baking cookies for memorial receptions, and walking alongside families in transition. Support groups on the calendar include the Widow/Widower Grief Support Group (a 10-week class), the Divorce Support Group (an 8-week class), the twice-monthly Caregivers Support Group for those caring for loved ones with dementia, and the Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) Support Group, all led by trained facilitators.
Senior Life at LOPC
Thursday Fellowship, coordinated by Julie Peterson, runs from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each week in Fellowship Hall and offers seniors a morning craft, lunch of salad and dessert, and an afternoon program of entertainment or exercise. The Voyagers Explorers, a social group of couples and singles age 60 and up, hosts monthly excursions and parties; Hobie Cats gathers monthly for social time; the Freebirds offer quarterly outings for empty nesters; and the Rossmoor Parish keeps LOPC members living in the Rossmoor community connected to the church through an annual Meet and Greet. The First Friday Forum, a free speaker series open to the whole community, brings in lecturers on topics of the day, typically on six Fridays a year beginning in January, with refreshments beforehand and an option to attend in person or via livestream.
Local Mission Partners Across Contra Costa
LOPC's commitment to mission is most visible in long-term local partnerships. The congregation has supported the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano since 2007, sending volunteer crews several times a year to sort, box, and bag food and contributing financially to fight hunger in the region. Monument Crisis Center, based in the Monument corridor of Concord, has been a partner since its earliest days, with weekly food barrels in the Oak Room and holiday food box drives. Hope Solutions (formerly Contra Costa Interfaith Housing) is a founding partner organization; LOPC continues to support its permanent housing model and Spirit of Giving program.
STAND! For Families Free of Violence has received financial and volunteer support since 2011; LOPC received STAND's Rollie Mullen Leadership Award in 2021. Trinity Center in Walnut Creek provides safety net services and case management to adults experiencing homelessness, with regular Trinity Center clothing drives and meal kit support. The Love Does initiative gathers more than 225 volunteers of all ages each year to serve at these and other local partners, and the annual Love Does Day of Service brings 250 or more volunteers onto campus and off site to assemble care packages, sort donations, and clean and organize facilities. LOPC also welcomes unhoused families through the Winter Nights program, with more than 240 volunteers supporting five families over the course of a rotation.
Global Mission: From Gaza to Zimbabwe
Global mission at LOPC is built on decades-old relationships with five international partners. Atfaluna Society for Deaf Children in Gaza City, a Palestinian NGO providing education, audiology, speech therapy, and vocational training, has been supported since a 2003 mission trip to Israel, with annual classroom sponsorship and a much-needed x-ray machine provided to the Ahli Arab Hospital - both facilities have since been damaged or destroyed in recent conflict. Children of Faith in India has been a partner since a 2014 high school mission trip and now serves more than 200 children through the regular exchange and financial support of the church.
The LOPC Congo Mission Team, formed in 2012, supports the education and trauma-healing work of the Presbyterian Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Presbyterian churches operate close to 1,300 schools. Fotokids in Guatemala, supported since 2006, helps young people rise out of poverty through photography, graphic design, and media technology. JF Kapnek Trust in Zimbabwe, supported since 2007, runs preschools and clinics focused on early childhood education, immunizations, and reducing mother-to-child HIV transmission. The congregation has sent several mission trips to each of these partners, and the December 2025 resolution on Israel and Palestine, adopted by the Session, reaffirms LOPC's commitment to its partners on the ground and to advocacy for humanitarian aid and a just peace.
Adult Education and Small Groups
LOPC runs an unusually dense network of small groups and Bible studies, organized around three simple steps: filter, browse, and let a leader know you are interested. Monday offerings include a coed Bible study and fellowship group (6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the Sequoia Room), a men's Bible study and fellowship group (6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Oak Room), the LOPCided Quilters (who produce more than 200 quilts a year for needy babies and children in Contra Costa County), and the Chicks with Sticks knitting and crocheting circle. Tuesday brings a Divorce Support Group (8 consecutive Thursdays, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the Davies Room) and the Mary Magdalene Circle of Presbyterian Women (third Tuesdays via Zoom). Wednesdays add a women's Bible study group via Zoom, the Wednesday Prayer Team, the Caregivers Support Group, and the Widow/Widower Grief Support Group.
Thursday is study day: a Thursday Book and Bible Study at 9:00 a.m., the Women's Book and Bible Study on the first and third Thursdays, the Thursday Fellowship program for seniors, and the regular Men's Spiritual Growth Group on the third Thursday at 1:00 p.m. in the Chapel. Friday mornings bring the Men's Friday Fellowship at 7:30 a.m. in the Oak Room, the Sanctuary Guild on the first Friday, and the Flower Team in the Sanctuary. Special interest groups include Cars and Coffee, a Hiking Group exploring regional trails, the Lasers Voyager group, the Freebirds, two monthly book groups (Fourth Friday Book Group and Fourth Monday Book Group, both on Zoom), and Young Families Connect, which meets on the second Sunday of each month on the back playground for families with children from infants through 4th grade. Young Adults Community gathers for dinner and discussion on the second and fourth Mondays in the Fireside Room.
Racial Equity and Interfaith Dialogue
The Racial Equity and Engagement Team, grounded in Micah 6:8 - to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God - forms relationships with communities of color and pursues racial justice work in education, advocacy, and partnership. The Session of LOPC has voted to support the exoneration of the Port Chicago 50, sailors unjustly convicted of mutiny after the 1944 Port Chicago disaster, and the congregation is listed as a supporter of the Port Chicago Task Force formed by the Contra Costa County Bar Association. Talking Story, hosted by LOPC member Gerald Chinen, is a series of in-depth interviews with individuals from different ethnic and racial communities.
