Our History
Part V: And the Walls Came Tumbling Down
After Reverend Davis left, the Reverend Ken Brown helped the congregation
work on a Decisions for Growth program, in which a major decision was made
to refurbish the building. However, the Northridge earthquake of January
17, 1994, caused massive damage to the church building, although fortunately
none of the 12 homeless people housed in the basement social hall were
seriously hurt. The church building could not be used at all without extensive
rebuilding and repairs. The pulpit committee that had been looking for
a replacement for Reverend Davis soon disbanded.
Emerson once again found temporary meeting places for worship services and religious education programs. Initially this was the Temple Beth Kodesh, and then the Senior Citizens Hall next to our property. Trailers were installed on the Emerson grounds for offices and the RE program. Visiting ministers frequently filled the pulpit on Sunday mornings. After a year of fact-finding, options analysis, long-range goals discussions, and many arguments, the congregation voted overwhelmingly to tear down the old building and put up new buildings on the same site. A successful building fund campaign conducted in 1995, provided funds for a new sanctuary/social hall with adjacent buildings for offices and classrooms suitable for both RE and a new pre-school. Emerson moved everything off its property to rental space at the Masonic Lodge and nearby offices usable for worship, RE, and administrative work, while a part-time contract minister served us on Sunday mornings until the completion of our new handicap-accessible quarters.
Using a Small Business Administration loan, construction started in the spring of 1996, with an estimated 6-month completion date. Many Emerson programs had been curtailed, but in 1996 the church was awarded status as a Welcoming Congregation.
Meanwhile, the UUA sought an extension minister for Emerson, as promised
in 1994. Two years after the earthquake the congregation approved the selection
of the Reverend Gail Geisenhainer, who became our extension minister in
the fall of ninety-six. A few months later the new buildings were completed,
furnished and opened for both the church and the new pre-school. Church
attendance and membership grew rapidly, with many new children in the RE
programs. The pre-school soon became multi-ethnic, and an Emerson scholarship
fund was established to provide aid for poorer families in the neighborhood.
Reverend Geisenhainer led programs on church structure and management,
growth, and planning, as well as encouraging more participation in the
UUA district and national meetings. Emerson's teen group worked at the
1997 UUA General Assembly (GA), and many more adults attended GA from 1997
onward. Emerson Unitarian Universalist Church became our official name
during Reverend Geisenhainer's ministry.
A long-range planning committee began extensive studies with the church membership, via focus groups and then sub-committee studies on facilities and on lifespan RE. New evening programs such as "Colors of Language" author interviews and a concert series had their start at this time.
Reverend Geisenhainer accepted the call to be a settled minister at Emerson in the fall of 2000. However, in the spring of the following year she stunned the church by giving notice of her resignation, to be effective at the end of summer.
Emerson held several congregational meetings to discuss Reverend Geisenhainer's resignation and future plans. The board of trustees immediately appointed an interim minister, Rev. Michael Thompson.
The congregation elected a new ministerial search committee shortly afterward and chose the Reverend Anne Hines to serve as Emerson's new minister after a s earch process that lasted eight months. At a special congregational meeting on 21 April 2002, Emerson members chose Reverend Hines to be our eighth settled minister by a vote of eighty-eight to zero. Reverend Hines agreed to begin her ministry in the fall of that same year.
