You are invited to be a part of First Pres Santa Monica’s 150th Anniversary Celebration! Join us for worship followed by lunch, music, and special activities all celebrating 150 years of proclaiming Christ and serving our neighbors in Santa Monica and beyond.
Click here to register!
First Pres community, please give a warm welcome to our new Children’s Music Director, Helane Marie Anderson! You can learn more about her below, or see her this coming Sunday during children’s time:
“Helane Marie Anderson sings like an angel, taking you into the celestial world with her voice.”
– LA Yoga Magazine
Helane Marie Anderson is a multi-layered musician & composer, singer, pianist, harpist, producer and multi-instrumentalist. Her unique style of working with sound blends her years of studying healing modalities with contemporary music & sound healing. Helane is currently a featured sound meditation producer & artist for Apple Fitness +/ Platoon releasing more than 15 sound meditations in 2023-2024 available on all streaming platforms. Also in 2024, she co-produced and released an album of original songs and mantras entitled “Listen to the Trees” featuring 9 singles and 2 remixes, The Summit FM stated they “loved the music from the album and found it completely original – there’s else nothing like it!”
On Helane’s live performance, The San Francisco Classical Voice called the experience “remarkable” and continued, “the crystalline nature of Anderson’s voice — phased and overlaid with various instruments — was truly transcendent as tones layered on tones.“ She has been a featured sound healing artist leading workshops at renowned studios including The Mindry, the Olandar Foundation (Malibu), InsightLA Meditation, Soulplay Yoga, DisclosureFest and many more throughout the Los Angeles area. As a key member of the group Sonic Devas, she has performed at St. John’s Cathedral, BhaktiFest, The Center SF, The Portal, in Marin County, Yoga Soup in Santa Barbara and more.
On the wellness front, Helane is the best-selling author of You Are Meant to Sing! 10 Steps to Unlock Your Inner Voice, a transformational voice coach, certified Craniosacral Therapist & bodyworker, sound healer, yoga instructor, and teacher. She has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music for the past 14 years and was previously Artistic Administrator at the Los Angeles Philharmonic where she produced concerts at both Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. Helane holds a Master of Arts degree from Indiana University and a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Salem College. She also holds a certification in Sound Healing & Sound Therapy from the Globe Institute in San Francisco. Helane teaches her own courses in Sound Healing and Vocal Alchemy through her business Sacral Sounds which she founded in 2014.
It’s your last chance to sign up for Vacation Bible School at First Pres! VBS will be July 28 through August 1, so make sure to register by July 18th..
Children aged 3 through 5th grade are invited to join us each day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for this year’s VBS program, Waves Of Wonder (that’s a full day of Bible learning and fun activities for kids). Let Waves Of Wonder wash over you as you get out into God’s creation at Vacation Bible School! Be inspired by the beauty and majesty of what God has made. Children will explore scriptures in which God provides water for plants and animals. They will visit the wilderness and miraculously receive water from a rock. They will take a boat ride with Jesus, weather a wavy storm, and even imagine a new heaven and a new earth where all are invited to receive life-giving water. Through worship and drama, Bible study, art and science explorations, and active games, children will deepen their understanding of the importance of water and be invited to join God in caring for this precious natural resource.
Cost is $125 per child for the whole week, but if this is not doable for you, there is financial assistance available. Contact Jen Philbin at the church (jen@fpcsantamonica.org) or follow this link to learn more and register!
Here at First Pres, we will be supporting the beloved members of our congregation and community who identify as LGBTQIA+ by participating in multiple events throughout Pride month, here’s how you can get involved!
Pride on the PromenadePride celebrations are gearing up for everyone to come together and celebrate love, and
First Pres is hosting a booth on June 21st from 2-7 pm at Santa Monica’s Pride On The Promenade event. It’s a perfect opportunity for us to extend God’s inclusive welcome and love to the LGBTQ community.
Sign up to volunteer at our booth on the Promenade. We will have activities, giveaways, and more!
Gather the little ones and head to the heart of the Santa Monica Pier for Fabulous Fables—a FREE, joy-filled celebration created especially for families with kids 10 and under.
Held inside the charming and historic Merry Go-Round building, this magical morning invites children into a world of wonder with vibrant drag queen storytelling, colorful face painting, poetry, lively performances, and a pint-sized pride parade that everyone can join. While you’re there, explore and shop from a curated selection of family-friendly vendors offering treats, treasures, and more!
