A 1799 Log Cabin and a 1926 Gothic Cathedral on Wilkinson Street
Westminster Presbyterian Church sits at 125 N. Wilkinson Street in downtown Dayton, Ohio, a few steps from the courthouse square and the city that grew up around it. The congregation is the present-day descendant of Dayton's first church, organized in 1799 by the Washington Presbytery of the Synod of Kentucky. Ten members first gathered in a small log cabin in the heart of what would later become downtown, and the parish carried the name First Presbyterian Church for more than a century before becoming Westminster. The current sanctuary, a neo-Gothic cathedral designed by the renowned American church architect Ralph Adams Cram, was completed in 1926. Westminster is part of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and is also a member of The Covenant Network of Presbyterians. It sits in the Presbytery of the Miami Valley.
The congregation is now preparing for its next century through a Capital Campaign. Phase 1 construction is underway, and the project is being driven by a Centennial Task Force co-chaired by Kay Berg and Georgie Woessner with Elder Dennis TenWolde. Westminster describes itself as a place that is safe for questions, where the life of faith is understood as a journey walked with God and one another, and where "all are welcome."
The Sanctuary, the Stoddard Window, and the Casavant Organ
The cathedral that Ralph Adams Cram built for Westminster is filled with art and music. The focal point of the Sanctuary is the Stoddard memorial window, a medallion-style stained-glass window designed by Tiffany Studios and given in memory of a long-serving member of the church. The harsh heat of summer 2012 took a heavy toll on the window, and a full restoration was carried out between 2014 and 2016. Photographs and videos of the removal and restoration are part of the church's historical record.
The music of the Sanctuary is shaped by a Casavant organ, opus 2670, dedicated in January 1963. The instrument is really two organs: a Chancel Organ at the front of the Sanctuary and a Gallery-Celestial Organ in the balcony, each with its own console. Together they contain more than 7,000 pipes across 118 ranks. The organ has grown over the decades with additions including a Celestial Division given in 2007 in memory of Beatrice Jackson and a Sanctuary Carillon installed in 2010 in memory of longtime choir member John (Jack) Bindeman. The instrument is currently being maintained and restored by Hunt-Krewson Pipe Organ Services of Dayton.
Worship in the Reformed Tradition
Worship is the heart of Westminster's life. Sunday morning worship begins at 10:00 a.m., with the prelude at 9:45, and lasts about an hour. The service is described as formal and traditional in format, vibrant and relevant in content, centered on God's Word through thoughtful preaching, congregational hymn singing, and choral anthems that span the centuries and the globe. Worship is in the Reformed tradition and is led by the Pastor and Head of Staff, the Reverend Dr. Richard L. Baker, Jr., together with the Director of Music, the Reverend John W. Neely, and the music staff.
Anyone who cannot attend in person can worship through the livestream on the church's YouTube channel, and bulletins and online attendance forms are available each week. After the service, the congregation gathers from 11:00 to 11:20 a.m. in Fellowship Hall for Coffee and Conversation.
The church also offers a Taizé service of meditative songs and prayers in candlelight, held on Wednesdays in Lent from 6:00 to 6:40 p.m. and broadcast on the YouTube channel. Taizé services draw on the music of the ecumenical community in eastern France.
Sacraments and the Big Events of Life
Westminster celebrates the two sacraments recognized by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Baptism and the Lord's Supper, and hosts weddings and funerals in the Sanctuary.
Baptism is celebrated for both children and adults and is described as the sign and seal of God's love that goes ahead of our own. To have a child baptized, parents are expected to be committed to raising their child in the household of faith; adult baptism signifies a personal profession of faith and a resolve to live by faith in Christ. The Lord's Supper, also called the Eucharist, is open to all. Westminster extends the table widely: the invitation is given to all who come in faith, repentance, and love, including those who doubt. Weddings at Westminster require that one participant be a member of the congregation (active or affiliate), a child, grandchild, or parent of an active member, or a member of the staff. Members of other small Dayton-area Presbyterian churches may also marry at Westminster by arrangement. Funerals are called Services of Witness to the Resurrection. Members of the family are invited to take part in the service if they wish, and a small number of remembrances may be offered after prearrangement with the officiating pastor. Donna Schoonmaker coordinates weddings and baptisms; Caitlin Deyerle coordinates funerals.
Children and Youth: From Nursery Through Senior High
Westminster's children and youth ministry runs from infancy through grade 12. Children begin in the Sanctuary and leave at a designated moment in the service for their classrooms, where an adult leader meets them in the Narthex. The nursery, staffed by professional childcare providers, is open from 8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for children from birth through age 3. Sunday school meets in age-graded groups: Pre-K and K and grades 1-2 from 10:20 to 11:30 a.m., and grades 3 through 8 from 10:40 to 11:30 a.m. The middle school class meets in the Theater.
