On the east-west arterial where Edmonds meets Lynnwood, a mid-century Presbyterian congregation has been quietly gathering its neighbors for more than seventy years. Maplewood Presbyterian Church, founded in 1953, has grown into a small but active congregation of about one hundred members who describe their shared calling in plain words: "to act justly, love kindness, and walk humbly with God," quoting the prophet Micah. The church makes room for AA meetings, a special-needs day program, a prison reentry partnership, a community garden, and the families who come through its doors for Sunday worship at 10:00 a.m.
A Neighborhood Church on the Edmonds and Lynnwood Border
Maplewood sits at 19523 84th Avenue West, on a stretch of road that is the east-west arterial joining Edmonds and Lynnwood. It is "a place of prayer, refuge, hope, and laughter as we seek God's best for our neighborhood and ourselves." Members are drawn from "all walks of life," and all are welcome regardless of race, gender, age, economic status, needs, abilities, the state of their faith, or the season of their life.
The church is a member congregation of the Presbyterian Church (USA), in the Northwest Coast Presbytery. Its mission statement, drawn from Micah 6:8 and echoed through the words of Jesus, sums up the pastoral tone: "We are ordinary folks with an extraordinary desire to act justly, love kindness, and walk humbly with God. Some six hundred years later Jesus Christ said the same thing many times and in many ways. This is what we try to do."
Sunday Worship at 10:00 in the Sanctuary
Worship gathers at 10:00 a.m. each Sunday in the sanctuary. The service follows "a structured and liturgical flow," but the congregation describes itself as "relaxed and informal" within that shape. Each week includes a sermon, a variety of music, and a time for the sharing of joys and concerns that become prayer requests. The Music Director, Ian Alvarez, leads the musical life of the congregation.
On most Sundays, children and youth are released partway through the service for Christian education. Children in kindergarten through grade 7 head to Sunday School; youth in grades 8 through 12 head to Youth Bible Study. On the first Sunday of each month, however, the whole congregation stays together. The church celebrates Communion on the first Sunday of every month, and children and youth remain in the sanctuary so that the whole church can mark the sacrament as one body.
Free childcare is available in the nursery throughout the service for children ages five and under. The nursery attendant brings years of childcare experience, and the church requires background checks of everyone who works with its children.
After the service ends, the congregation moves to the social hall for fellowship and refreshments, with treats donated and shared by Maplewood volunteers.
Pastor Hallack Greider
The pastor of Maplewood Presbyterian Church is the Rev. Hallack Greider. Born and raised in Seattle, he became a Christian through the ministry of Young Life while a student at Nathan Hale High School. He graduated from the University of Washington with a business degree before moving to Berkeley for a year of work with university students at a church. He entered Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, where he met and married his wife Heidi in September 1989. They have three grown children: Hannah, Bekah, and Ben.
Before Maplewood, Hallack served as installed pastor at 1st Presbyterian of Anchorage, Alaska for five years, and at Lake City Presbyterian in Seattle for ten. He has also served as interim pastor at four other churches in the Puget Sound region. He describes his calling as transitional ministry: walking with congregations during a fruitful and growing season of life together, listening for what God is calling them to become after the departure or retirement of a long-term pastor. In his free time he gardens, plays golf, reads, and competes in triathlons, often together with his family.
On Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m., Pastor Hallack facilitates a Contemplative Prayer Group that meets at the church.
Sunday School and Youth Bible Study
The children's wing at Maplewood is bright, cheery, and designed and decorated by the children themselves. The Sunday School program nurtures children's relationship with Jesus Christ through Bible-based lessons, crafts, fun activities, group discussion, and special projects, all in a "loving and non-threatening atmosphere." The children learn that each of them is made in God's likeness and gifted to spread God's love, build positive relationships, and give thanks.
Sunday School is offered during the adult worship service for children from kindergarten through grade 7. Older youth, grades 8 through 12, gather separately for Youth Bible Study. The two programs run concurrently so that families can worship and learn side by side, on the same Sunday morning, in the same building.
First Sunday Communion and After-Worship Fellowship
Maplewood celebrates Communion on the first Sunday of every month. On those Sundays, children and youth do not leave for their classrooms; the entire congregation stays in the sanctuary so that everyone can celebrate God's love together around the table.
Every Sunday, after the service, those who wish gather in the social hall for refreshments and conversation. The treats are donated and shared by Maplewood volunteers, making the post-worship hour as much a part of Sunday morning as the service itself.
Children and Youth in Service
Children and Youth Service is the congregation's name for the way its young people are encouraged to look beyond themselves, as Jesus calls his followers to do in the Gospel. The church lists several recent projects:
- Collecting food for local food banks, including pet food.
- Serving at the Maplewood Friday night community dinners.
- Acting as ambassadors for the Souper Bowl of Caring, raising donations for social welfare organizations chosen by the children and youth themselves.
- Raising awareness for Presbyterian special offerings.
The church describes this strand of ministry as "servanthood - on their level" - a continuing focus of the program.
