A Second Century on Studley Road
Northside Baptist Church sits on 9.71 acres along Studley Road in Mechanicsville, Virginia, in an established suburban stretch of Hanover County situated between several subdivisions, public schools, and pieces of local history. Known for being encouraging, joyful, and compassionate, the church has occupied its present property since December 5, 1976, but its story reaches back to a Sunday School started in 1906, and that long arc explains why a Baptist congregation whose membership peaked at 2,268 in the 1950s finds itself today at home among the young and middle-aged families of the Studley Road community.
The work began on May 5, 1906, as a mission project of the Men's League of First Baptist Church. That Sunday School met in the old Town Hall on Fourth Avenue in Highland Park, a growing neighborhood in Chestnut Hill. The work prospered, and on April 25, 1907, nineteen women organized a Ladies Aid Society to promote the welfare of the church. The next day a group of brethren formed the Men's League of the Northside Baptist Church, and at 3:30 p.m. on June 16, 1907, "brethren and sisters" met to constitute themselves into a Baptist church. Sixty-seven charter members were received, and Charles Baker Arendall, a student at the University of Richmond, was elected as the first pastor. Six months later the congregation broke ground for a building at Third Avenue and Victor Streets, home to the church until 1975.
Northside flourished in Highland Park. Evening services, training, mission and choir programs were added for all ages. The church supported missionaries overseas and at home, and multiple renovations and expansions were made to accommodate growing attendance. By 1954 membership had reached 2,268, and two daughter congregations, Chamberlayne and Shalom, were constituted from chapel ministries sponsored by Northside. As members relocated to the suburbs in the early 1970s, attendance declined, and in 1973 the congregation voted to appoint a committee to find a new site. After studying where members lived and consulting with the Richmond and Dover Baptist Associations, the church purchased 9.71 acres on Studley Road, sold the Highland Park property to Fifth Street Baptist Church, and held its last service in the old neighborhood on September 29, 1975. For fourteen months the church met in the Presbyterian School of Christian Education and the American Legion building on Atlee Road before dedicating the Studley Road facility in December 1976.
Subsequent decades brought an additional 1.74 acres in 1978, the dedication of the Haynes Building in September 1984 with greatly needed Sunday School and fellowship space, Wednesday family nights beginning in 1985, the ordination of a woman and the addition of an 8:30 a.m. Sunday worship service in 1989, and the establishment of an Endowment Fund in 1992 from a bequest of long-time member Lena McEwen. That fund continues to support the Loaves and Fishes Ministry, CARITAS, the Church Hill Wellness Center, and various mission trips. Two more decades have brought the church into its second century with the same set of priorities: engaging the people living in the Studley Road community and helping them develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ expressed through daily living.
Two Services on Sunday Morning
Worship at Northside is offered in two Sunday morning services that share the same sanctuary and the same convictions but differ in tone. The Classic Worship Service runs from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., and the Modern Worship Service runs from 11:00 a.m. to noon. Small Groups for all ages meet in between, from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m., with adult classes downstairs and children and youth upstairs. Children's Church is offered during each of the two services.
Both services are Bible-based, family-oriented, and relaxed. The congregation is encouraged to come "just as you are," and the church holds an open posture toward women in ministry. Music in the Classic service leans toward traditional hymns led by the choir, with anthems sung a couple of times a month and occasional handbell offerings. Music in the Modern service is led by the Praise Team and draws from more contemporary songs. The shared aim is to prepare hearts to receive the preached Word. Services are also livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube for those who want to watch from home.
Music That Bridges Tradition and Today
Music is one of the defining features of Northside's worship, and the Music Ministry exists "to glorify God and edify the congregation through song." Director of Music Ministries Gregg Etheridge leads a program that brings together a choir, a handbell choir known as the Ringtones, a Praise Team, and accompanist Jennifer Gray. Members of the music teams treat their rehearsals, prayer, and spiritual growth as ministry rather than performance, understanding their work as a form of service and spiritual leadership.
The choir leads the congregational singing of traditional hymns during the Classic Service and sings anthems several times a month. The Praise Team leads the Modern Service with more contemporary music. The Handbell Choir, the Ringtones, participates in the Classic Service several times throughout the year. Choir rehearsal takes place on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. during the program year.
