TODAY IN MISSION YEARBOOK
Mission Yearbook: Iowa church finds more than a merger
As worship attendance declines and the cost of maintaining church buildings rises, mergers have become one pathway congregations explore for sustainability. Too often, however, the result is simply a smaller version of the larger church, with loss of energy, identity or mission. The recent union of First Presbyterian Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church in Dubuque, Iowa, offers a different story — one shaped by careful discernment, deep trust and unexpected new life.
After several years of intensive study led primarily by lay leadership, the two congregations — each with long and distinct histories — chose to unite. First Presbyterian Church, the first Presbyterian congregation on the west side of the Mississippi River in Iowa, has served downtown Dubuque since the 1840s and played a formative role in founding the University of Dubuque and Dubuque Theological Seminary. Westminster Presbyterian Church, established in its current west-side location in 1961 across from the university, has long been known for vibrant worship, neighborhood ministry and a spacious mid-20th-century campus.
Early in the process, Interim Executive Presbyter Jeff Japinga presented a joint gathering of members with 11 possible “futures,” ranging from independent continuation with full-time clergy to complete closure. Each congregation then held its own session meetings and conversations with key lay leaders. Westminster had experienced instability in pastoral leadership over recent decades, while First welcomed a new pastor, the Rev. Stephanie Ells, just weeks before the Covid pandemic reshaped congregational life.
Both churches weathered the challenges of the pandemic years with resilience and, by 2022, began renewed collaborations, sharing youth ministry, joint Lenten worship, combined mission efforts and eventually weekly worship together. By late 2024, both sessions and congregations voted to pursue formal unification. Legal and corporate matters were addressed in 2025, and on Jan. 11, 2026, the inaugural session of the newly formed Bread of Life Presbyterian Church (PC[USA]) was installed. The former church entities were retired, and the properties became known as the Hilltop and Downtown Campuses.
While worship most often takes place at the Hilltop Campus due to sanctuary size and parking, the Downtown Campus is already emerging as a vital center for mission. During extreme cold, its basement has served as an overflow shelter in partnership with the Dubuque Rescue Mission. Smaller worship services are held in the intimate downtown sanctuary, and the church’s food ministry has expanded dramatically.
Quarterly food distributions, now held downtown near a city park and walkable neighborhoods, have transformed the ministry. Walk-up participation has more than tripled, while drive-up traffic still fills the surrounding streets. One recent distribution served 203 families, nearly 600 people — distributing close to four tons of food. Volunteers regularly walk carts of groceries home with neighbors who live nearby.
Bread of Life Presbyterian Church continues to explore creative, sustainable uses for both campuses, while ministry flourishes at Hilltop with increased facility use and expanded youth programming made possible by the merger.
This is more than a practical solution to decline. Bread of Life is a testimony to Christ’s promise: “I am the bread of life.” God is indeed doing new things among God’s people — feeding a hungry world and forming one body from many, for the sake of the gospel.
The Rev. Stephanie Ells; Lead Pastor; Bread of Life Presbyterian Church; Dubuque, Iowa
Let us join in prayer for:
Ryan Cassidy, AVP, Portfolio Manager, Trust Services, The Presbyterian Foundation
Sharon Castillo, Director, Plan Administration, The Board of Pensions
Let us pray:
Gracious Lord, in the stillness of this moment, we remember that you are God and that without our asking, you have fed us with the bread of life. Grant us now that we may hold fast to the blessed hope of everlasting life that you have given us in our Savior, Jesus Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.