Our Story
On January 31, 1993 ten couples met in a College Hill home to discuss and pray about the potential of planting a new Reformed church in East Wichita. Our story follows...
How it All Began
This core group believed that there was a great need in Wichita for a Reformed church that intentionally reached out to the un-churched. After much prayer, discussion and planning the core group commited to call Pastor George Granberry to be the organizing pastor. George and his wife Vicki joyfully accepted and the seed for Heartland Community Church was planted. Our first vision statement that guided our early years said,​​
"Heartland desires to be a church that manifests the reality of Jesus to the world by equipping Christians to live lifestyles in the world that are Biblically accurate, personally pure, family centered, evangelistically bold and socially responsible."​​
In May, George attended a Presbytery Meeting outside of Kansas City where his ordination was accepted and he was commissioned as an Evangelist of the PCA. At that same time Gary Gensch, Randy Haydon and George Bruce were accepted as Ruling Elder designees.
The first formal worship service, billed as a “Saturday Night Family Fellowship”, was held on April 18, 1993 in the gymnasium inside the Love Box facility in north Wichita. At that time the group of families committed to the church plant along with curious visitors had grown to 57.
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Heartland became a Particular Church of the PCA with 48 members at a Constitution of the Church Service held on January 23, 1994, 51 weeks following the first meeting of the church planters.
Heartland welcomed its first building on August 1, 1996 with the purchase of a former country club known as Fox Meadows. The building sat on 18 beautiful acres lying at the end of East Lincoln along with 6 overgrown tennis courts and the remnant of a 9-hole golf course.
By 2004, it was becoming apparent that Heartland was outgrowing its facility at 11801 E. Lincoln, particularly its nursery. Session designated a group of men to consider the church’s future Strategic Plan and Leadership needs. This team, know as “SPLAT”, began the work of surveying the congregation to evaluate the church’s future direction, ministry interests and facility requirements. The evaluation included the potential of: 1) adding on to the then current building; 2) constructing new facilities on the East Lincoln property or a new location and 3) searching for another existing facility. As a part of this evaluation Session realized that Heartland had become the church described in its initial Mission Statement. So the Mission Statement was amended to state:
"The Mission of Heartland is to Glorify God as we equip His people
to share the reality of Jesus with the world."
This evaluation and search lead to the discovery in January 2005 of the facility located at 437 S. Woodlawn, which had previously been The Magdalene Catholic Church and school. Less than one year later on September 3, 2006 Heartland held its Dedication Worship Service in the gymnasium of its new facility, where it worshiped until the completion of its new sanctuary on October 21, 2007.
​​Pastor George retired honorably after 27 years of leading Heartland Community Church and he and Vicki are now involved in global missions from their home near Chattanooga, Tennessee. Heartland is grateful for George and Vicki's faithful service and as we move into a new chapter we have been blessed to welcome Pastor Jonathan Whitley, his wife Tara and their children to Wichita. We are excited to walk with Pastor Jonathan and our new Associate Pastor, Ben Marquez, as we boldly move forward to share the reality of Jesus Christ with our city and our world.
​​​​Heartland Community Church has now been nurturing Christians for more than a quarter century and we rejoice to be a part of what God has done in and through us and look forward to what we believe He wants to do in our city. We would love for you to consider joining us as we look forward to the next 30 years of embodying the vision God has given us.