Children, Young Adults, and Growing Up at Northside
Children's Ministry at Northside is led by Director of Children's Ministries Christy Sanders, supported by Children's Ministry Intern Briley Sanders. The ministry offers secure kid check-in and check-out, and a nursery is available for infants through preschool age four during the Sunday School hour and the morning Worship Service. Separate Sunday School classes are offered for elementary, middle school, and college-age students, each teaching practical Bible lessons appropriate for the age group, and Children's Church is offered during each of the two Sunday morning services.
The Young Adult Ministry is designed for the "in-between" stage of life, the years that are too old for the youth room but not quite ready for mortgage talk in a traditional adult class. Young Adults meet on Sunday mornings at 9:45 a.m. around real friendships and honest questions about God. There is no expectation of polished resumes or perfect life plans. As one description puts it, the goal is "a place where you belong and a community to grow with."
A Full Calendar for Senior Adults
Director of Senior Adult Ministries Judy Dewalt oversees one of the most active parts of the church. JOYful Hearts Fitness meets twice a week, on Monday and Thursday mornings at 9:30 a.m., with aerobic exercises set to music through the ages followed by a weight routine, all done from a chair. Bunco gathers once a month on Sunday afternoons from 3:00 to 5:30 p.m., with savory and sweet snacks shared around the room. The JOY luncheon takes place on the second Tuesday of each month, with a program at 11:00 a.m. and lunch at noon for $5, plus birthday and anniversary celebrations and special events like a Kentucky Derby Day with Fascinator hats. Painting with Friends meets on the third Tuesday of the month from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the fellowship hall, with acrylic and watercolor supplies provided.
Tuesday mornings also bring Bible study for seniors, with the men's group meeting at 8:00 a.m. in the fellowship hall and the ladies' group meeting at 10:00 a.m. in the Inspiration Class room, often followed by a meal together. Senior Adult Trips take a bus load to Riverside Performing Arts Center two or three times a year for matinees and lunch in Fredericksburg, and longer overnight trips have carried the group to the Ark Encounter and Creation Museum in Kentucky and to the Sights and Sound Theater, Bird-in-Hand Theater and buffet, and other attractions in Lancaster. All senior activities are open to members and to seniors in the wider community.
Community Outreach Throughout Hanover
Northside describes itself as encouraging, joyful, and compassionate, and the NBC Mission Teams carry that identity into the surrounding area. Continuous collections of food, personal care items, and clothing support local first responders, the MCEF, and Harbour Square, where volunteers also deliver groceries monthly to about thirty recipients. Teachers at three local schools - WHES, RPES, and BCMS - receive treats from the church quarterly. Healing Quilts are made and given through CARITAS, where the team also prepares thirty meals each quarter for the women's shelter. The church supports the Ronald McDonald House with food for snack carts, attends and supports the Bible study at River City Ministries, makes a significant monetary donation at Christmas each year, and through Moments of Hope collects tents, sleeping bags, blankets, socks, hats, and gloves for people experiencing homelessness.
What Northside Believes
Northside describes itself as unapologetically Christian in theology and baptistic in doctrine, with members from a variety of denominational and non-denominational backgrounds. The church has distilled its convictions into a list of "Essentials of the Faith," beginning with the inspiration of the Bible as the Word of God and continuing through the Trinity, the Virgin Birth and deity of Christ, the bodily resurrection of Christ, the physical return of Christ, the priesthood of the believer, the sanctity of human life, and biblical marriage and sexuality. Beyond these essentials, members hold a wide range of personal preferences that the church considers non-essential. The leadership sums up the approach with Augustine's adage: "In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity."
Visiting Northside
First-time guests find the church at 7600 Studley Road in Mechanicsville, on a property that includes a walking trail, open land used for baseball, basketball, and soccer, a playground, and a covered shelter available for family picnics. Inside, a newly renovated Common Grounds area sits just off the sanctuary, offering coffee and light refreshments in an informal setting, with an extension room for small group meetings. Down the hall are Small Group classrooms, the Music Suite, and the Nursery, and the Fellowship Hall beyond hosts meals, Bible studies, and programs, and is also used for county exercise classes, a voting precinct, and other community gatherings. Upstairs, newly renovated classrooms serve children, youth, and young families.
The church office is open Monday through Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and closed Friday and Saturday. Telephone: 804-746-4952. Online giving is available through the church's Realm giving page, the church calendar is published through Google Calendar, and services and sermons can be watched on Facebook and YouTube. Whether someone comes with a long history of faith or a single question about God, the invitation at Northside is the same: come at your own pace, and you will be welcomed and not pressured.