Our History

Mid-1960s

LAKE TAPPS COMMUNITY CHURCH (LTCC) BEGINS AS A CHURCH PLANT

In the mid-1960s, members from the Dieringer Bible Church saw the need for a building closer to Lake Tapps. Property around the lake was developing quickly and people were looking for a church closer to home.

June 1967

After much planning and prayer, the Fire Hall on West Tapps Drive was rented for $10 per Sunday and Sunday School and Worship Services began. The pulpit was filled with visiting pastors and missionaries with Sunday School taught by people from the congregation.

HAVE BUS WILL TRAVEL

From the beginning, LTCC has had a heart for outreach. Starting in 1967, we rented a bus from Hesselgrave and drove around the surrounding communities picking up kids and bringing them to church. The route started in downtown Sumner and looped around all of what is Lakeland Hills today (East Valley Hwy, Oravetz Rd, Kersey Way, Sumner-Tapps Hwy).

THE CONNECTION WITH VILLAGE MISSIONS

One of the congregants, Judy Naef, had attended a Village Missions (VM) church in Montana before moving to Driftwood Point. Knowing that VM existed to develop spiritually vital country churches in rural North America, Judy met with the Board of LTCC and Rev. Robert Rayburn of VM to see if the Lake Tapps area would fit the vision of the organization.

1968

As a result, a partnership was formed and God sent Lyle and Clara Birkey from a VM location in Garden Valley, CA to Lake Tapps, WA. Lyle was our first full-time pastor and he led services in the Fire Hall for two more years before God began opening up new doors for our growing church family.

1969

COMMUNITY OUTREACH CONTINUES

LTCC bought our own bus so we could continue to round up kids from the surrounding communities. This outreach ministry was staffed through the mid-70s.

1970

Outgrowing the Fire Hall, we rented out the newly built Lake Tapps Elementary school.

LAND PURCHASED ON TACOMA POINT

After much prayer, God led LTCC to buy land on Tacoma Point so we could finally have our own building. Village Missions required a parsonage to be occupied on the land before construction could begin on the church, so an existing house was purchased for the Birkey family adjacent to the property. LTCC had a policy of “No Borrow/No Sunday Labor/Volunteer Labor” so they waited on the Lord to provide the funding for the building of the church.

1972

By 1972, the congregation had raised $5000 and construction began. LTCC continued to meet at the elementary school for about three years while our own building was built.

THE FIRST MISSIONARY IS SENT OUT

LTCC has a long history of sending missionaries all over the world. The first missionary was Pam Worley. She was a high school student who went on a short-term mission trip to Africa.

1973

MOVE IN DAY

In November of 1973, the building on Tacoma Point was dedicated debt free!

LTCC MAKES USE OF NEARBY LAKE TAPPS

The first baptisms on the lake occurred on Tacoma Point at the Cole residence. In the early 80s, the tradition moved to the Burton’s property on Interlake Island. Many people from the church attended each baptism and as a result, the celebrations felt like a family affair.

1986

PROPERTY PURCHASED ON FOREST CANYON ROAD

As LTCC continued to grow, we began looking for property to build a larger building. A variety of options came and went, but in 1986 God made it clear that the property on Forest Canyon Road was the perfect location. In August the area was purchased from Olympia Presbytery. They had planned to build a church but changed their mind. In 1987 the land was cleared, thanks to Al Kuehn, but it wasn’t until 1991 that we had raised enough money to begin construction.

SHORT TERM MISSION TRIPS AROUND THE WORLD

While we were awaiting the construction of our new church building, many of our members embarked on other building projects both locally and abroad. Teams of adults and children went to nearby places in Washington, Oregon, and California. Other teams went internationally to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. On every trip, the gospel was preached and the people were served.

June 1991

Work began to clear the Forest Canyon Rd site for building. September 1991 saw the sale of the old church building and parsonage to Truth Tabernacle.

