Gleanings From
In Christian Fellowship
By Shirley Lindahl
Edited by Jerry Rutherford
Omestad House Purchased & Remodeling Plan Revealed
Purchase of the house on the corner of the block for $4700 gave the church the entire block on 1st Street between 5th and 6th Avenues. Previously the church had negotiated with the city to set aside the alley between the church and the American Legion Hall on 5th Avenue so the property was now an shape. The house was to be used for the 5th and 6th grade Sunday School classes as a partial answer to the housing crunch. It needed a great deal of renovating to ready it for use.Other bits of news about the congregation at this time included: A Christmas wedding uniting Bonnie DeVere and Bob Wiesen, Jr., a young couple who had grown up in the church and been active in Pilgrim Fellowship. (Bob, Sr. & Ruth's son). Alice Kinyon was choir director with Peggy Myrick, organist. Alice, an outstanding contralto also qualifies as a native of Kirkland as she was born in the historic Peter Kirk Building. The upper floors of the brick building (a brick remnant of Peter Kirk's steel mill dream) was used as a residence for several years. The cupola was her favorite part of the family's sitting room.
Mary Eastman, clerk of the church, wrote, "Dick Crowe (Ethel's son) told of the wonderful friendship, leadership and comradeship given by Reverend Helliwell to the Pilgrim Fellowship young people including his participation in the snow hike during the retreat at Nels Rasmussen's cabin." The slight-built minister loved the outdoors. With his son, Tom, he had climbed Mt. Rainier and the pair had also made a canoe trip through the Bowtron Lake Chain in British Columbia.
A congregational meeting was called in April to discuss the report of the building planning committee. George Schoen reviewed the background of the committee work. In 1956 the need for additional space began to plague the Sunday School. An architectural survey was begun and Gene Martenson, church member and architect, presented reports and drawings in 1958. Remodeling for better use of the existing building was considered for over a year. Final drawings submitted at the 1960 meeting showed a separation of church and Sunday School facilities which had been the goal to enable simultaneous use by both groups. The sketch showed a new sanctuary on the north corner of the property and remodeling the existing church to become the education wing.
When the new plan was revealed, discussion became lively with both excitement and agitation, depending on how each individual perceived the change. Questions immediately arose of what would happen to the existing building less than 20 years old. What about the stained glass windows and the oak pews? Why not just a new education wing instead of a new sanctuary?
The building committee members George Schoen, Ralph Lundvall, Nels Rasmussen, Barbara Thomas, Robert Wiesen, Alice Kinyon, Elinor and Sid Hammond had weighed the question for weeks. After being assured the present building was sound and would lend itself to a second floor easily, but could not be expanded adequately, the committee accepted the new proposal. They agreed to recommend the plan to the membership and to authorize the trustees to study the possibility of financing. By secret ballot the congregation voted 68 yes to 8 no.
The Board of Trustees was then authorized to "enter into a contract with the
firm of Cummings and Martenson for plans, supervision of plans and construction
of the new church." The new sanctuary (to the north as it is at present) would
be built first and could be used while the conversion of the existing building
took place.
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