Three children's choirs rehearse from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.: Genesis Singers for Pre-K ages 4 and 5, the Cherub Choir for grades K-2, and the Calvin Choir for grades 3-6. Kylie Hettinger serves as Director of Discipleship for the children's and family ministry.
Westminster Youth (grades 7-12) enjoys a relational program of fellowship, education, and music. Two youth fellowship groups meet on Sunday evenings: a junior high group for grades 7 and 8 and a senior high group for grades 9-12. A typical Sunday evening begins with dinner, moves into small groups for conversation and study, and ends with a closing circle of sharing and prayer. The youth music program includes the Knox Choir (grades 7-12) and the Knox Ringers handbell ensemble, both directed by John Neely and Brent Manley. A confirmation class is offered each year on Sunday mornings from 9:00 to 9:45 a.m. for senior high youth who wish to explore their faith and a possible commitment to Christ; it is led by Associate Pastor Nancy Hodgkins. Nancy Hodgkins also oversees the youth program and the mission and Colombia partnership programs.
A Music Program Built on Choirs
Music is woven into every part of Westminster's life. The Westminster Choir, the church's adult ensemble, was organized in 1920 under the direction of John Finley Williamson and had toured the United States and Europe by 1926. Dr. Williamson also established a choir school at the church that grew rapidly and eventually moved to the Conservatory at Ithaca, New York, and then to Princeton, New Jersey. Today the program offers five singing choirs and three handbell choirs: the adult Westminster Choir, which rehearses Thursdays from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.; the Knox Choir and Knox Ringers for grades 7-12; the Calvin, Cherub, and Genesis Singers choirs for children; the Carillon Bells for beginning adult ringers; and the Westminster Ringers for adult ringers. The choirs sing at Sunday worship and at major services such as the Service of Lessons and Carols in Advent and the Easter services, and they join community concerts throughout the year.
The Music, Art, Dance, Drama Day Camp (MADD Days) is held each summer for children entering grades 2-7, with choir, handbells, Orff instruments, dance, and drama. Westminster also hosts a concert series that includes an annual memorial organ recital and choral vespers open to the public.
The Birth Certificate Ministry and Other Outreach
Because Westminster sits in downtown Dayton, people in need walk through its doors every week. The largest share of the congregation's outreach funds supports the Birth Certificate Ministry, which helps people acquire birth certificates and state identification cards they need to access state and federal services, enroll children in school, and rebuild their lives. Since 2023, Ohioans 17 and older have been able to obtain a state ID card at no cost from the BMV, and the ministry has concentrated its work on birth certificates. The Birth Certificate Ministry is open on Wednesdays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the Perry Street side of the building. No appointment is necessary. Mission Associate Jenne Gross oversees the program, and a special offering supports it on the fourth Sunday of Advent.
The Document Storage Ministry, available by appointment, gives Dayton-area residents a secure place to keep government-issued documents such as birth certificates, Social Security cards, and other papers. Documents are kept in a fireproof cabinet and accessed only by trained volunteers, and clients store a photo ID and a photo with their file so that only they can make deposits or withdrawals.
Westminster also supports the Dayton Foodbank through monthly hunger offerings on the first Sunday of each month and through a "From the Garden" table that operates on Saturday mornings from 10:30 a.m. to noon in the church parking lot. The Hunger Sunday offering on the first Sunday of each month goes entirely to the Foodbank. Through W.I.S.E., a partnership with Dayton school communities, volunteers tutor, run study tables, and assist in classrooms.
Since 1998 Westminster has taken part in the Presbytery of the Miami Valley's partnership with the Presbytery of the North Coast in Barranquilla, Colombia. Many youth and adults have traveled to visit Primera Iglesia, Westminster's sister church, and the relationship has shaped both congregations' understanding of mission.
Westminster also supports Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s crisis response ministry, and partners with Church Women United in Greater Dayton, an ecumenical movement that draws together women from some 25 congregations in the region.
Care Ministries and the Pastoral Staff
The Westminster Board of Deacons, currently 18 members, is the congregation's primary network of one-on-one care. Deacons organize ministries of Health and Wellness, Life Transitions, and Prayer and Presence. They lend medical equipment, staff the Emergency Response Team during worship, dispose of unused medications, deliver cards and flowers, visit new parents, support families during bereavement, and deliver Home Communion to members who cannot attend in person. They also serve as Church Partners, making monthly contact with older members who can no longer come to church as often as they would like.
Three specialized care teams extend this work: Church Partners, Hospital Visitation, and Loss Support. A Care Resource Team plans periodic training for those who serve. Tech Angels, a deacon-led initiative, helps members navigate the livestream, the ShelbyNext directory, and Zoom Sunday school and small groups. Julie Schrodi and Drew Statt lead the Tech Angels ministry.
The Reverend Dr. Caitlin T. Deyerle receives prayer requests and pastoral care concerns; prayer requests submitted through the church's online form are shared confidentially with the Email Prayer Ministry Team.
