Our History

The following article was written in 2007 at the time of St John’s 125 Anniversary. It provides a brief summary of St John’s history. A more detailed historic account can be found in the document, “Early History of St. John’s Lutheran Church 1882 – 2007“.

St. John’s Lutheran Celebrates 125 Years Sunday

Oct 18, 2007 Published Article

St. John’s Lutheran Church was formally organized in 1882, but Pastor Dave Gunderson said there is some history before that time.

“The church really started with the traveling pastors that roamed the plains working with the German settlers as early as 1875,” he said. “The first church building was at (408 6th St.), a new church was built at 8th and Locust streets, where the Seventh Day Adventist Church is now located.”

The congregation’s “Centennial History Booklet” notes that in 1941, “a building committee was appointed for the purpose of planning a new church and securing a loan. Faith and trust in God proceeded with the erection of the new church at Eighth and Locust and not to exceed $7,000.” The new building was dedicated Dec. 13, 1942, and the building was remodeled and improved with an addition of an entry, perma stone for the outside and an 18-foot extension to the front in 1955.

The congregation continued to grow and in 1964, six acres of land was purchased for $12,000 from the Benevolent Society. The congregation’s history booklet notes that fund-raising began in 1966 for another new building.

“The ground-breaking ceremonies were held April 21, 1968. A $400,000 church and educational unit was to be constructed and work was to be begin immediately. The Sunday school children, their parents and faculty members formed a procession on Eighth and Locust to the building site at Tenth and Jackson. Approximately 300 people attended the open-air service and participated in a brief worship and Thanksgiving,” reads the church history.

St. John’s congregation still calls the building at 1009 Jackson Street home, but there have been many changes since the structure was originally built, Gunderson said.

“They built this church for $400,000 and they thought, ‘Oh, my!’ but in 2001 we built an addition that cost twice the price of the original church,” he said.

According to Gunderson, the congregation currently boasts approximately 1,300 baptized members.

“We are a fairly young church with 60 percent of our congregation under 50 years old,” he said. “The preschool has been a big blessing for many people looking to find a church home.”

St. John’s Preschool currently has morning and afternoon classes for 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds and pre-Kindergarten. The school staffs two full-time teachers and two teacher’s aides.

The church has a very active Sunday School and a strong youth program, along with an active Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML). There are also a couple of different choirs and a handbell group.

Lifetime member and church secretary Paulette Gross said, in the 50-plus years she’s been attending St. John’s and even in the 22 years she’s worked there, she has seen a lot of changes.

“When I was a kid we had Sunday School at the old building (8th and Locust) in the furnace room, in the kitchen, in the basement, wherever we could find room,” she said. “Now we have a building with a whole wing of Sunday School rooms.”

Paulette Gross said the building isn’t the only thing that has grown.

“The old church held about 200 people, and I don’t think it was ever completely filled,” she said. “At this building, if we only held one service, we would overflowing. We have two services on Sunday and each averages about 400 people.”

With all the changes during the congregation’s 125 years, Pastor Dave Gunderson said there is one constant.

“At the center of everything we do at St. John’s is the good news of Jesus Christ,” he said. “Our purpose is to proclaim Christ, or as our mission statement puts it, ‘Growing Together in Christ by sharing the gospel with all people.'”