A Church on Lee Avenue Since 1884
Leesburg Community Church sits on Lee Avenue SW in Leesburg, Virginia, a block or two from the streets of Old Town and within easy reach of Loudoun County's growing suburbs. The congregation has been on this corner for more than a century - the church dates its work in Loudoun County to 1884 - and today it functions as a single large body that runs three distinct Sunday services under one roof.
The church's stated goal is to invite people into a relationship with Jesus Christ, to be shaped by the truth of the gospel, and to see that gospel make an impact in homes, communities, and the world. Whatever a visitor's background - long-time believer, skeptic, or someone who has never set foot in a church - the invitation is the same: come as you are and see what an active community looks like.
Three Sunday Services, One Building
Sundays at LCC rotate between three services, each with its own feel.
The Contemporary service meets at 9:00 am and 10:45 am in the Worship Center. Both gatherings include LCC Kids programming for birth through fifth grade, and the 10:45 am hour also hosts LCC Students in the Underground, a downstairs student space reached by following the LCC Student signs.
The Spanish-language service begins at 9:00 am in the Sanctuary. Spanish-speaking children attend LCC Kids in the Studio during this hour. The congregation connects beyond Sunday through weekday prayer (Wednesday and Friday at 5:00 am in the Chapel and via Zoom), a Thursday evening worship team rehearsal, and bi-monthly Friday prayer vigils at 8:00 pm in the Parlor. Pastor Gilmer Suarez oversees this ministry.
The Traditional service meets at 12:00 pm in the Sanctuary and rounds out the morning.
First-time guests are encouraged to arrive about fifteen minutes early to grab coffee, check in children, and get settled. There is no dress code; people come in whatever they feel comfortable wearing.
What LCC Believes
The church's Statement of Faith holds to a classical evangelical reading of Scripture. The essentials, drawn up under the headings of essential beliefs (unity), non-essential beliefs (liberty), and all beliefs (charity), include:
- God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe, eternally existing in three co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- Jesus Christ is the Son of God, co-equal with the Father. He lived a sinless life, died on the cross as the sacrifice for sin, rose again after three days, ascended to heaven, and will return as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
- The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son, present in the world to make people aware of their need for Jesus, and living in every believer from the moment of salvation. He gives spiritual gifts and empowers daily Christian living.
- The Bible is God's Word, written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, the supreme source of truth for Christian belief and living, without error in what it teaches.
- Human beings are made in the image of God but marred by sin, an attitude of disobedience that separates people from God.
- Salvation is God's free gift, received by turning from a self-ruled life and trusting in Jesus Christ. Eternal life begins the moment a person receives Christ by faith.
- Eternal security means that genuine believers are kept by God's grace and power and cannot lose their salvation.
- Eternity is real: people will exist forever either separated from God (Hell) or united with God (Heaven).
Baptism at LCC is by immersion, understood as a public declaration of faith that identifies the believer with Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. Baptisms are scheduled several times a year, often during outdoor services and church picnics, and people interested in being baptized are invited to sign up through the church's Next Steps process.
LCC Kids: Birth Through Fifth Grade
LCC Kids runs during both the 9:00 am and 10:45 am Contemporary services, and a parallel LCC Kids program runs during the 9:00 am Spanish service. The ministry's stated mission is to partner with families to help children love God and others.
On a typical Sunday children are greeted at the door with high-fives, fun music, games, and activities. Lessons move through Bible characters, Bible stories, and character principles drawn from Scripture, with the goal that every child leaves knowing they are made by God, loved by God, and that He has a purpose for their life.
Children's Minister Shelley Kappauf oversees the ministry and the team that teaches, checks kids in, and keeps classrooms safe. Security is a priority: check-in procedures use security labels and a controlled welcome counter, and every volunteer goes through a background check and yearly LCC Kids training.
The church keeps parents resourced during the week through Kids Connect, a page on the LCC site that posts weekly memory verses, activity sheets, worship songs, and family cards to walk through the previous Sunday's lesson at home.
LCC Students: Middle and High School
LCC Students is led by NextGen Pastor Jordan Towle and meets in the Underground, a downstairs space reached by following the LCC Student signs from the main building. The ministry serves sixth through twelfth graders.