December 1991

Construction of the new parsonage began. The old building on Tacoma Point had been sold to Truth Tabernacle and the money was used to build the parsonage on the Forest Canyon property.

JUNE 1992

The Birkey’s moved into the parsonage on June 6, 1992.

25th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

In June, we celebrated 25 years of serving and loving the people in the Lake Tapps area.

September 1992

GROUNDBREAKING OF PHASE 1 BEGINS

The long-awaited construction of the new church building began in September 1992. In February 1993, footings were poured, and in April framing began.

June 1994

Phase 1 of the new church building was completed in June 1994. The church held its services in this space, which is now the foyer, while Phase 2 began. Phase 2 was to include a multipurpose room (current sanctuary) and five classrooms. Both Phase 1 and Phase 2 were accomplished with the same policy as the building on Tacoma Point: “No borrow/No Sunday labor/Volunteer labor”.

After years of sending our own people out on building projects around the world, it was now our turn to accept help from outside ministries to complete our own building project. Volunteer groups from around the United States, such as Mobile Mission Assistance Program (MMAP) and Hard Hats for Christ, were instrumental in providing electrical and plumbing work, as well as general construction help.

January 1997

CHANGING OF THE GUARD

As Pastor Birkey prepared to retire, God sent another man who had been serving a VM church in the small town of Boardman, Oregon. Pastor Tim Heath, his wife Sue, and their four children moved to Lake Tapps in early 1997 in preparation for the transition to head pastor. An extension was built onto the parsonage to accommodate the size of their family.

April 1997

After 29 years of serving the Lord at Lake Tapps Community Church, Pastor Lyle Birkey retired.

1998

Phase 2 was completed and we began meeting in the newly finished sanctuary. The old sanctuary becomes the church foyer.

A FOCUS ON THE YOUTH

1998 marked the beginning of a concerted effort to serve the youth of LTCC specifically. This was followed by the hiring of a full-time youth pastor. From this time until to 2021, four different men and their families have led the youth at LTCC. Brian Wilson began the ministry, followed by Brian Patenaude, Josh Breffle and then Evan Burton.

ALL CHURCH CAMPOUT TRADITION BEGINS

In the mid-1990s, LTCC congregants ventured south to Mossyrock, WA and began the tradition of an annual week-long campout at Mayfield Lake. Whether in RVs or in tents, our church family would gather to swim, tube, waterski, wake board, cliff jump, BBQ, make smores and play games. The highlight of the week was the Wednesday baptisms and subsequent potluck. The annual event continues to this day.

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY IN THE NEW CENTURY

In the late 90s and early 2000s, the children at LTCC enjoyed Christmas plays, Easter programs, mid-week meetings and summer activities. Adventure Club ran on Wednesday nights, which included games, crafts and a Bible lesson. Summer meant Vacation Bible School. But as the years went on, it became more difficult to reach kids outside the church family. Therefore, we made the switch to Kids’ Night Out events. In the summer, this meant outdoor games and crafts. In the winter, the kids brought their own cardboard “cars” for a drive-in movie night. Regardless of the season, the gospel message was shared at these fun events.

2000

CHURCH PARTNERSHIP IN LATVIA

The missions committee invited Chuck Kelley from Bridge Builders International to speak at an annual missions conference. At that conference Chuck challenged LTCC to take a vision trip to Latvia to see if they could help serve the church that was trying to find its footing after recently gaining its independence from Russian rule.

In the spring of 2000, seven people from LTCC traveled to Europe and met with members from the small town of Mersrags, Latvia. Upon their return, and after many months of prayer, LTCC felt like the Lord was leading them to form an official ministry partnership with Mersrags Baptist Church. The tenets of the covenant were founded on Philippians 2:1-2 and included praying for one another, learning about one another, staying in communication with one another, and working together on specific projects to reach people for Christ.

Over the next 15 years, members from Lake Tapps traveled to Latvia several times to host outreach events like VBS and a sports camp, and to help the church with building projects. Additionally, members from Mersrags have made many trips to the states to visit Lake Tapps, to give updates from their country and to speak at missions conferences.

