A Living Room Bible Study on the Coastside
Mariner's Community Church began in 1986, when several small Bible study groups that had been meeting separately across the coast decided to come together as one. They started in a living room, then moved to the Coastside Community Center, and gave themselves the name Mariner's Community Church. Within two years the fellowship had grown enough to call its first pastor. In April 1988, Paul Richardson and his wife Lisa accepted that call. Everything needed for worship on a Sunday morning still fit in a single file box; an overhead projector and one guitar rounded out the service.
By the late nineties the church had plateaued at about 120 people. In 1999 a group of leaders known as "the team of 12" met in Santa Cruz to pray and seek God for the next chapter. That fall, Mariner's relaunched with a new look, new sound, new logo, and a renewed vision to be a church of coastsiders intentionally reaching the unchurched on the coast with the life-giving message of Jesus Christ. Growth Groups were added in 2000 to disciple the new attendees, and within a year the church had grown past 250.
Pastor Len Banks joined the staff in 2001 to help with the growing congregation, and Sunday services expanded to two morning services at the community center. By 2005 the church had leased an old Thai restaurant in Shoreline Station, gutted it, and remodeled it for worship. A Saturday evening service was added in fall 2008 to offer an alternative to Sunday mornings.
Continued growth made renting untenable, and in 2010 the church launched the "Making Ourselves Ready" campaign with a three-year goal of raising one million dollars. While the campaign was running, a better property than the originally targeted post office became available: the former Odwalla Headquarters on Stone Pine Road. The church closed on the property in 2013, renovated the building, and held its first worship service in the new home that November.
Sunday Mornings at 9:15 and 10:45
Two identical Sunday services are held each week at 9:15 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. at 100 Stone Pine Road in Half Moon Bay. Both services include contemporary worship and praise, prayer, fellowship, and a weekly message from one of the pastors. Services can be watched live online on the Mariner's YouTube channel for those not yet ready to attend in person, or replayed at any time afterwards.
The weekend services are simple in form: centered on God's grace and driven by God's word. They move from singing to prayer to a teaching from Scripture. The church describes itself as informal and friendly, and there is no dress code. Members are quick to point out that Mariner's is a great place for someone who is seeking, skeptical, or curious, and that everyone is welcome, whether this is a first church visit or a lifetime of Christian community.
Driving directions are simple. From Highway 1, take Highway 92, turn onto Main Street in Half Moon Bay, then left onto Stone Pine Road and right into the marked parking lot. If the church lot is full, additional parking is available in lots around the area.
Coastside Kids from Nursery to Fifth Grade
Children's ministry is offered during both Sunday services. The Coastside Kids program is divided into three rooms: Nursery for ages 0 to 3, Pre-K for ages 3 to 5, and Elementary for ages 6 through fifth grade. The preschool and children's wing uses a state-of-the-art electronic check-in and security system, and the staff team will help first-time families find their children's rooms.
Every volunteer who serves in children's ministry goes through a background check and screening process before working with children. Parents are welcome to check in on their children as often as they would like. The Coastside Kids ministry names three values: Fun (games, activities, prizes, and general silliness), Safety (background checks, transparency, and secure facilities), and Discipleship (sharing the gospel consistently and partnering with parents to lay a foundation for a lifetime of faith).
Children's Director Taylor Duncan grew up in Half Moon Bay and at Mariner's, where she now oversees the program she was shaped by. Family fun events and summer camps run throughout the year, and a Family Ministry Calendar is maintained online for parents.
Legacy Youth for Middle and High Schoolers
Two weekly gatherings anchor the youth ministry. Legacy Middle School, for students in grades 6 through 8, meets on Thursdays from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Legacy High School, for students in grades 9 through 12, meets on Wednesdays from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. Both groups also meet on Sunday mornings, and the high school group includes an additional Sunday afternoon option from 12:30 to 2:00 p.m. The rhythm each night is similar: hangout time, games, worship, small groups, and teaching from God's Word.
Youth Pastor Matt Kang, a Bay Area native who studied at UC Santa Cruz and is finishing a Master of Divinity at Gateway Seminary, leads the ministry. The values listed across the family ministry are authenticity, intentionality, and faithfulness. No one is expected to be perfect, growth does not happen by accident, and the ministry strives to be faithful to God's Word and to one another. Family Ministry Administrator Betty Barmore, who has been part of the Mariner's family for over twenty-five years, supports the youth ministry alongside her role leading worship each Sunday.
The youth ministry also offers summer camps, mission trips, and creative ministry projects, and a Family Ministry Calendar lists everything coming up.
Tuesdays for Young Adults, LifeGroups for Everyone
Young adults ages 18 to 30 gather on Tuesdays for fellowship at 7:00 p.m. and Bible study at 7:30 p.m. The ministry exists to engage college students and young adults, to connect them with God and with one another, and to help them become established in their faith and able to share that faith with the world. An Instagram account for the young adults community is maintained at @mcc_coastside_youngadults.
