A new Baptist church opened last month in Whitefish as a satellite congregation of Easthaven Baptist Church in Kalispell.

Summit Life Church meets at 9:29 a.m. Sundays in Mountain Cinema Theater 4. Fellowship with coffee and snacks precedes the worship service at 9 a.m. A children’s ministry is offered as an option during the worship time.

Both Easthaven and Summit Life are affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Baptist denomination in the United States.

The Rev. Chris Baker is the pastor of the new congregation. He and his wife Kim and their two sons, Samuel and Andrew, moved to Whitefish in January 2015 to begin laying the groundwork for the church. Baker has helped start other churches, including one recently planted in Red Lodge.

“We have a great team of leaders that are part of the core group,” Baker said.

Kim Baker is one of the praise team leaders, while Samuel leads the praise team and Andrew handles the technology needs.

“We’re glad to be a part of the church community here,” Baker said. “There are so many great churches in the Flathead Valley.”

The inaugural worship service Sept. 11 drew a crowd of about 115. Average attendance since then has been more than 50 people.

The church’s vision, as stated on its website, is “to become the kind of church described in the Bible, where there’s relevant teaching, heartfelt worship, honest friendships, constant prayer and compassionate care for those in need. We’d like to have the kind of contagious Christianity that can influence and encourage the entire community, one life at a time.”

Weekday ministries will be held at the Easthaven campus, 2010 Whitefish Stage Rd.

For more information about Summit Life Church, go online to www.summitlifewf.org, find the church on Facebook or call 406-314-9251.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.