2015

A CHANGE IN CHURCH GOVERNANCE

Since 1967 LTCC had been governed by a pastor-led Church Board. After years of deep study and discussion of biblical leadership, our constitution was adapted to meet the needs of our growing church family.

The addition of Pete Corak to the staff in 2014 as the Administrative Pastor helped ease the load on Pastor Tim and moved our church toward a team approach to ministry. The result was a plurality of elders and deacons. The elders would share in the responsibility of leading, teaching, and shepherding the congregants at LTCC. The deacons would lead by overseeing group ministries, performing day-to-day operations, and maintaining the facilities. Together, the elders and deacons would form the Church Council and work alongside one another to help build up the church body.

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S MINISTRIES

Smaller groups of people meeting outside of the regular Sunday morning gatherings is a critical part of being connected to the church family. Men meet together for Bible studies, monthly breakfasts, and annual retreats. Women convene for Bible studies, special events, and annual retreats. Both ministries provide opportunities for spiritual growth, intimate fellowship, meaningful encouragement, and appropriate entertainment.

2017

50 YEAR CELEBRATION

Much has changed since 1967. Our rural Lake Tapps community is now a bustling suburb. New roads, housing developments, schools, and businesses make this one-time vacation destination a full-time residence location. But, the mission of the church continues to be the same: committed to honoring God by introducing people to Jesus Christ, helping them grow in their faith, and equipping them to reach others.

2020

covid

In early 2020, the lives of everyone across the world changed when news of a world-wide pandemic closed down schools, businesses, travel, entertainment and sports across the globe. As each country, state, and community wrestled with the best course of action, the elders at LTCC prayed for God’s guidance as to how to keep people safe while still preaching the good news of Jesus Christ and serving those in need. While in lock-down, we fumbled through the shift from an in-person Sunday service to an online Sunday message, asking our church family to gather in small groups in their homes. Weekly check-in emails began as a way of keeping people connected with what was going on. Church leaders drove to people’s houses and visited with them in driveways. We had a drive-through ministry fair and an outdoor worship night in the parking lot. In anticipation of returning to the building at some point, a “Together Again Task Force” was assembled as to how best prepare the church and it’s people for in-person worship that coincided with CDC guidelines and state mandates. In August, those who felt comfortable, joyfully returned to worship together while wearing masks and practicing social distancing. Participating online continued to be an option.

Blessings: 1. Many churches didn’t make it through the stress and challenges of Covid. We are not only thankful that God extended his grace to LTCC, but that we were able to welcome others looking for a new church home. 2. Online option has become the norm. This has aided those who have been physically unable to attend church on Sunday mornings. 3. Pursuing people. The church became less about bringing people in and more about going out to them and it strengthened relationships.

DECEMBER 2021

After 25 years of serving the Lord at Lake Tapps Community Church, Pastor Tim Heath retired.

2023

LOSS and change

LTCC undergoes strain and hardship with the resigning of one elder, the retirement of another and the loss of life of our former leader. Pete Corak served our church as an Administrative Pastor for 9 years and was instrumental in keeping the church going during the pandemic. He led worship, taught bible studies, instructed membership classes, and counseled many on a weekly basis, in addition to all of his administrative duties. Pete retired in March.

Tim Heath, our former pastor of 25 years, went to be with the Lord on April 29th after a long battle with cancer.

The LTCC Council (made of up elders and deacons) proposes the need for an interim pastor. After getting feedback from the members, the Council enlists the help of Interim Pastor Ministries (IPM) to aid us during this transition. In July, Interim Pastor Bob Slack joins our team of elders. Bob is from Fresno, California, has over 20 years of pastoral experience, and has been trained by IPM to walk us through an intentional 5-stage process to affirm the strengths of the church while identifying what’s necessary to move forward as we eventually begin the search for a new lead elder.