Northwest's Child: A Special-Needs Day Program on Site
Maplewood is home to Northwest's Child, a year-round day program for children, teens, and young adults with developmental and physical disabilities. Northwest's Child serves participants with moderate to severe disabilities, except those with severe behavioral conditions or who are medically fragile. Its students represent a wide range of disabilities, needs, and interests.
Daily program activities include arts and crafts, music, individual and group activities, and daily field trips. The program's stated goal is to provide independence, social skills, and relationship-building to ease the transition into adulthood, with a 2:1 child-to-staff ratio. Northwest's Child operates out of six program sites and welcomes volunteers in three forms: direct hands-on work at a program site; skilled services such as landscaping, plumbing, painting, or construction; and assistance at fund-raising events. The program can be reached at 206-526-2493 or inquiries@northwestschild.org.
Underground Ministries and One Prisoner, One Parish
Maplewood partners with Underground Ministries through the One Prisoner - One Parish (OPOP) program. OPOP matches inmates nearing release with churches willing to enter into relationship with them and to walk alongside them as they re-enter society.
Maplewood also supports Underground Ministries by purchasing Underground Coffee, roasted and packaged by men and women exiting the legal system. The program frames the work as a translation of street-honed skills - roasting, weighing, bagging, delivering - into a fresh, single-origin, boutique-roast coffee that reaches homes, churches, and businesses across the country.
Recovery Groups and Community Organizations
Many recovery and community organizations use Maplewood's facilities for their regular meetings. The list of groups that call the church home includes:
- Alcoholics Anonymous (multiple meetings, including the Abbey Group AA on Mondays and "A New Experience" AA on Tuesdays).
- Al-Anon (the Alderwood Al-Anon Family Group on Wednesdays, and TGIF Al-Anon on Fridays).
- Alateen.
- Narcotics Anonymous (Monday Night Recovery NA on Mondays, Hugs Not Drugs NA on Thursdays, and Yes You Can NA on Saturdays).
- Adult Children of Alcoholics (Saturdays).
- TOPS, Take Pounds Off Sensibly (Tuesdays).
- Edmonds Welcomers.
- The Cascade Symphony Orchestra.
- The Puget Sound Camera Club.
The full weekly calendar of meetings is posted on the church's Ongoing Meetings and Activities page, with the most current schedule on the Calendar page.
Midweek: Prayer, Bible Study, and the Community Garden
Maplewood's life extends well beyond Sunday morning. A glance at the weekly schedule shows the rhythm of the building:
- Mondays bring AA, senior line dancing, the Puget Sound Camera Club, and Monday Night Recovery NA.
- Tuesdays include TOPS, "A New Experience" AA, and a monthly Toastmasters Club.
- Wednesdays are anchored by Pastor Hallack's Contemplative Prayer Group at 10:00 a.m., with the Maplewood Presbyterian Women's Group Bible Study meeting on the fourth Wednesday of the month. The Community Garden hosts a weekly Bake Sale from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m., and the evening brings Al-Anon, the Edmonds Lions Club (second and fourth Wednesdays), and the Puget Sound Camera Club (third Wednesday).
- Thursdays include the Lynnwood Kiwanis, the Lynnwood Lunchmasters Club (Toastmasters), a bi-weekly Creative Connections writing group, and Hugs Not Drugs NA.
- Fridays bring TGIF Al-Anon and the Friday night community dinners that the church's own children and youth help serve.
- Saturdays are home to Adult Children of Alcoholics and Yes You Can NA.
Outside on the property, Maplewood maintains a community garden. Information about plots and participation is available through the church office.
Livestream, Bulletins, and Sermon Notes
Sunday services are livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel, and recordings of recent worship services are posted there as well, going back several years. Visitors who cannot attend in person can follow along with the same scripture and sermon series that the in-person congregation hears. Weekly worship bulletins are archived as PDFs on the church's site, and printed sermon notes for Pastor Hallack's recent messages are posted alongside each video, so readers can follow the text and the pastor's outline at the same time. Online giving is available through the church's secure giving page.
A Statement of Recognition and Respect
Maplewood opens its public materials with a Statement of Recognition and Respect. The congregation writes that it is "grateful for the stewardship of this land by its original inhabitants and their descendants, the Coastal Salish-speaking peoples." The statement acknowledges a shared and tragic legacy of conflict, suffering, and injustice, expresses regret, and names a shared spiritual perspective on the natural world and a common desire to cooperate in healing the earth.
Getting in Touch
The church office is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and is closed Mondays and Fridays. The office phone is (425) 778-5248. Messages can be left for the pastor at pastor@maplewoodpres.org, and general inquiries can be sent to office@maplewoodpres.org. The mailing address is 19523 84th Avenue West, Edmonds, WA 98026. Sunday morning worship begins at 10:00 a.m., with Sunday School and Youth Bible Study for children and young people running at the same time, nursery care provided for the youngest, and fellowship and refreshments to follow.