- December 18, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Business
Barbara Johnson was 14 years old when she began attending First Christian Church in Riverside in 1955.
“I remember wearing a dress and high heels and walking to church every Sunday,” she said.
Johnson remembers all the baptisms, the weddings, the large choir in which she sang. She especially enjoys the church’s large stained glass panels. Back in its heyday, when the church offered Sunday evening services, Johnson said she marveled at the setting sun lighting up the colorful panels, soaking the sanctuary in a divine brilliance.
One of the oldest churches in Riverside founded in 1885, First Christian has weathered much adversity over the past decade with dwindling membership. But the coronavirus pandemic dealt a lethal blow to the congregation, which will gather for the last time as a church on Dec. 26.
The historic community church in Riverside, designed by renowned local architect G. Stanley Wilson who also worked on Mission Inn, is one of many…
