In Maj. Rolin C. Watkins’ “History of Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties, California,” he traces the emergence of Ben Lomond as a vibrant outpost.
“On the way to Boulder Creek one can stop at Ben Lomond, a town comparatively new in 1892, located under the shadow of the beautiful isolated range from which it takes its name,” he writes in VOLUME I. “Ben Lomond has gained fame as a favorite resort for tired city folk and others who are seeking a quiet resting place in the redwoods.”
Well, in 1899, a dozen Episcopalians raised enough money to purchase land to build St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church — with Benjamin and Gertrude Dickinson, Thomas Bell and William Lamb remembered as key players.
Christianity had arrived with Spanish colonization in the 1700s (or as Maj. Watkins put it on the title page of his 1925 tome, “Dating from the Planting of the Cross of Christendom upon the shores of Monterey Bay, by Fr. Junipero Serra, and those intrepid adventurers who accompanied him, down to the present day”).
The Episcopalians weren’t the first to plant a church in Ben Lomond — the Presbyterians beat them to it (that building was constructed in 1891 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places at “The Wee Kirk”; it is now a medical center). But they’ve outlasted them. And so, they hold the distinction as the longest-in-operation in the village.
“We also have the only church pipe organ in regular use in the San Lorenzo Valley,” said Martin Yabroff, the current pastor of St. Andrew’s, noting a former teacher named Preston Boomer was behind that. “Our attitude is the church not only serves the congregation but also the community.”
The structure was assembled by one Mr. Hopkins. In July 1901, Bishop William Nichols consecrated it. The church takes its name from the patron saint of Scotland.
Now, St. Andrew’s is preparing to mark a century-and-a-quarter under the redwoods.
As Mount Hermon, just downstream, opened a popular Protestant retreat center after the turn of the 20th century, St. Andrew’s began to struggle.
The little Episcopalian church in Ben Lomond could fill its pews in the summertime. But by the fall of 2011, there were just three communicants. So, from 1911 to 1950, St. Andrew’s was essentially a summer chapel.
“There were some challenging times for the church,” Yabroff said. “But it has carried on.”
Parish administrator Sharon Fishel recalled how the church stepped up to the plate during the calamity of 1982.
“The river flooded and there was a slide. A lot of people were killed,” she said. “People from down the street just stayed here in the parish hall. It was before cellphones… We had a big chalkboard and people could write down the names of people they were looking for, who they were missing.”
Around the same time, they helped start the beloved nonprofit Valley Churches United. Meanwhile, Fishel opened a preschool. She said she’ll often be recognized while out-and-about by students who attended back in the day.
“This church to me is more than the people that attend this church,” she said. “I just feel like it’s a home to the community, a spiritual home.”
The ethos demonstrated in ’82 would shine through after the 1989 earthquake and the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire, she added. Members of the diocese lost their home in that wildfire. Instead of having a garage sale to raise money, they did a community giveaway. Items filled the church, spilling out onto the patio.
“We’ve been through it all,” said Fishel, checking herself. “We haven’t had locusts.”
St. Andrew’s will hold an open house on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 1 to 4 p.m. It’ll start with a bagpiper for the first half-hour. There will be cookies and lemonade. State Assemblymember Gail Pellerin and Supervisor Monica Martinez have said they’ll attend or send a representative. Both Valley Churches United and the disaster relief Long-Term Recovery Group (which meets at St. Andrew’s) are to be highlighted for their community contributions.
Live music by members of local congregations, scheduled for 2 to 3 p.m., has been organized by music director Jesse McMilan.
“He actually does a lot with Mountain Community Theater, and he’s a music teacher,” Yabroff added. “We’re lucky to have him.”
From 3 to 4 p.m., there will be more refreshments and the chance to wander by historical displays.
“On Sunday, we will have our regular 10 o’clock service, but the first part of the service will be in language that was used 125 years ago,” the pastor said, “— the thee’s and thou’s.”
Paradoxically, Yabroff said they’ve consciously taken steps to reach out to people who don’t exactly fall within the narrow theological band that is Episcopalianism.
“We kind of stand out like that,” he said. “We are welcoming to everyone, wherever you are on your spiritual journey — and whatever that journey is.”
Plus, he noted, after the archaic diction has subsided, there will be an ice cream social.
