A PC(USA) church serving Jesus Christ & our neighbors in Portsmouth, OH since 1875
WORSHIP
Worship with us on Sundays at 9:30 a.m.
- in the building,
- by listening to the service on WIOI (106.7FM 1010AM),
- or by watching the live stream on our YouTube channel (search for Second Presbyterian Church Portsmouth, OH).
The time we spend in worship feels utterly unlike any other time in our week - peaceful, calming, nonanxious. Our beautiful old sanctuary brings us deep peace; the traditional hymns, choir, and organ keep us connected to our roots; and thoughtful sermons provoke us to think about things like faith and life and service from a new perspective. We leave feeling like we've drawn closer to God.
Following worship, we enjoy a light coffee hour together in the parlor (10:30 a.m.-ish) and then a multigenerational discussion group Sunday School class where we talk about everything from the sermon to current events in the world to current events in our lives (11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.-ish). (Usually this is a sermon post-mortem.)
In addition, bulletins can be mailed or emailed to any who would like to have a copy in their hands. (We normally drop them off at the post office by noon on Thursday.) Please call (740-353-4159) or email (secondpres@yahoo.com) to be added to our list!
If you're looking for a place to worship, there's a place for you with us.
(Thanks to friend of Second Pres Jon Burton for the photo of the sanctuary.)
God's Pantry
God’s Pantry (our 40+ year-old choice-based food pantry) is open on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Wednesdays of each month from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. (One visit per month.)
Ours is a choice-based pantry where our neighbors can shop for items using points determined by household size.
Emergency food available is available through the church office on days when the Pantry is closed. (Emergency food counts as that month's visit.)
Please contact the church office at 740-353-4159 if you have questions, are interested in donating, or would like to know about volunteer opportunities.
Serving Our Neighbors
In March 2025, we served 274 people from 143 households including 89 seniors, 139 adults, and 46 children.
(In February 2025, we served a total of 238 people from 121 Scioto County households, including 58 seniors, 131 adults, and 49 children.)
Our most recent quarterly check from Kroger Community Rewards arrived: $177.27 from 36 households. (Thank you to our new households!)
(The last check was $178.98 from 34 households.)
Please round up at the checkout, and pick God’s Pantry at Second Pres as your "Community Reward Program" (BB589) choice.
Partners in the Pantry - Socks & Shoes
Pastor Thayer Wallace and our friends from Central Church Portsmouth are distributing (new) socks and (new and gently used) shoes to our neighbors in need when God's Pantry is open.
If you have questions, please call the Central Church office at 740-353-5846.
holy week 2025
Holy Week at Second Pres
Thank you for worshiping with us during Holy Week this year. We pray it was a time for you to draw closer to God and a step deeper into your faith.
Palm/Passion Sunday begins Holy Week, and you can watch that service HERE.
Our Maundy Thursday service was shared at First Pres with Pleasant Green Baptist Church, and it can be viewed on the First Pres Facebook page.
You can watch our Good Friday service, full of readings and musical meditations, HERE.
We marked Holy Saturday by releasing a recording from last year's Good Friday presentation of Bach's monumental masterpiece, ST JOHN PASSION (2024): https://youtu.be/MGaQPJO0z2c.
And you can watch our Easter Sunday service (with communion) HERE.
SSU Spring Semester Concert
Besides being our Director of Worship, Dr. Stanley Workman is also an Assistant Professor at Shawnee State University and Artistic Director of the Vern Riffe Center for the Arts.
In his role as professor, Stan leads the University choir, and we are hosting their Spring semester concert on Sun, April 7 at 7 pm!
You will see many familiar faces - young and old - from our organ bench, our pulpit, and our choir loft - including our Second Pres Choral Scholars. By attending this concert, you will plant seeds for the future of the Church, both globally and right here in our congregation, by showing these students that they are seen, valued, and deeply connected to the life of our community.
If you are local, we hope to see you there. You can also watch the livestream HERE.
The Great Anniversary Decluttering of 2025!
"Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” (Matthew 6:19-21)
Saturdays in April and May
The Great Anniversary Decluttering of 2025!
In preparation for our Church’s 150th Anniversary Celebration in June, we are organizing a month of decluttering, organization, and cleaning!
(Have you seen the dumpster yet?)
Beginning April 21st through May 21, each week we will focus on a different area of the building. During the week prior, we will announce the exact dates, times, and information about that week’s activities. We are asking everyone able to participate in all or any part of this big project!
April 21-27 - 2nd floor
April 28-May 4 - 1st floor
May 5-11 - Basement
May 12-18 - Outside
See John Huston if you're interested in pitching in!
