Gleanings From
In Christian Fellowship
By Shirley Lindahl
Edited by Jerry Rutherford
Associate Minister Hired, and Kirkland Loses Small Town Identity
The minister's work load had been increasing steadily and now that the new building allowed space for still more programs the need for an associate minister was even greater. A committee of Jack Clark, Phyffis Dieckmann, Henry Jovag, Jack Holderness, Tony Reynolds, Hazel Berto and Janet Hammond began the search. In April the church voted to call Kendall Baker who was just graduating from seminary. He arrived with his wife, Nancy, in July and was officially installed at an ordination service by the Seattle Association of the United Church of Christ in February, 1965.In 1965 Dick Crowe, who was in the army in Viet Nam wrote his mother, Ethel Crowe, that for his Christmas gift he would like clothing for an orphanage in Saigon. The appeal made through Women's Fellowship gathered 950 garments and $73 for him to make additional purchases.
The mid sixties was a time of trouble and tumult in much of the world. Viet Nam had created a period of unrest, revolt, campus demonstrations and a general feeling of distrust. Many teenagers saw the standards supported by family and church as "out of step with the times." Civil rights marches became topics not only for individual discussions but also sermons.
The Evergreen Floating Bridge (now called 520) had been completed in 1963 and had brought rapid growth to the area. Lake Washington School District needed the equivalent of one new classroom a week as it was the fastest growing school district in the state. A second high school opened in Redmond. Housing developments were springing up around the area; the downtown stores were being refurbished. The area was "spreading out" and the town seemed less cohesive. The small town atmosphere prevailed when it came to baseball. "Baseball Town USA" was a title earned by Kirkland for its large number of young ball players, excellent facilities in the "new" Everest Little League Field in downtown Kirkland. (Of course, now we have a "state of the art" relatively new field--right in the center of town.
Another project where every citizen worked together was the building of the community swimming pool. "Our own, Arnie Berkey," played a large part of soliciting funds and donating labor for the project.
During the next several years waterfront parks were accumulated and developed for the enjoyment and use of all the citizens.
Women's Fellowship had established a scholarship for any member preparing for the ministry. Only one person from this congregation was planning to enter this profession, Judy Hjorth, daughter of Ed & Margaret Hjorth (Kennedy). Since she had finished her schooling the group voted to send her half of the collected fund to purchase necessary books and/or robe as she was soon to be ordained. Today she serves as Reverend Doctor Judy Hjorth, minister of the Northern Region of Connecticut, U.C.C..
Under the leadership of Reverend Baker, a new approach was tried for the junior high students. Tuesday night supper, prepared b a group of mothers, was served with classes and recreation following. One room on the east side of Fellowship Hall was painted by the group in psychedelic colors popular at this time.
A Young Couples group was active at this time with the Bakers as leaders. He shared the pulpit with Reverend Helliwell, led some of the study groups and worked with the Sunday School. He also served as secretary of the Lake Washington, Ministerial Association.
Action within the church took several directions to reach out to others. A covenant of open housing was prepared by the social action committee and signed by over 100 members demonstrating their willingness to accept neighbors of any race, color or creed. The stewardship committee helped canvas the Juanita-Kingsgate area for prospective church families. Some members participated in the "Living Room Dialogues," an experiment across denominational lines. Using the book by that title, bi-weekly discussions were held in homes with five Roman Catholic lay members and two lay people from five Protestant churches in the Kirkland area.
Gifts to finish furnishing the church came in the form of the baptismal fount from Jerry and Donna Marsh, the 6-gallon coffee urns from George and Helen Schoen and the Formica kitchen counters from Sid and Elinor Hammond.
Mendelsohn's "Elijah" was presented on Palm Sunday. Bible readings and
discussions had prepared the congregation for this great oratorio. The title role was
sung by David Jerde with other featured roles sung Allene Knight, Diane Rowe,
Mary Jo Smith, Mary Ann Radcliffe, Marcia Lutterman and Mark Forbes. Alice
Kinyon directed the choir.
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