Click here for more information.
Join for an evening of empowerment and education at the Santa Monica located at 330 Olympic Drive. First Pres’ Jen Philbin will give a Trans 101 presentation, then will be a panel and a brief de-escalation/brave conversations training. Scan to QR code above or click here to register.
Please join us for a combined worship service at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 22nd at Calvary Baptist Church as we commemorate the end of slavery in the United States. Following the service, there will be a community celebration featuring food, entertainment, activities for children and more from noon – 4 p.m.
Calvary Baptist Church is located at: 1502 20th Street; Santa Monica, CA | Get directions
Volunteer: Summer Meal KitsThis Saturday, June 14th, Volunteers are needed to help Westside Food Bank pack 2,700 meal kits.
With schools going out on summer break, WFB is putting together boxes of food to replace the meals children would have normally received in school. There are three shifts available to sign up for on Saturday:
• 8 a.m. – 10 a.m.
• 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
All shifts will be at the West Side Food Bank, located at:
1914 14th Street, Santa Monica
35 people are needed per shift. Children are also able to volunteer as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER
On Sunday, June 15, Westside Food Bank President & CEO, Genevieve Riutort, will be in worship at First Pres to share how our congregation’s support impacts Westside Food Bank’s mission and service to our community.
Following worship, she and Fonda Rosing, WSB’s Development Manager, will be on the courtyard to answer questions and share materials with anyone who wants to learn more about the Westside Food Bank. Learn more here!
On Sunday, June 1 at 11:15am in the Ren Room, the Mission Ministry Team invites you to be a part of our next Jubilee Lunch Project.
Following worship, we’ll gather in the Ren Room to make 150 lunches for The People Concern Access Center to distribute to those in need here in Santa Monica. Learn more here!
Mark your calendars, because Vacation Bible School at First Pres Santa Monica is July 28 through August 1!
Children aged 3 through 5th grade are invited to join us each day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for this year’s VBS program, Waves Of Wonder (that’s a full day of Bible learning and fun activities for kids).
Let Waves Of Wonder wash over you as you get out into God’s creation at Vacation Bible School! Be inspired by the beauty and majesty of what God has made. Children will explore scriptures in which God provides water for plants and animals. They will visit the wilderness and miraculously receive water from a rock. They will take a boat ride with Jesus, weather a wavy storm, and even imagine a new heaven and a new earth where all are invited to receive life-giving water. Through worship and drama, Bible study, art and science explorations, and active games, children will deepen their understanding of the importance of water and be invited to join God in caring for this precious natural resource.
Cost is $125 per child for the whole week, but if this is not doable for you, there is financial assistance available. Contact Jen Philbin at the church (jen@fpcsantamonica.org) or follow this link to learn more and register!
Thank you to everyone who donated and dedicated a lily for our beautiful Easter service! The full list of donors and dedications are below:
Come join us for a Holy Week celebration at First Pres! Here are all our services, schedules, and events during the season
They brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes upon it, and he sat on it. Many people spread out their clothes on the road while others spread branches cut from the fields. Those in front of him and those following were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”
All are welcome to celebrate Palm Sunday at First Pres with our Palms Procession and special music by our Shine Children’s Ensemble.
Maundy Thursday is a service of communion and Tenebrae where we follow Jesus through the stories and experiences of Holy Week. We sing, pray and gather around the table as nourishment and preparation for what will come next. With each reading a candle is extinguished taking us closer to Jesus in his darkest moments of life.
All are welcome at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church together with the congregations of First United Methodist and First Presbyterian Churches of Santa Monica. The service begins at 7:00 p.m.
Life and death stand side by side as we enter into Good Friday. Standing with the disciples at the foot of the cross, we pray for the whole world as Christ’s death offers life to all. We gather in solemn devotion, but always with the promise that the tree around which we assemble is indeed a tree of life.
Out of the darkness of Holy Week comes the light of hope and resurrection. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Worship begins at 10:00 a.m. with refreshments and a kids Easter egg hunt following the service.
Following the Easter Sunday worship service, you are invited to a potluck brunch in the courtyard. Sign up to bring a dish to share. Register here.
Easter Egg HuntFollowing the Easter Sunday worship service, children and their parents are invited to participate in an Easter Egg Hunt on the church campus.