Snapshot: Stockbridge Presbyterian Church

Website: www.spcusa.org

Services: 11 a.m. Sunday

Worship style: Traditional

Average Sunday attendance: 110

Minister: The Rev. Susan Bennett

Denomination affiliation: Presbyterian Church (USA)

Mission statement

Stockbridge Presbyterian Church exists to be God’s bridge to a world in need in the name of Jesus Christ, who bridges the gap between us and God.

History

The church was formed in 1909 by men and women who gathered at a location near the corner of Burke Street and North Henry Boulevard in Stockbridge. For more than 100 years, local residents have called Stockbridge Presbyterian “the church by the bridge,” referring to a nearby bridge over railroad tracks. Since then, the congregation has incorporated this nickname into its vision to bridge the various gaps in people’s lives, bringing family, friends and neighbors together to minister to the local community and the world in need, according to Bennett.

Pastor’s path

The Pittsburgh native graduated from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla., with a bachelor’s degree in Human Services Development before enrolling in Decatur’s Columbia Theological Seminary in 1993. Bennett graduated in 1996 with a Master of Divinity degree. She began pastoring small churches while in seminary and served as a hospice chaplain. After seven years as an associate pastor at North Avenue Presbyterian in Midtown, Bennett joined the Stockbridge staff in 2009.

Ministries

Stockbridge Presbyterian has always reached out first to the local community, according to the pastor. The Community Christmas program helps nearby residents, supplying them with food and gifts. Eventually the ministry grew so large that it was adopted by Connecting Henry and involves multiple churches in Henry County, reaching a greater number of families in need.

The church’s current mission is Goodness & Groceries, which works in partnership with Food Depot markets to provide weekend food for under-resourced students from Cotton Indian Elementary and Stockbridge Middle schools. Plans are under way to adopt another elementary school and, as funds become available, to add more schools in the 2013-14 school year. The church’s summer program Ready, Set, School! prepares post-preschool-age children for kindergarten and gives them a meal several days a week.

Coffee and muffins were provided for those who voted in the church’s facility last November. During the Christmas season, members staged a live Nativity for the community, with cocoa, cookies and fellowship.

Thoughts from the pastor

“Serving God with the people from Stockbridge Presbyterian is the best time I’ve ever had. This is a congregation of folks with different gifts and different backgrounds, but with one thing in common: We love God, we love each other, and we want to serve God by serving each other and our local community. We’re serious about Bible study and discipleship; we treasure our times of worship and our deep friendships with one another, and we’re passionate about local outreach and welcoming others to the family. This congregation is filled with good folks. I’m honored to serve as their pastor, and can’t wait to see what God has in mind for the future.”