LOPC has a long interfaith history. Together with Temple Isaiah, the church has hosted the multi-week faith250 celebration of America's 250th year, drawing more than 200 individuals from 15 congregations to explore foundational American texts. LOPC and Temple Isaiah have jointly focused on social justice issues, including advocacy for immigrant communities across Contra Costa County, distributing Know Your Rights cards, training Welcome Navigators to accompany people to court, and serving as Court Watchers at Contra Costa immigration hearings. The congregation maintains a long-standing relationship with the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County, one of LOPC's mission partners, and the December 2025 Session resolution on Israel and Palestine speaks to the church's commitment to standing with Jewish, Arab, and Muslim neighbors locally.
Weddings, Baptisms, Memorials, and the Kurth Memorial Garden
The LOPC pastors and staff accompany members and their families through the major moments of life. Baptisms are offered for infants and young children on the faith and commitment of their parents, and for youth and adults on their own statement of faith, as entry into the covenant community. Weddings are coordinated through Administrative Manager Elizabeth Ball. Memorial services, committal services, and interment of ashes can take place in the Kurth Memorial Garden, the church's on-site memorial and columbarium space tended by Communications and Garden Coordinator Lexi Morrissey. Baptisms, weddings, and memorials all take place within the rhythms of Sunday worship or at a scheduled time with a pastor.
Lay Leadership in the Presbyterian Tradition
One of the cornerstones of LOPC's Presbyterian heritage is the annual election by the congregation of church officers. Twenty-four elders serve on the Session, the governing body of the church, each year, chairing teams such as Worship, Spiritual Formation, Mission, Membership, Fellowship, Children, Youth, Seniors, Family, Personnel, Finance, Operations, Strategic Planning, Generosity, Interfaith, Volunteerism, and the Clerk of Session. Deacons are ordained annually to serve as the caring, compassionate arm of the church, with a primary area of ministry in care of members, including home communion, visitation, and meals. Foundation Trustees manage gifts and investments that fund needs outside the annual operating budget. The Congregation Nominating Committee nominates members for these roles each year.
Pastoral Staff
Peter Whitelock, Head of Staff, holds three advanced degrees from Fuller Theological Seminary and Princeton Theological Seminary and has served LOPC with his wife Anne and their family. Lauren Gully serves as Pastor for Mission and Outreach, exploring the connections between mission and spiritual formation. Jaime Polson, Pastor for Care and Executive Leadership, supports parents, grandparents, and adults as they nurture children and youth, while also providing leadership on church operations, planning, and ministry development. Chris Baldwin, ordained and installed in 2021, is Pastor for Community and Formation, leading membership, fellowship, small groups, and some men's ministry offerings. Jane Doty MacKenzie, a part-time pastor and LOPC homegrown, preaches, teaches, leads contemplative prayer, and provides pastoral care.
The wider staff includes Director of Operations Jim Davis, who was baptized at LOPC in 1969; Campus Operations Manager Tom Galbraith; Technical Director Tony Hartt; Communications and Kurth Memorial Garden Coordinator Lexi Morrissey; Accountant Farah Mohammadzai; and Treasurer Suzanne Ferraro. Julie Peterson serves as Thursday Fellowship Coordinator, and Susan Wentworth and Emily Austin serve as Co-Directors of Children's Ministry.
Becoming a Member and Staying Connected
Those exploring membership are invited to a New Member Class led by Pastors Peter Whitelock and Chris Baldwin, which introduces the LOPC vision, walks through the Next Steps program, and helps newcomers make connections. Childcare is available for children ages 2 and up. Those not ready to join can still participate in worship, Bible studies, small groups, events, and service - membership is not required for involvement. A digital Connections card on the church's I'm New page is the easiest way to ask a question or get connected.
Those who serve on the property team, teach children, or volunteer with youth and vulnerable adults must complete an LOPC background check. Pastoral care requests, prayer requests, and Stephen Minister referrals can be made by phone at (925) 283-8722 or through a digital prayer request card. The Care Ministry page lists each pathway - pastors, intergenerational ministry, prayer, support groups, Deacons, Stephen Ministers, and Senior Care - and the church's telephone reception is staffed weekdays.
A Place Where Generosity Takes Many Forms
LOPC's Ways to Give page outlines a broad stewardship vision. Contributions and pledge payments can be made online through Venmo, PayPal, credit or debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or a bank account, or by check or ACH bill pay. Other giving options include donations of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, or vehicles; the Sanctuary Flower Fund in honor of a loved one; eScrip enrollment; and legacy estate planning through the LOPC Foundation, a nine-member foundation that receives gifts and funds needs outside the annual operating budget. The congregation's tax ID is 94-1275252. Each Sunday, the Flower Team designs arrangements in the Sanctuary, and the Sanctuary Guild keeps the pews stocked with current information.
From the long-running Seedlings Preschool and the Wednesday night youth programs to the Sanctuary's Mansfield organ and the decades-old global partnerships in Gaza, India, Congo, Guatemala, and Zimbabwe, LOPC carries on the work of faith formation, worship, and service that has shaped its congregation since 1954. The Welcome Video on YouTube, the Sunday bulletin, and the Focus monthly magazine offer ongoing ways to see and hear the congregation in action.