Low-cost Spay/Neuter Clinic (Mar 26, 2025)
2025 -- 150th anniversary!
SESQUICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
We are knee-deep in planning for our 2025 SESQUICENTENNIAL (150TH) CELEBRATION!
Anniversary Festivities (February 2025 - round 1)
Thanks to everyone who joined us for the kickoff event for our 150th Anniversary Season of Celebration on Sun, Feb 9 – that’s the exact date of our official organization/charter date in 1875. (It was a Tuesday in 1875, but providentially, it's a Sunday in 2025!)
It was especially a delight to be joined by Pastor Ron Johnson and our friends from First Pres, our Mother church, and to hear from First Pres elder Julia Wisniewski about the Second Pres "origin story" from the First Pres perspective. And it was a joy to have Rev. Emily Krause Corzine from the Presbytery of Scioto Valley with us as well. (See the collage of pictures at the top of the page.)
Folks who joined us were able to take a little piece of Second Pres home with them in the form of a roof tile and a cookbook from the Women's Association.
And Pastor Allison appreciated help from the youth to pack the first of our 150 emergency clean-up buckets as our anniversary service project.
Save the date for June Anniversary Festivities - round 2
In June, we will host the heart of our Sesquicentennial Anniversary (when the weather is better for travel!) with an organ recital, a choral concert, an open house, and a special Pentecost worship service with lunch to follow.
These events will take place Thurs, June 5 – Sun, June 8, 2025. Please mark these dates on your calendar!
Anniversary Service Project
Our goal is to pack 150 emergency clean-up buckets for Church World Service to celebrate our 150 years! The youth packed bucket #1 at our February anniversary service with donated items.
Look at all those donations!! We're off to a great start on our 150th anniversary service project goal of packing 150 emergency clean-up buckets through Church World Service!
BUT we've still got a ways to go ... can you help us out?
And if you don't want to shop, CWS estimates the value of the buckets as $75 each - can you make a donation? We can take online donations through our website and PayPal. More info here: https://secondpres-portsmouth.org/giving.
And if don't want to shop, CWS estimates the value of the buckets as $75 each - can you make a donation? We can take online donations through our website and PayPal. More info here: https://secondpres-portsmouth.org/giving.
Items are due by Sun, May 18. (We'll pack them at our Anniversary Open House on Sat, June 7.)
Second Pres 150th Anniversary Lunch (Feb 8, 2025)
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2025 is the Year of the Bible at Second Pres!
19 participants (+ Pastor Allison) are on the Year of the Bible Adventure! She's providing weekly emails to help keep us all on track and give us some things to think about.
If you want to jump in, contact the church office, and we'll be glad to add you to the group. ("The Year of the Bible" by James E. Davison books are $13 and available from the church office or you can order a copy online.)
We're also meeting monthly to be accountable for keeping up with the readings, discuss questions, and try to figure out what all this meant what it was written then and what it means now.
Lessons & Carols
Coffee & Conversation
The Coffee & Conversation group is taking a brief hiatus until Tues, April 1 when they move to Tuesdays and begin meeting at the Lofts Coffee Company (842 Gallia St Portsmouth, Ohio).
Every week, a group of folks from Second and other churches meet from 10am-12pm for coffee and conversation to discuss life, faith, current events, and whatever else is on their hearts and minds.
There’s a chair for you around the table!
God's Pantry
Can you help our choice-based food pantry that’s been in operation for 40+ years?
Choose us as your Kroger Community Rewards organization, and when you shop with your rewards card, the people we serve benefit!
Our NPO (Non-Profit Organization) number is BB589 – “GOD’S PANTRY SECOND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.”
And make sure you say, “Please round that up!” when you check out!
BUILDING RESTORATION PROJECT
From Pastor Allison:
I still remember the first time I saw Second Pres.
It was February 22, 2016. I had already had 2 Skype interviews with the pastoral nominating committee and was feeling hopeful about our first in-person conversation.
It was my first time in Portsmouth, and when I pulled up to the stoplight at the corner of Waller and 9th Street, I looked up at this big, beautiful, sprawling building, and my mouth dropped open. Then I took a picture since the light was still red – a picture I still have on my phone.
Later, when I walked into the sanctuary, I felt like I was coming home. It was similar to churches I had known before and yet it was different. The space was larger, the stained glass more stunning, and the soft organ music from the chancel more beautiful than any I had heard before.
I knew that this was a special place. That I was standing on holy ground.
(Read more HERE.)