Tucked along Middle Road on the north side of Bettendorf, Iowa, Our Savior Lutheran Church and Preschool has been a fixture of the Quad Cities Lutheran community since the late 1940s. The congregation identifies with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and gathers around a single purpose stated at the top of its materials: connecting people to Jesus. Worship takes place every weekend in the sanctuary, Sunday school fills the education wing from toddlers through high schoolers at 9:30 a.m., and a thriving preschool operates out of the same campus during the school week.
Three Services, Two Styles, One Lord’s Supper
Worship is the heartbeat of the congregation. The year-round schedule offers Holy Communion at every service.
- Saturday at 5:00 p.m. - Traditional worship in a devotional style, using the Lutheran Service Book and rotating the Divine Services weekly.
- Sunday at 8:00 a.m. - Traditional worship with organ-led hymns and the liturgical setting of the LSB. This service is livestreamed.
- Sunday at 10:45 a.m. - Contemporary worship led by the Glory Bound praise team with guitars, flute, keyboard, and drums. The structure follows the same Lutheran liturgy but with modern music. This service is livestreamed.
During the summer (roughly June through August) the two Sunday services shift to 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., and the Saturday 5:00 p.m. service continues unchanged. On the last Sunday of each summer month the congregation gathers outdoors in the back parking lot for one combined worship at 9:00 a.m., weather permitting. Visitors bring their own chairs.
What Visitors Will Notice
Services last about an hour. Nursery care is available during worship and the Sunday Bible class hour, opening 15 minutes before each service for children under three. A separate Children’s Message sends kids ages 3 through 2nd grade out of the sanctuary during the sermon for their own Bible lesson. A parents’ room is available for families with newborns or toddlers who want to listen and watch the service. Ushers, greeters, and hosts at the Welcome Center are ready to answer questions, and coffee and donuts are served between Sunday services. Guest and accessible parking sit close to the main entry, where a covered overpass offers protection from rain or cold. The church has no dress code; some members wear their Sunday best, others come in casual clothes.
What the Church Believes
Our Savior is a sacramental Lutheran church that confesses the Bible as the inspired, inerrant Word of God and the only rule for faith and life. The congregation confesses one Triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Members affirm that humanity lost its original holiness through sin, that the Law reveals sin, and that salvation comes by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ, who kept the Law perfectly, died on the cross, and rose again. The church teaches that the Holy Spirit brings people to faith through the Word and the Sacraments (Holy Baptism and the Lord’s Supper). Marriage is taught as the union of one man and one woman. The congregation practices close communion: visitors who have not been instructed in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s teaching on the Lord’s Supper are respectfully asked to refrain from receiving until they can speak with a pastor.
From a Washington School Room to 3775 Middle Road
The story of Our Savior begins with a religious survey of north Bettendorf in 1947, when more than half of the families were unchurched. The Iowa District East of the LCMS called missionary E. A. Breiholz, and on October 5, 1947, the first service was held in a seventh-grade room at the old Washington School on Mississippi Boulevard with about forty people. The congregation was officially organized on June 29, 1948, and received into the LCMS that August. Growth pushed the young church to build a permanent building in 1953, then to relocate to 11.7 acres at 3775 Middle Road in the late 1960s. The worship and education building on the current site was dedicated April 18, 1971, followed by a new sanctuary on October 28, 1979. The mortgage was burned in October 1997 during the fiftieth-anniversary service, and a second Sunday morning service was added that November.
The preschool opened August 31, 1998, with seventeen students and has grown into a year-round fixture of the campus, serving more than 300 children at peak and occupying most of the building’s classrooms. A 32,000-square-foot expansion was dedicated in 2001, and Saturday evening worship began in September 2008. A second capital campaign followed in 2016, retiring debt once more in November 2025 after a 16,600-square-foot renovation and addition. The current lead pastor, Keith Piotter, has served the congregation since January 29, 1995, and is the longest-tenured pastor in the church’s history.
Children’s Ministry, Preschool-Sixth Grade
Sunday School meets from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. between services, September through May, for children age 2 through sixth grade, using classrooms along the “Y” hallway. On Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., Kids’ Klub gathers children age 4 (by September 15) through fourth grade for Bible stories, crafts, song, and large-motor games; a children’s choir from this program sings in worship once a month. The annual Vacation Bible School is a week-long evening program of Bible lessons, crafts, snacks, games, and music. The congregation also runs a three-day Art Camp for completed third through sixth graders and a Wacky Sports Camp for boys and girls entering first through fifth grades. The yearly Christmas Program involves two groups (age 3 through first grade and second through sixth grade) and culminates in a December performance.
