February 17 Today in OPC History

On February 17, 1937, the Reverend Glenn R. Coie was installed as pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church (now Grace Reformed Presbyterian). Four months earlier the congregation had been organized and received by the Presbytery of California with sixty three charter members. Finding a place to worship, however, was a difficult task. The group first met in the Deschutes County courthouse, but it burned. Then the group met on the upper floor of a commericial building. Finally it was able to buy an historic building (originally a bakery) for a little less than four thousand dollars on the Deschutes River.

In 1990, current pastor Daniel Dillard accepted the call to serve, and once more the congregation was looking for a place to meet. Growing in numbers and lacking adequate parking, and with inability to remodel the historic building due to strict zoning regulations, the congregation purchased acreage in the mid-1990s and soon work on a new building commenced. On September 21, 1997, the building was dedicated with great rejoicing.

Picture: Working on the new building in 1997.