Health and Fitness: Doctor opens Ben Lomond office in historic church building

A historic church might not be the first place that most doctors would choose to house their private practice, but Dr. Steven Leib is no ordinary physician.
Rows of paper medical files line the shelves inside Leib’s new office at 9500 Central Avenue in Ben Lomond rather than the electronic files preferred by many physicians, and he and his wife, Vivian, know many of his active patients on a first-name basis. The couple’s 4-year-old dog, Mollie, greets patients as they enter the office.
It’s an old-fashioned way of doing business that feels appropriate in their new digs — the most antiquated church structure in San Lorenzo Valley, dating back to 1891.
“It has the cozy, quaint comfort of something that’s kind of more timeless,” said Vivian Leib, who serves as the receptionist at her husband’s practice, regarding the rehabilitated building. “When people come in, they feel it. We wanted to have a healing environment.”
Leib’s practice opened in the former church structure on Sept. 10.
While many people had considered purchasing the building over the years with hopes of turning it into a home, an office, or even a beer garden, the Leibs bought the historic landmark in February after they began to consider buying it a decade ago. The building had most recently served as a residence and storage facility.
The building is zoned for public or community use, and the Leibs were enthused when they noted that possible uses under that zoning include using the structure as a medical office.
“In keeping with the spirit of community, it’s open to the public,” Dr. Leib said, adding that he welcomes visitors.
Leib started his practice in Felton in 1981, taking over for country physician Dr. Ashby Steele, before moving his office to Scotts Valley nearly 8 years ago. The bulk of his approximately 2,000 active patients continue to live in San Lorenzo Valley, he said.
The Leib family has a penchant for historic structures. They live in a restored 1879 Victorian farmhouse in Ben Lomond, and they describe the rehabilitation of the old church building as a “labor of love.”
Vivian Leib noted that many patients have said they feel the building has a healing, spiritual quality, with its bright windows and church bell.
Dr. Leib allows children, people with birthdays, patients struggling with life-threatening illnesses, and patients who have achieved medical goals to ring the bell by pulling a rope inside the building. It also can be rung in honor of loved ones who have died.
Many people who ring the bell say they experience comfort and joy, the doctor said.
“I think the building gives back,” he said. “It will definitely live long beyond our years. It’s certainly iconic for our town.”
James Pierce, head of the Pacific Lumber Co., donated land for the building, with the intention of it serving as a community church that could be used by summer vacationers among others, according to Lisa Robinson, president of the San Lorenzo Valley Historical Society. A small group of Presbyterians purchased the property for $900 after it was built in 1891.
For many years, the house of worship shared a pastor with the Felton Presbyterian Church (then housed in what is now the Felton Branch Library). In 1949, the Ben Lomond church’s name was changed to Wee Kirk, as many of its parishioners were of Scottish ancestry, according to online writings by Paul Tutwiler on “Santa Cruz Spirituality.”
The term “Wee Kirk” is Scottish vernacular for “small church.”
Eventually, a nondenominational congregation known as the Wee Kirk of Jesus occupied the building. That congregation evolved into Holy Orthodox Christian Church, which moved to 9980 Highway 9 and became Ss. Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church in 1983.
The Orthodox parish continued to use the building for office space for many years. A member of Ss. Peter and Paul retrieved a cross from on top of the building while repairs were taking place earlier this year, and the Leibs have since replaced it with a weather vane they received as a wedding present.
In the process of rehabilitating the historic structure, the Leibs heard many anecdotes from local residents and patients alike. Those included former church attendees, emergency medical technicians who stayed in the building when it served as an ambulance station for awhile and folks who snuck on the roof for a smoke in their younger years.
One person even confessed to breaking a church window by tossing an apple at it, Vivian Leib said with a smile.
Dozens of area residents stopped by to say they were pleased the couple was making improvements to the building, Vivian Leib said. The encouragement helped the couple press on when they were weary of carrying out the repairs. The Leibs managed the rehabilitation of the building, though the actual work was carried out by painters and carpenters.
Several community members opined about the color used for the paint job while construction was under way.
In the end, many of them breathed sighs of relief when the couple settled on using a shade known as “Vanilla Ice Cream” to cover the building, Vivian Leib recalled with a laugh.
Other construction challenges included maintaining the historic integrity of the façade while making it accessible to disabled patients.
The main entrance to the office is now on the side of the building, where a handicapped-accessible ramp was installed.
“It’s a balancing act between history and modern requirements,” Dr. Leib said.
New wood floors replace aging carpeting in the former church sanctuary, which now serves as the lobby of the office, while the ceiling retains the church’s original redwood paneling.
The Leibs also made some repairs to some of the original stained glass, which also adorns the lobby.
Dr. Leib sees patients in rooms toward the rear of the building, including one room that previously was a cottage at the former Ben Lomond Hotel and was donated to the church in 1923 after the hotel was destroyed by fire.
A bathroom contains black-and-white tiles that reflect the turn-of-the-century period when the church was built, and a light blue color used in one of the offices is identical to a shade used by St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco.
Robinson said she was impressed with the Leibs’ rehabilitation work.
“They’ve been amazingly careful,” she said. “They’ve certainly kept true to the building and not made changes unnecessarily.”
The former church building is listed as a historic resource by Santa Cruz County, and Robinson has started work on having it named to the National Register of Historic Places. That process typically takes one year, she said.
Now that the Leibs are settled in the building, they say they hope this will be the last renovation project they undertake.
Dr. Leib, who is 62, said he plans to retain his practice inside the local landmark until at least age 81 — the same age that Dr. Steele was when he retired.
“We figure we’re the caretakers of this place, and we want to allow it to remain, so that others can take care of it in the centuries to come,” he said.