The First Service

In September of of 1965, Mr. Brown, church member and the chosen architect, accepted a salary of $100.00 a month, which was later increased to $142.00.

During 1965, gifts and donations for the church were received, including the fountain, one hundred more hymnals and a Christian Flag. The corner stone was laid on December 27th, 1965. The corner stone held a lead box with a Bible given to Rev. Surber from his grandparents when he was 12, a brochure about the construction of the church, the name of the architect, and a newspaper article, with pictures describing the new construction and information about the church members.

In the spring of 1966 the church received a letter from a bonding company saying that the Construction Company had financial problems and the church should keep the area of construction locked up with armed guards. No harm ever came of the financial problem and construction resumed without incident.

During this time a heated argument arose over having a weather vane or a cross on the steeple. An oral vote was taken with a 21 to 21 vote tie received. A written vote followed of 30 to 29 favoring the weather vane which had been in the original plans of the architect thus a savings of $150.00 in expenses.

On June 2, 1966, the first Session meeting was held in the new church building, on June 5, 1966 the first worship service took place in the sanctuary and the new Fellowship Hall was used for the very first time.

An excerpt from the moving description of the new church by Dr. Emil Fischer, architect and member of Session states: "Christ and his disciples delivered their message of one God, forgiveness and love, on rocky hillsides, sheltered by the tall cedars of Lebanon. These natural objects of God's creation provided an ideal environment to reinforce the message."

~Donna Roth