History of San Marino Community Church
Building a Church

First, In A Military Academy
On To A Bank Building
Fellowship Hall
The Sanctuary and Children's Building
The Youth Building

The Military Academy

It was June 28, 1940 and in Joy's Inn there were 26 persons meeting to discuss the need of a church in San Marino. This was not the first time that a group had met to talk about this same problem. In the Twenties a group had met to discuss the possibilities of a congregation, but there was limited interest and there was no action.

Eventually these few people sparked a careful survey of San Marino by a door-to-door census of religious preferences. The Presbyterian Church was given the allocation.

During the first few awakening months the congregation met in the homes of members, but this was found not to be too successful. They began to look around for other quarters.

There was a private military academy in the town and the director was called upon and permission was given to use the school's assembly room rent free. On July 24, 1940 the City Council granted permission to hold services in the Southwestern Military Academy

The church was duly organized on January 26, 1941 by the Presbytery of Los Angeles with a charter membership of seventy-seven. By May of 1941 the congregation was ready to call its first pastor, the Rev. P. Martin Baker, D.D., who served our church until August, 1951.

The Bank Building

The church began to grow and more adequate housing had to be found. In December, 1942 the church moved to an unused bank building at 924 Huntington Drive. The lower floor, bereft of tellers' cages, was furnished with pews, even a choir loft. The upper room, given the name of "chattic" (church attic), was used for a church school and for club meetings.

By this time many of the groups had been organized, such as the Community Church Women, the Men's Club and two adult couples clubs. The church also had a secretary and an assistant youth minister.

The congregation grew by contagion; no Sunday passed without new members uniting with the group, until the bank building overflowed. It was then that the church decided to build.

A zone variance had to be obtained from the City Council, and this was not easy. After some petitioning and planning a zone variance was secured and over-all plans for the Church to be built on Virginia Road were approved. Once before the men and women who were pleading for a church had been forced to sell land suitable for a church because of a zoning restriction. It mustn't happen again.

After much discussion the San Marino Community Church got its variance. The opposition couldn't stand up for long against their logic and zeal.

Read About 1948 Building Campaign

Fellowship Hall

The plan was to build in units, and the first unit was the many-purpose Educational unit that was completed in September, 1947. There, church school and weekday services were held for the children. Fellowship Hall was used as a temporary sanctuary, and also for social occasions. This plan was carried out and Fellowship Hall became the first real church home.

Everyone who came to church services was invited to fill out a card which would give a quick view of the individual abilities and interests.

Guided by this information, every member was put to work. Committees of men and women were formed to call upon their friends to tell them of the growing church, to evangelize them, to incite them to participate in the services and discover the benefits of the church school for their children.

Before the year of 1948 was well begun, it had become necessary to hold two services in Fellowship Hall each Sunday so that all the members could be accommodated. It was obvious that the sanctuary must be built as soon as possible.

The money for the building program did not all come easily. But those who had much gave liberally - those who had little gave more than they could afford. The Sanctuary was ready to be built.

The Sanctuary and Children's Building

On March 6, 1949 work began on the Sanctuary - the central building. On Christmas Eve, just nine months after the work was begun, a triumphant and rejoicing congregation gathered in the beautiful house of worship to sing God's praises.

The Formal Dedicatory Services were held on March 26, 1950. A small Christ Chapel, the gift of a concerned friend, was also built during this year.

Throughout our building program there have been many beautiful gifts given to the church by devoted members, in the form of equipment and furnishings. They are too numerous and varied to list here but each and every one has added to the richness, beauty, and completeness of this "Our Church".

This could have been the end of our building program but there were many foresighted members that saw the need for a children's building to care for the smaller boys and girls at the "growing end" of the church. After the news got around of our need, a memorial building was provided and built, thanks to the generosity of a member. This building was dedicated in September of 1952. It is one of the most modern and complete of its kind.

The Youth Building

Between the years of September, 1952, and June, 1955, our church continued to grow until there was no adequate room for a family church dinner, no room for high school youth, no room for recreation activity and adult education.

The planning committee was called together once more to survey the situation. After much deliberation it was decided that the little chapel could be moved to the north of the Sanctuary and another building built in its place that would surely this time give us all the room we needed.

After enough funds were in sight to assure the completion of at least Fellowship Hall, the ground was broken and the building began to rise.

Additional pledges, gifts, and a bank loan were secured, so that, when the building came toward the time of dedication, the entire structure which was begun in hope and faith in 1946, had, in ten momentous years, been completed. The total cost of all these buildings was $1,095,045. The only outstanding indebtedness is a long-term loan of $148,000, a small proportion indeed of the over-all cost.

So the San Marino Community Church turns with gratitude and praise to the larger take of sharing its unusual resources with the Kingdom of God and the world-wide Church of Jesus Christ.