[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 99 (Thursday, June 14, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E840-E841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ST. JOHN'S UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST, SAN BRUNO

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JACKIE SPEIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 14, 2018

  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the 100th anniversary 
of the founding of St. John's United Church of Christ in San Bruno, 
California. This church has been a rock of comfort and hope for an 
entire century, and the community joins with me in extending these good 
wishes.
  San Bruno was incorporated as a city in 1914. St. John's was founded 
soon thereafter by German immigrants and first met in the homes of its 
congregants or, a few years later, in Carpenter's Hall. By 1920, the 
city of San Bruno had about 1,500 residents and by 1921 the 
congregation had outgrown its earlier locations and a church building 
was erected. The congregation thrived.
  In the 1930's, multiple orders of churches merged and ultimately 
formed the United Church of Christ. The motto of the new denomination 
was ``That they may all be one.'' Today, the congregants come from 
diverse ethnic backgrounds. Families from throughout the world, and 
even those who originally worshipped in different denominations, have 
joined to form the community of St. John's United Church of Christ.
  The church participates in multiple charitable activities, including 
providing disaster relief, offering contributions to St. Anthony's 
Dining Room and to the San Francisco Night Ministry. Its values of 
faith, love and inclusion lead the church to support all and to value 
each human being, no matter how little a person may have.

[[Page E841]]

  In addition to meeting its charitable objectives, the church serves 
as the site of worship for three other churches. In the past, it also 
opened its doors to the Filipino Congregational Church of San Bruno. 
During the day, squeals of laughter from children can be heard in its 
hallways as they enjoy their lessons offered onsite by the California 
Montessori School.
  For the past 40 years, St. John's has been led by Pastor Champion 
Traylor and his late wife, Pat. During weddings and funerals, weekly 
services and rallies for hope, through peaceful times and when our 
nation was at war, this couple gave comfort to their fellow citizens 
and offered guidance to all who sought it. Sometimes we lose track of 
the importance of ministry in our daily lives. Pastor Traylor and his 
wife never lost track of anyone in their ministry.
  So let us wish St. John's another 100 years of prosperity. We know 
that other churches may be larger, but few have been such stalwart 
members of San Bruno's community for 100 or more years. In the years 
since St. John's was founded, the first asphalt state highway was laid 
down just a few miles away in San Bruno, a racetrack was built and then 
demolished, San Francisco airport went from a mud field to an 
international destination, and tens of thousands of San Bruno children 
were raised and left their homes to participate in civic life and 
commerce. St. John's has remained. It has always served the next wave 
of Americans and immigrants, allowing all who enter to be encouraged in 
their spiritual quest and thus allowing America herself to become a 
more perfect union. May this special place near San Francisco Bay 
continue to prosper for the next 100 years.

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