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Bridge to the Future Updates
Reflection: The 1925 Santa Barbara Earthquake Anniversary Rev. Julia reminds us from time to time that we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. Those first shoulders go back a long way, to the 1870s, to those who decided that Santa Barbara needed a Unitarian Society, who decided it needed a home of its own, who built that home in 1890 and then, when an earthquake shook it down in 1925, built another one. They ranged in age from 16 to 70. The majority were from the north-east with notable exceptions of two from pioneer families in Illinois and two from England. Most were in family groups, including five in one household. The men included a handful of merchants, a lawyer, a doctor, and a clergyman. One of the women was a teacher and then served as Deputy County Recorder for 30 years. They were adventurous. The closest they could get to Santa Barbara by rail was San Francisco, the last leg of the trip being a choice of steamship or stagecoach, and that came over the San Marcos Pass. We have no record of how they came to know each other. I am guessing they may have discovered their mutual Unitarianism while staying at the newly built Arlington Hotel. But soon, by March 1876, they were meeting in the Santa Barbara Street home of one of the family units, a man, his wife and his widowed sister-in-law, reading published sermons, singing hymns and spending “many a pleasant and profitable hour.” A few months later they placed an ad in the Boston Christian Register requesting a minister. And they got one. They rented a hall at State Street and Canon Perdido and on November 10, 1876, Dr. George Henry Young held the first Unitarian service in Santa Barbara. With his guidance, a year later 13 men and 13 women wrote a Constitution and signed their names as members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara. They elected a Board of Trustees, 4 men and 3 women. The next year they started a building fund, bought a piece of property and moved a building onto it. They outgrew it, collected more funds including several major contributions, got a loan from the American Unitarian Association, bought a lot across the street from the Arlington Hotel and laid a cornerstone in November 1890. A year later they moved into a stone masonry church. It was modeled after a recently erected one in Michigan – I have no idea why, none of them were from Michigan – and they called it Unity Church. I have no idea why they did that either. It included biblical scenes in stained glass and multiple Christian crosses. Another three ministers saw them through these transitions and steady growth. In 1902, they purchased a lot near State Street and Micheltorena and built a parsonage, funded by a single generous donation. In 1905 they added a parish hall at the rear of the property. Matching masonry was beyond the budget so a simpler frame construction was chosen. They named it Unity Hall. Through the next twenty years, the congregation continued to grow, adding a Sunday School, more programs, and enjoyed their first long-term minister. In March 1925 the Board decided to seek a new location for a parsonage. In April 1925 they accepted an offer from Trinity Episcopal to purchase the Micheltorena property with the provision that they could rent it for their minister until a new location was ready. In May 1925 they bought a lot at 2015 Santa Barbara Street and consulted with an architectural firm, Sauter and Lockard, to design the parsonage. On Monday, June 29, 1925 a 6-plus earthquake struck in the early morning hours and damaged or destroyed much of Santa Barbara’s multi-storied business district, including Unity Church. But not Unity Hall. The more conventional construction stood, as did most of the housing in the city. Since all we have are Board minutes, we don’t know how they dealt with the loss of one of their members who died in the ruins of the Arlington Hotel across the street, or the devastation of the church so many had worked to build and support. But one week later, they got back to work and held a Board meeting. They approved proceeding with the building of the parsonage, and further employed Mr. Lockard to inspect the church building and advise on rebuilding. By the July 27th Board meeting, they had been advised not to rebuild, and moved to salvage the organ, stained glass, pews and whatever else was of value. They put the State Street property on the market, planning to put the proceeds toward building a new church. In September they approved the purchase of a house on a lot at the corner of Arrellaga and Santa Barbara Street. They moved the pews into Unity Hall and planned to meet there “until such time as there will be a church building.” Four years passed, and with no success selling the State Street lot, the Board requested a mortgage loan from the A.U.A. late in 1929 to augment pledges to the building fund. They retained Keith Lockard to design a new church and on April 26,1930, laid the cornerstone, presided over by the President of the Board, one of the five people who signed the 1877 constitution who were still alive. On December 10th, a dedication service was held in the new sanctuary. Gone was the traditional look of an eastern Protestant church. The Christian cross iconography was gone. The stained glass windows with biblical scenes salvaged from the old church were donated to the Fiesta Committee. As far as I have learned, the only items brought from the old to the new are the two bronze plaques in the narthex, memorials to benefactors of the old church and the first parsonage. Again, no record of how they came to choose the design of their new home – I imagine there may have read more
Last year, in March, more than 100 of us participated in small group visioning meetings or completed the online survey. The Vision Team analyzed and collated the five hundred data points which resulted, and three major priorities emerged. Building Community, we envision: A campus that is a safe and welcoming home for people of diverse ages, backgrounds, and identities. A trusted location for building community partnerships that reflect our values of love and justice. A campus that inspires joyful and meaningful social connections. Building Accessibility, we envision: A place where people of diverse abilities participate seamlessly in all aspects of community life. Using technology in ways that improve access and build community. Building Resilience, we envision: A campus equipped with sustainable facilities that allow us to be of service in times of crisis. A campus that models our commitment to climate action and care for the environment. Our campus as a sanctuary that sustains the spiritual and physical wellbeing of the community. As we move ahead this year into our Capital Campaign, let’s bear in mind that the Strategic Plan encloses and empowers the Capital Campaign. Almost every proposed adjustment and enhancement in the Capital Campaign, is based on the Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan is the why and what. The Capital Campaign is the how. What happens to our shared vision after the Capital Campaign reaches its successful conclusion, stained glass windows re-leaded, heat pumps installed, our campus beautified and made both more accessible and more resilient? We’ll have good reason to feel proud of our work and generosity, but will we be done with visioning? I’m thinking not and hope you will agree with me that visioning should be an ongoing process, something we find time to do together on a regular basis. This seems particularly true when we look at the Community piece of our strategic plan. These goals are perhaps the most important, but also less concrete than providing wheelchair access to the courtyard or adding to our array of solar panels. It will be harder to say when we accomplish, for example, the vision of building community partnerships that reflect our values of love and justice. Excuse me for stating the obvious, but that will be or should be an ongoing effort to engage with community organizations outside of our immediate, beloved Unitarian community. Last year USSB hosted participants in the Peace and Dignity Run and also tabled at the Día de los Muertos observance at Ortega Park. Community groups such as AHA, Freedom for Youth and Lisa’s Place meet on our campus already—a good beginning. So, the strategic plan informs the capital campaign but won’t end there. We have done ourselves the great favor of creating a shared template for our actions stretching into the future. Talk about a Bridge to the Future! by John Altman, USSB Board of Trustees
A Week in the Life of Our Spaces by Angie Swanson-Kyriaco, Outreach & Membership Coordinator
https://youtu.be/TWbiOXTDcTo
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