WESTFORD — “You should write down, ‘God is good,’” 8-year-old Jaden Joel says.
His mom, Hannah Russel, pauses with her paint brush. She can see they are running out of space on the medium-sized stone. She suggests they draw a heart instead and tells her son, “God is love.” He agrees.
On a mild, September Sunday morning, the family painted rocks near a hiking trail that winds into the woods behind the newly constructed Orchard Church on Littleton Road in Westford.
The Harvard, Mass., family is one of many families and individuals that attend Sunday worship services at Orchard Church. Russel’s husband found the church about 14 years ago, when it was located in a less scenic spot in an industrial park in Chelmsford, Mass.
“He saw a road sign and he just loved Pastor Rob’s message,” Russel said.
A Community Vision
For 18 years, Rob Strong has served as lead pastor of Orchard Church, an independent, non-denominational Christian church, which used to be called Grace Community Church of Chelmsford. The original church dates back more than 30 years, Strong said.
About nine years ago, church members bought the 17.5-acre lot in Westford.
“When we found this land, we discovered there were apple trees. I think there might be some pear trees and nut trees,” Strong said. “We said, ‘Let’s think of this as more of an orchard …. that happens to have a church on it.’”
The church grounds also have woods and wetlands. Strong said the vision is to steward the land and make it a place for the wider community. They call their property, “The Orchard.”
He envisions a future where The Orchard will have a public playground, lengthen its current hiking trail and host a farmers market and outdoor concerts. “We want The Orchard to be a place in the community where things happen,” he said.
After delays from building on the site and the COVID-19 pandemic, in March 2025, Orchard Church members celebrated their grand-opening.
The overall cost was a little more than $10 million, Strong said, adding, part of that amount was donated by church members over 15 years and the rest has gone into a mortgage to pay for the three new buildings, interconnecting barn-style structures, totaling about 25,000 square feet.
A new space for worship, community
Orchard Church does not contribute dues to a governing body or have an affiliation with other organizations to receive funding, Strong said. The nonprofit has a staff of about 10.
“People have been so incredibly invested and supportive and I guess that’s how you imagine a New Testament church being—that people share and lean on each other,” Strong said.
On Sundays, about 500 church members attend services, traveling locally and also from surrounding communities, including towns in southern New Hampshire as well as Andover, Lowell and Littleton. The March grand-opening drew about 1,100 people, Strong said.
Strong said there are a lot of new faces. And, in the new space with lots of light streaming in from the windows, exposed barn-style ceiling beams and a decidedly New England-look, there have been more weddings, he added. Orchard Church has programs for all ages, community groups that meet in homes and child care for families during Sunday services.
Church members remind people of the QR codes on flyers so they can learn more about the church. Greeters welcome people as they arrive for Sunday service.
“All are welcome,” Strong said.
Sunday service, sets aside politics
Strong grew up in a Minnesota town of 6,000. When a McDonald’s opened, it was the talk of the town, he said. But before the McDonald’s, the town already had at least 10 churches, he recalled.
Today, Strong said he appreciates the diversity of churches and notes it’s important because people are drawn to different styles.
He found his calling to be a religious leader as a student preparing for a law career at Wheaton College in Chicago. After feeling energized by theology, he began a new path, and, when he came to the East Coast, he appreciated the beauty of New England and found his dream to live near an ocean.
Throughout world history, religion and politics have been intertwined, but today in America that has taken on a new meaning and presents challenges for religious leaders.
“It’s very important to me that (our church) is apolitical,” Strong said. “You can get a political leaning everywhere. What I am trying to do is invite people to something—and that is the Kingdom of God.”
He said politics have value in our communities, but his approach is that people need to figure out—through their personal relationship with God—what politics mean in their lives.
He explains it this way to his congregation: “The Kingdom of God is interacting with God in this culture every day. There are 168 hours in a week. You are at church for one hour. The other 167 hours is your time to thrive and God wants to do that with you.”
Church members helping others
Corbyn Whiles, the church’s Young Adults and Connections Pastor, said he helps people grow in their personal relationships with Jesus and helps them find a community and a way to serve. The church offers sessions on faith topics, fun events and programs to help community members in need.
“I am very passionate about bringing the Gospel to young people,” Whiles said. “They don’t run from faith. They run toward it.”
He said his has found through his ministry that faith can provide “purpose” in life and provide people with a sense of “who they are” or “why they are.”
After Jaden Joel and his sister, Jianna Joel, 11, complete their rocks, Russel helps Jaden, who uses a wheelchair, move his rock to a place to dry.
When Jaden was born, his medical diagnosis brought a lot of anxiety because the family did not know what to expect, Russel said.
Russel said her mother “raised us through prayers.” She turned to her faith in Jaden’s early years, trusting and praying. Today, she continues to pray for his healing.
(In a photo at the top of this article Jaden Joel is painting a stone with his mother, Hannah Russel. Photo credit: WestfordCAT Jennifer Nejman Bohonak).
The family, as her husband, Joshua Bright, describes it, comes to Orchard Church each Sunday to “reset.” He says Pastor Strong connects with people in a practical way that is grounded in the Bible.
After one of the services, Dawna Matherly takes a break at table in the lobby and smiles at Kiavari Whiles, 3, who sits next to her, cookie in hand.
Matherly, who lives in Chelmsford, joined Orchard Church about a year ago. She helps greet people and park cars on Sundays and is involved in ministries that care and pray for people.
“It’s family to me,” Matherly said. “My first day, I was totally welcomed.”
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