Youth Ministry, Fifth Through Twelfth Grade
Programming is divided into three age groups: Tween (fifth and sixth grade), Teen (seventh and eighth), and high school (ninth through twelfth). Tweens and teens attend Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings during the school year, and confirmation classes run for students in grades six through eight, with high school confirmation available on request. Tween Club meets Wednesday nights from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., and Teen Group (high school) meets Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Teen Nights bring seventh through twelfth graders together in the Family Life Center on the third Sunday of every month from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. for a meal, games, a topical Bible study, and small-group time. Acolytes in grades seven and eight serve the congregation during worship. A dedicated youth YouTube channel keeps families connected to current teaching.
Music Ministry
Music is a central part of life at Our Savior, with ensembles for every age. CK Jam, the children’s choir for grades two through eight, rehearses Tuesdays from 4:00 to 4:30 p.m. Celebration Ringers (handbells) meet Tuesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Celebration Singers, the adult choir, rehearse Tuesdays from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The Glory Bound praise team, which leads the 10:45 a.m. contemporary service, rehearses Thursdays from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Three instrumental ensembles round out the ministry: a Brass Ensemble for Worship under Tom Duncan, a Flute Ensemble led by Judy Steffen, and a Strings Ensemble under Carla Chapman. Keaton Connell directs the three choral ensembles and can be contacted for information about joining.
Adult Bible Studies and Small Groups
Three weekly Bible studies anchor adult formation. The Champions Men’s Bible Study meets Wednesdays from 11:00 a.m. to noon in Room A201 under Dr. David Pratt. The Mary Martha Women’s Bible Study meets Thursdays at 9:30 a.m. in Room A201, led by Sara Pfeiffer. A Men’s Bible Study meets Saturdays at 8:00 a.m. in Room A202, led by Mike Duncan. Sunday mornings from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. feature Grace Groups, small clusters of church members who meet in homes for study, prayer, and mutual care. New Grace Groups can be launched on request. Belonging By Grace, the three-month adult instruction class taught by Pastor Keith Piotter, runs twice a year in the fall and February. Child care is provided during class.
Pastoral Services and Member Care
The pastors lead baptisms, weddings, and funerals for both members and non-members. Pre-marital counseling is required for weddings held at the church and uses the Prepare-Enrich assessment, with most couples taking part in group sessions from January through May plus individual meetings with the pastor. Pastors and elders make home and hospital visits for those unable to attend worship, bringing the Lord’s Supper, prayer, and encouragement. Three ongoing support ministries walk alongside members in difficult seasons: DivorceCare, GriefCare, and Financial Peace University, a ten-week Dave Ramsey curriculum taught by DVD and small-group discussion.
Human Care and Community Partnerships
The congregation partners with the Bettendorf Police Department and several local churches to deliver CareLink, a voucher-referral program that helps with rent, deposits, utilities, and shelter for both members and non-members. Our Savior also partners with King’s Harvest Outreach Ministry in Davenport, sending volunteers to serve meals, sort grocery giveaways, pick up food from local restaurants, run the clothing outlet, and help in the shelter.
Local and Global Missions
More than ten percent of the congregation’s annual offerings support missions in the Quad Cities and beyond. The congregation partners with individual missionaries in India, the Czech Republic, Ukraine, New York City, Panama, and Latvia, and supports LCMS seminary students as they prepare for ministry. Short-term mission teams have served in Puerto Rico, Haiti, Peru, Honduras, and Kenya, and disaster relief teams have responded to fires, tornadoes, and hurricanes in the Midwest and elsewhere. Members also serve locally to improve access to housing, food, and education in their own community.
Preschool as a Ministry
Our Savior Lutheran Preschool is a non-profit Christian preschool licensed by the State of Iowa and accredited through the Iowa Quality for Kids (IQ4K) program. The preschool serves children age 2 through Kindergarten Prep, with classes for two-year-olds, three-year-olds (morning and afternoon), four-year-olds, and five-year-olds. Five-day classes for four- and five-year-olds are free for Iowa residents pending State funding. A Parent’s Day Out program introduced in 2005 expanded into the current 2- and 3-year-old preschool offerings. The preschool shares hallways, classrooms, a snack room, and a playground with the rest of the church, making it a daily bridge between the church and families in Bettendorf.
Facility Rentals
The campus is available for community use. Spaces include the Sanctuary (capacity 400), the Family Life Center (capacity 300), the Outdoor Chapel Area (capacity 75), the Gathering Room (capacity 150), and a half Adult Classroom (capacity 75). Inquiries are handled through the church office.
Becoming a Member
There are three paths to membership. Members transferring from another LCMS congregation have a brief conversation with Lead Pastor Keith Piotter and a simple transfer. Those coming from a different Lutheran denomination are sometimes asked to take the adult instruction course. Visitors with no church background or a non-Lutheran background are invited to take Belonging By Grace, a free three-month Sunday morning class that surveys the Bible from a Lutheran perspective, with child care and Sunday school provided at the same time.