North Decatur Presbyterian Church

Website: www.ndpc.org

Service: 11 a.m. Sunday

Worship style: Traditional, with warmth.

Average Sunday attendance: 175-200

Ministers: David Lewicki and Beth Waltemath

Denomination affiliation: Presbyterian Church U.S.A.

Mission statement: “Called to serve, work for peace and justice, and share God’s love with all people.”

History: The Atlanta Presbytery purchased land at the intersection of Medlock Road, North Decatur Road, and Scott Boulevard near Decatur in 1950. Community members met at the home of Mary and Dick Ellis on June 21, 1955, to discuss starting a new church.

North Decatur Presbyterian was officially organized on Oct. 27, 1955, and the charter was closed on Dec. 4, 1955. The education building was completed in 1958, and the first service in the new sanctuary was held in 1966.

Pastors’ path: David Lewicki and Beth Waltemath, married parents of two, share the lead pastoral position.

“We do different things we love to do and we’re good at. We complement one another and the congregation gets both of us and our different gifts,” Lewicki said.

Lewicki earned an undergraduate degree at Yale University; Waltemath's is from the University of Virginia. They met after enrolling in Union Theological Seminary in New York in 2001.

“The thing I love about parish ministry is that your primary job is to both help people and teach people,” Lewicki said. “It blends the things I have gifts and a passion for -- building community, helping people and encouraging their learning.”

After graduating from Union in 2004, Lewicki was associate pastor at Marble Collegiate Church. Waltemath’s first call was to First Presbyterian in Brooklyn as associate pastor.

Their move to Decatur had an added twist because of the hospital-to-hospital transfer of their daughter, who was born prematurely. She was discharged recently to settle in at home with her parents and 3-year-old brother.

“The church has been fabulous,” Lewicki said. “People here are understanding and supportive of our family. They’ve made the transition possible.”

Ministries: The three pillars of the congregation, according to Lewicki, are working for peace and justice, community ministry and education.

While members have supported ways to resolve conflict without warfare, “at the same time we have members of families serving in the military, so we support them serving faithfully. While it’s a fine line, you can do those things at the same time,” Lewicki said.

The church membership includes people who have begun community ministries, such as the Initiative for Affordable Housing. Decatur Cooperative Ministries is another organization supported by the Decatur churchgoers.

“The people here don’t just give money,” Lewicki said. “They get involved helping people. Through these agencies, they get involved in other people's lives in meaningful ways.”

A focus on Christian education is enhanced by faculty members of Columbia Theological Seminary who are members and teach classes at the church.

Thoughts from the pastor: “When people ask me what the church is like, I talk about the people,” Lewicki said. “It’s just an extraordinary group of people who are humbly and faithfully trying to live out their faith in their daily lives. Some of these people have been doing it for twice as long as I’ve been alive and they’re still learning, they still come with open hands and open minds.”