Sundays at 10:45 am, students gather for a student service with music, Scripture reading, prayer, and a message geared toward middle and high schoolers. The first Sunday of each month is SERVE Sunday, when students sign up to serve in different ministry areas such as LCC Kids, greeting, or the tech team; on those Sundays the Underground meeting is paused.
Middle school meets Tuesday nights from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, and high school meets Monday nights from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Both nights begin with dinner, then move into games and small groups that discuss what it means to follow Jesus as a teenager. Annual highlights include a fall retreat in Falling Waters, West Virginia; a summer week of Fuge camps at Regent University; lock-ins; pool parties; and girls' craft and spa nights.
Women's Ministry
Women's Ministry is led by Women's Minister Suzanne Bramlett. Its mission is to love, encourage, and lead women in deepening their relationship with Jesus by connecting with each other and studying the Word together.
Two weekly Bible study options study Jenn Wilkin's Sermon on the Mount in parallel: Tuesday evenings at 6:00 pm in the Great Room and Wednesday mornings at 9:30 am in the Great Room. A separate women's Sunday morning Bible study meets at 10:45 am in the Parlor.
The ministry runs a monthly Women's Book Club on the last Sunday of each month at 4:00 pm in the Great Room, with one fiction and one nonfiction read each month, plus a quarterly women's event. Past events have included the Soup, Swap, & Serve afternoon - a meal, a clothing swap benefiting a local nonprofit, and a service project making fleece blankets for those in need - as well as ice cream socials, the Tour de Ice Cream, and the Great Night Out dinner and comedy show.
Men's Ministry
The men's ministry exists to glorify God in all that men are and do, to enlist men in the service of Jesus Christ, and to carry out the missions God gives them.
Three ongoing Bible studies give men regular places to gather. A Sunday morning group at 10:30 am in the Conference Room uses the Lifeway Bible Life Series. A Monday night Bible study at 7:00 pm in the Great Room works through the Book of Philippians. A Wednesday night study at 7:00 to 8:30 pm in the Parlor walks through Sinclair Ferguson's The Christian Life, one chapter per week.
The men's calendar is studded with social and service events. The Men's Golf Scramble runs several times a year at Brambleton Golf Course in a best-ball format open to all skill levels. The Men's Cornhole Tournament & BBQ supports Tree of Life Ministries. The Men's Breakfast pairs a hearty meal with a service project - in late autumn the group sets up the church Christmas trees together.
Young Adults
The young adults ministry serves ages 18 to 30 and meets for events that mix fellowship and outdoor adventure. Recent gatherings have included tubing down a river followed by an outdoor movie at a member's home, and there is a text line parents can use to stay in the loop about student ministry.
Small Groups and Bible Studies
Small groups are a central rhythm at LCC. Minister of Spiritual Formation Gretchen Bredemeier oversees the ministry, and the team frames the work around three words drawn from Acts 2: gather, grow, and go.
Groups are intentionally small gatherings designed for strong relationships, faith growth, and mutual service. There is no prerequisite to joining; anyone can fill out a Small Group Connect Card and Gretchen will pair them with a leader. Facilitators commit to a year with their group at a pace that fits the group's needs, and hosts open their homes - with a current need for hosts who have no animals so allergy-sensitive members can be served.
The LCC Reads co-ed Bible study meets Wednesday nights at 6:00 pm in the Great Room, currently working through the book of James.
Outreach in Loudoun County
Outreach at LCC takes shape through a handful of long-standing partnerships.
Tree of Life Ministries in Purcellville is the church's primary local partner. Tree of Life offers weekly food deliveries, a food pantry, a thrift store in Purcellville, financial and job coaching, health and medical vouchers, prayer and devotionals, and English-speaking classes. They also staff a SimplyBe Coffee shop and a community kitchen in Leesburg that serves Free Meals to Go every Tuesday at Crossroads Baptist Church. Spanish-speaking staff help them serve the Spanish-speaking community.
