Welcome to Grace

Brief History from 1891 to 2004

          The new congregation was organized on January 27^th, 1891. On February 15^th, four lots at Gay and Pontiac were purchased for $2,150.00. On September 14^th the church was dedicated and the first pastor, Theodore Stillborn, was installed June 26^th, 1892. A parsonage was built in 1895 also.

          This church building served the Grace congregation well until the present church was built in 1926-1927 at the corner of Anthony and Colerick Avenues. This former Grace church building is still standing and remains a house of the Lord for the Missionary church.

          The church for many years had both English and German language services but chose to change to only English in the early 1920’s. There began a discussion of building a new larger building and school at that corner of Anthony and Colerick at the very end of the city limits. The church was surrounded by farmland when it was built. The church was built, but the depression began and the congregation had some difficulty paying for it. Some of the members came to the rescue by mortgaging their homes to help finance the church and the mission went on.

          Pastor Frederick H. Holtmeyer, a beloved pastor of Grace for 36 years, was installed as pastor in 1925. During his ministry all the buildings, the church, the school, the parsonage, and the educational addition were built.

          When the church was built, it had the walls and glass for the windows and the benches from the old church. Over the years the stained glass windows, the wood paneling, the carpet and the organ were added.

          The wood paneling and the altar are all constructed from imported German wood. The windows are stained and painted glass, dating from the 1930’s and are priceless to replace. The organ is a Roderer tracker organ. A mechanical action allows more subtlety of tone than does an electronic keyboard. The parts all come from Germany and were constructed in this country by Kurt Roderer, a well known organ builder. The organ was dedicated in 1979.

          The school was an intricate part of the church life at Grace until it closed in 1958. At that time the congregation made a commitment to erect an educational unit to the church which included a gymnasium. This was completed in 1961 just before Pastor Holtmeyer retired.

          Recently it was determined that the original slate roof needed to be replaced. At the same time the congregation decided to repair the plastering and paint the inside of the church and install new carpet. The cost of this work was a little over $278,000.00. Half of the cost was funded through a matching grant from the Lutheran Foundation. Grace’s portion was made possible by a bequest from the estate of Blaine and Opal Laffin, long time members of Grace Lutheran Church.

          Over the years, Grace Lutheran Church has been a part of the community and the neighborhood by providing not only a spiritual life but also an educational life for it’s children. At one point a lighted cross was placed on top of the bell tower. This cross shined at night providing comfort to the neighborhood as they went to sleep and providing a path for airplanes as they began their descent to the airport.

          This cross was a symbol of Christ’s light in the world shining on us for our salvation. The cross is no longer lit as the cost to fix is prohibitive as well as difficult because of the height. However, Grace Lutheran Church is still a light or beacon to the neighborhood as it provides for the physical and spiritual needs of the families in the area. Grace shares a portion of the building with Lutheran Social Services for an early childhood day care center. A food bank pantry is operated three mornings a week, the Community Outreach Center runs a clothing bank, an after school program and gives distributes household goods as well as furniture. As a people of God called by Him, Grace Lutheran Church’s mission is to continue to share Christ’s love in service to our church and our community.