In 1980, a group of church members from First Presbyterian Church of Mt. Pleasant felt called to leave this historic church to begin a new work. They left, in part, because of conflict that arose over their participation in a renewal movement that had begun at First Presbyterian Church. Differences in both theology and worship style suggested it was time for a new church to begin.

The first worship service was held June 15, 1980, in the chapel (now the Art Gallery) of Central Michigan University. About 200 people gathered to worship and pray. At the time, there was no pastor, no church name, and no real plan for the future. Those who gathered did so out of an authentic desire to worship God and a firm conviction to share the life-transforming love of God with the campus and community. Nearly thirty years later, these convictions continue to shape Mt. Pleasant Community Church. We desire to be a “dynamic biblical community sharing the redeeming love of Jesus Christ.”

The spirit of volunteerism that has become our hallmark was formed during the church’s early years. Each week, teams of volunteers set up for worship at the CMU chapel for the first three months, and then in the Mt. Pleasant High School auditorium. The church called the Rev. Malcolm Brown as its first pastor on October 5, 1980, and formed as an Evangelical Presbyterian Church a little more than a year later on October 25, 1981. Community Church joined the EPC because they sensed there a kindred spirit, a desire to remain a grace filled church, open to the leading of the Spirit, and committed to the essentials of the faith as expressed in the EPC Essentials statement and the historic Westminster Confession of Faith which underpinned the Essentials. Community Church also embraced the EPC Motto, “In essentials unity, in non-essentials, liberty, in all things, charity.” We have sought to live by that motto as a community which is open and welcoming to all who come to us, a place where people find a safe place to explore faith.

During Pastor Brown’s years, Community Church experienced further growth, acquired 25 acres of land, and built its first building. Volunteers participated at every stage of the building. Jack Houghton, a member and a skilled mason, laid the bricks of the sanctuary walls. The new building was dedicated September, 1985. Soon thereafter, Malcolm Brown received a call to a church in Ann Arbor.