Beyond Young Adults, Mariner's signature small-group ministry is its LifeGroups. Most meet in person, with some meeting on Zoom. LifeGroups are positioned as the core of life together at Mariner's Church, where guests can begin their next steps of faith, belong to a committed group of friends, and become who God intends them to be. A directory of active groups is published online, and the church will train and coach anyone who wants to start a new LifeGroup. LifeGroup Coordinator Marta Gardner can help connect newcomers with an existing group.
For men, a Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) study of the Book of Romans runs thirty weeks, with daily question-guided reading, a weekly discussion on Tuesday evenings, a weekly podcast, and comprehensive lesson notes.
Care, Grief Support, and Recovery Meetings
The primary source of care and support for those who regularly attend Mariner's is the LifeGroup network. Beyond that, the church offers a number of support ministries. GriefShare is a thirteen-week seminar and support group for those who have lost a loved one. DivorceCare is on the way. Pastoral counseling is available through the church office, with referrals to Christian Counseling Center when professional support is appropriate.
Mariner's hosts many of the local AA, Al-Anon, and OA recovery meetings in the community, providing meeting space for those working through addiction. While the church notes these fellowships do not fully embrace the transformation found through Jesus Christ, they are presented as a good place to start, especially when paired with a LifeGroup. Financial help, prayer for the sick, and ongoing prayer support are also available through the church office.
New Wave, Mexico, and the Stone Pine Building
In 2016 the church studied bottlenecks to its growth and identified two areas: facility capacity and reaching the growing Latino population on the coast. The following year, Ivette Moctezuma joined the staff as a part-time Director of Community Outreach to help connect with the ethnically diverse community, and a Latino Outreach ministry area was added to the serving teams. Curt Vanderstelt joined the staff in 2019 as Director of Youth Ministries, expanding the church's reach to local teens.
New Wave First Fruits is the church's missions arm, with a particular focus on Central Mexico. Managing Director Brenna Davis launched the New Wave First Fruits endeavor, and the church continues to send short-term mission teams south. The current New Wave project is the ongoing renovation and improvement of the Stone Pine facility so the church can better serve the coastside community; a New Wave Building Fund has been established for that work.
Generosity and the New Wave Building Campaign
Mariner's encourages a culture of cheerful, faith-filled giving, inviting every attendee who considers Mariner's their church and spiritual home to make a pledge. The current pledge campaign runs from September 2025 through December of 2026. Pledges are confidential and help the church prepare an annual budget and serve as a tangible reminder that everything belongs to God.
Giving can be made online through Pushpay, set up through the Mariner's app, texted by sending MARINERSCC to 77977, mailed to the church, dropped in the offering bucket on Sunday, or transferred as stock or other securities. Legacy gifts through wills, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and appreciated securities are also encouraged, with a downloadable Legacy Giving Guide available for estate planning.
Beliefs Held in Common
Mariner's describes itself around eight shared values: Christ Followers (knowing God through Jesus is the most important thing); Real (no perfect people are allowed here); Connecting (the church's greatest witness is love for one another); Growing (through the Bible, every believer becomes a transformed and reproducing Christ follower); Changing (God's message is sacred but methods change); Investing (children and youth are valued, and the vision is that every graduating senior on the coastside will have heard the message of Jesus Christ); Different and Same (reflecting the diverse community, becoming one as we worship, serve, and grow together); and Involved (every Christ follower is responsible for using their gifts, time, energy, and finances in ministry).
Beliefs stated by the church are biblical and evangelical: every person matters to God; because of sin, people are separated from God, but God sent Jesus Christ to pay the penalty by dying on the cross; a person comes to God only through personal faith in Jesus Christ apart from good works or human effort; the Bible is God's personal and errorless love letter to us; and fulfillment in life comes through God's purposes, which include connecting with God, growing with others, and serving the world.
An Interim Pastor and a Coastside Staff
After Pastor Paul's farewell message in late 2025, Dr. Dave Gudgel stepped into the role of Interim Pastor. Gudgel grew up in California and has served churches in Agoura Hills, Phoenix, Mountain View, Los Altos, and now Merced. He holds a B.A. in Sociology from Westmont College, a Master of Divinity from Talbot Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Ministry from Western Seminary, and has taught seminars for Walk Thru the Bible Ministries for over thirty-five years. He is the author of several books, including Before You Live Together and Bible StoryBoards.
Brenna Davis serves as Managing Director after joining the staff in 2023; she and her husband moved to Half Moon Bay in 2008 and have been part of the Mariner's family ever since. Matt Kang is the Youth Pastor. Taylor Duncan is the Children's Director. Betty Barmore is the Family Ministries Administrator and also leads worship each week. Mark Heath, a longtime Half Moon Bay resident and local chiropractor known as Dr. Mark, has volunteered as worship leader at Mariner's for over twenty years. Emma Lodge serves as Office Manager.
Peter Lyon chairs the Steering Team, with Judy Duncan, Jason Madson, Karen Jaw-Madson, Scott Cornwell, Jorge Moctezuma, and Jeff Pierce also serving. Kenji Gjovig serves as Treasurer, with Judy Mattos Smith as Finance Administrator, Jim Davis, Tom Norton, Peter Lyon, and Jason Madson on the Finance Team. Mariner's Mobile app keeps members connected to events, announcements, service set lists, message podcasts, and giving.