Adult Education, Small Groups, and Westminster Presbyterian Women
Westminster's Adult Education program meets on Sundays at 11:20 a.m. in the West Parlor. Recent offerings have included Walking in the Light, a study in the Letters of John; Faith and Civic Life, an investigation of Christian nationalism; a series on the Presbyterian Church and the founding of the United States and on the Presbyterian Church and slavery; a class on death, dying, and grief led by chaplains Maureen and Andrew Clark; and a Hymnal History class. The Parent Fellowship class meets at 11:30 a.m. in Room 211 and has studied Matthew's Gospel for Beginners and Jennifer Breheny Wallace's Never Enough. The Pastor and Head of Staff leads adult education.
Bucket List Books, a Wednesday afternoon book group on Zoom led by the Rev. Dr. Richard Baker, and a year-round program of Small Groups and Spiritual Friendship Groups invite members into deeper relationships. Small Groups are intentional gatherings of ten or fewer people meeting on a regular schedule for study, conversation, and mutual support. Spiritual Friendship Groups of three or four members meet monthly to listen, discern, and pray together.
Westminster Presbyterian Women carries on a long heritage of service, study, and fellowship through Circles that meet regularly throughout the year. The organization sponsors an annual Cookie Walk, a fall pecan sale, and a centennial puzzle sale, and it supports more than twenty local and global mission projects. WPW is affiliated with the national Churchwide Presbyterian Women and participates in the Thank Offering, Birthday Offering, Fellowship of the Least Coin, and Horizons Magazine.
Presby Groups, the church's informal monthly dinner clubs, are a longtime tradition at Westminster. The Bridge Interest Group meets on the second and fourth Mondays at 6:30 p.m. for duplicate bridge. All-church fellowship events on the calendar include the Advent Pot-luck Dinner, Bowling Night, Canoe Outing, Chili Round-up, Dinner Theater, Harvest Dinner, Dips and Dogs, May Festival of Religious Arts, Tacos and Trivia, and Westminster Night at the Dragons.
The Labyrinth, the Prayer Wall, and Earth Stewardship
The Spiritual Practice ministry at Westminster includes a Labyrinth for walking prayer and a Prayer Wall in the Sanctuary, designed to recall the Jerusalem Wailing Wall as an interfaith place of prayer. A Children's Prayer Wall, made from the same wood, sits between the early elementary classrooms and is used during the second half of worship. The Earth Stewardship Ministry Team collects batteries and small electronics for recycling, sponsors a Fair Trade Product Sale on the first Sunday of each month in Fellowship Hall, encourages the use of native plants on the church grounds, and offers adult education on creation care.
Welcome to Westminster
Westminster is part of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and of The Covenant Network of Presbyterians, a national group of clergy and lay leaders working for a faithful, just, and whole church. New members' classes, called Westminster 101, are offered quarterly and are followed by a meeting with the Session. Donna Schoonmaker coordinates the membership process.
Visitors will find free parking in the lot across from the front doors on First Street, and handicapped-accessible entrances on Perry Street near the alley and at the ramp near the Chapel. Pews 3, 4, 10, 21, 22, and 34 in the Sanctuary accommodate wheelchairs, and a handicapped-accessible restroom is halfway down the ramp. The deacons lend hearing assist devices each Sunday. Children are always welcome in worship; nursery care is provided on the first floor for children age 3 and under, and children age 4 and older attend the first part of the service with their families before leaving for Sunday school.
Staff and Leadership for the Year Ahead
The ministerial staff includes the Rev. Dr. Richard L. Baker, Jr., Pastor and Head of Staff; the Rev. John W. Neely, who directs the music program; the Rev. Nancy S. Hodgkins, Associate Pastor for Youth and Mission; and the Rev. Dr. Caitlin T. Deyerle, who oversees pastoral care and the welcome of new members. Kylie Hettinger serves as Director of Discipleship for children and families. The church also offers an eleven-month Westminster Residency in Church Vocation for recent college graduates exploring a possible call to professional church service, with tracks in Music and Mission. The resident receives housing, a salary, health benefits, and reimbursement for ministry expenses.
The Session, Westminster's governing body, is moderated by the pastor and includes three other ministers and twelve ruling elders elected in three classes. The Board of Deacons, currently 18 members, is organized into three classes and provides the congregation's direct-care ministries. Standing committees cover Building and Grounds, Centennial, Education and Practice, Fellowship, Hospitality, Mission, Nominating, Personnel, Stewardship and Finance, and Worship, Music and Fine Arts.
The church office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 4:30 p.m., and can be reached at 937-223-7285 or wpcdayton@westminsterdayton.org. The Sunday bulletin is available online, the Westminster Notes e-newsletter goes out twice a week, and the ShelbyNext mobile app gives members access to the directory and church calendar.