Project Belong inspires, recruits, and resources the local church to care for vulnerable children with the love of Christ. There are four ways to get involved: Care Communities, Don't Go Alone, Social Stars, and Care Portal. LCC has run a four-week Equipped to Empower class with Project Belong to introduce the foster care system and the young adults aging out of it.
Other partners listed on the church site include Tol Ministries, The Courage Closet, StepSisters, STAFF (Staff for Aid and Freedom), One Heart DC, BBF Loudoun, Better ALife, Wheatland Farm, LCSJ (La Comunidad Sana de Jesus), Mosaic Virginia, Sterling Elementary School, and Change a Life's Operation Orphan Rescue.
Global Missions
Leesburg Community Church financially supports brothers and sisters in Christ serving in Lebanon, Thailand, India, Nicaragua, Romania, Nepal, Venezuela, and Haiti. The church keeps in regular communication with these partners, praying for them and their requests, and when international travel and political conditions allow, sends teams to serve alongside them in country.
Creative Arts
Creative Arts Pastor Andrew Calhoun leads the team that serves the church through music, vocals, graphic design, video editing, sound, lighting, and production. The team's stated mission is to engage the community in authentic worship of Jesus, to unify the body through genuine expression, and to foster a worshipful atmosphere that carries past Sunday morning.
Vocalists and musicians audition and rehearse on Thursday evenings before serving in Sunday worship. The tech team runs slides, sound, video, and lighting for both the Contemporary and Traditional services, with volunteers cross-trained across roles. The team is always looking for video editors and is glad to provide training.
Prayer at LCC
The Prayer Team meets Wednesday mornings from 9:00 to 10:00 am in the prayer chapel, sharing a short devotional before praying over the requests submitted by the church family. A separate Prayer and Response Team meets and prays with individuals at the end of the Contemporary service after the message, on a once-a-month commitment with periodic check-ins. Anyone can submit prayer requests through the church's online form.
Preschool Learning Center
The Preschool Learning Center operates on the LCC campus under the direction of Kimby Barberich. It is a ministry of the church that partners with families during the early childhood years, with opportunities for church members to serve through adopting a classroom, volunteering their time, sharing a special talent (music, magic, storytelling), or helping behind the scenes with supplies and planning.
Hospitality and Care
Behind the Sunday services is a wide network of care ministries. The Forever Young ministry provides a social time for senior adults with food, music, and a devotion, held about six times a year. Senior Adult Luncheons gather older adults in the Sanctuary Foyer for a meal, music, a speaker, and fellowship, with a small per-person cost.
The Hospitality Team keeps the coffee flowing on Sunday mornings, prepares communion elements on the first Sunday of each month, hosts funeral receptions, and provides Comfort Greeters to welcome guests at memorial services.
A Meal Train ministry coordinates the preparation and delivery of meals - both home-cooked and gift cards - to families in the church during times of need, using mealtrain.com to organize sign-ups.
RightNOW Media
LCC has purchased a church-wide subscription to RightNOW Media, a streaming library of Bible studies, teaching videos, and resources for families, kids, students, adults, married couples, singles, and small groups. The library is available free to anyone who attends the church and works on phones, tablets, computers, and TVs through Roku, AppleTV, or Amazon Firestick. Members can request an invite email through the church's RightNOW Media page.
Next Steps and Membership
Newcomers who want to get to know LCC are invited to the Next Steps class, held on the second Sunday of each month at 10:45 am in the Great Room. The 75- to 90-minute class introduces attendees to staff and ministry leaders, walks through what LCC is about, and offers the option to pursue church membership. Light refreshments and childcare are provided with registration.
Beyond Next Steps, the church points visitors to a Connect Card (online and in person), the Church Center mobile app, and a wide menu of volunteer opportunities coordinated through the Serve page.
Getting Connected
Anyone interested in any of these ministries - or in just stopping by for a Sunday - can fill out the Connect Card online, download the Church Center app, or call the church office at 703-777-2209. The church sits at 835 Lee Avenue SW in Leesburg, with parking on site and easy access from the historic downtown core. Giving is available online through the church's giving page, and the livestream of the Contemporary and Spanish services is available through the church's online church platform, with past sermons archived on Vimeo.