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Back in 1945, San Lorenzo Village, an unincorporated area of Alameda County, began to develop as homes were built in a primarily agricultural area. The San Francisco Bay Cities Union, under the leadership of Dr. W. Earle Smith, felt San Lorenzo would be a good place to start a new church. The Rev. Art Christiansen was called to be the founding pastor. A three bedroom home was purchased for him as a parsonage on Paseo Largavista. The first service was held in the parsonage on November 17, 1945, with six people attending. The church began to grow rapidly, and was organized formally as San Lorenzo Baptist Church on August 28, 1946, with 52 charter members.
In September the Bay Cities Baptist Union loaned funds to purchase a block of property on Lewelling Blvd. and Fourth Street. The church began to develop various programs. A Woman’s missionary Society was organized. The first Sunday School class began in January of 1947, meeting in the parsonage and in nearby homes of new members. A Boy Scout troop was started in the spring. In August of 1947 ground was broken for the first building, a multipurpose building. The men of the church gave countless hours in volunteer labor, and the first service was held in the new unit on October 12, 1947. Within a year the church had built a small kitchen behind the front of the chapel, as they called it, and a two-story Sunday School unit was built. The work had scarcely begun when the Rev. Christiansen resigned. In September 1947 the Rev. Glenn Orr was called to be pastor.
The church began to grow rapidly with the influx of veterans and their families moving into the area. By 1948 the church had grown to 150 members with 164 enrolled in Sunday School. A choir was started. In 1948 a Junior Church and Baptist Youth Fellowship were started. The first meeting of the men’s brotherhood took place in October of that year, with 18 present.
In 1949, 24 members left and formed Grace Baptist Church in San Leandro. By March of 1950 there were 178 members. Growth is to be partly attributed to a series of revivals held in 1950. In January there were revival services led by Dr. James Jauncey, a professor at California Baptist Theological Seminary in Covina. In April, the Rev. Paul Kopp spoke for several evenings and in June the Rev. John Lavender and his wife, Lucile led a service of evangelistic meetings. In November of 1950 the church purchased the parsonage from Bay Citifies Baptist Union.
In 1951 the church adopted a displaced Latvian family, the Sliskevics. The church helped bring them to America and secured and furnished a small apartment for their family. The older members remember this event as a time of great enrichment for the whole church family. The church was shocked when the Rev. Orr suddenly resigned in July. He accepted a call to a church in Pennsylvania so he could do doctoral work at the University of Pennsylvania. In October the church called the Rev. Gerald Moyer to be its pastor. The church also voted to buy property at the back of the building, between the building and the creek. On this property was a two-story barn, a blacksmith shop and a large chicken coop. The men of the church cleaned and fixed these buildings for use as Sunday School classes. During Rev. Moyer’s tenure the church voted, along with several other Bay Area Churches to sponsor a new church in Hayward, CA, the First American Baptist Church. Nine or ten of the members living near the Hayward location went with them.
A significant moment in the church’s history occurred in October 1955 when Rev. Jack Wyne accepted a call to pastor the church. He stayed 25 years, ending his ministry in July of 1980. Pastor Michael Wilson was saved during Rev. Wyne’s pastorate and was baptized by Pastor Wyne. The church grew rapidly the next seven years, reaching its zenith in 1963.
Rev. Wyne was very evangelistic in his ministry. His first Easter at the church, in 1956, he baptized 30 young people and adults. Rev. Wyne did visitation in the community, became chaplain of the Fire Department, taught some at the local high school and in general endeared himself to the people of the community. His wife, Odessa, was also very active and worked beside him.
Construction of the new sanctuary began in October of 1959. A contractor in his 80’s and his nephew led the project. The men of the church gave countless hours of labor, saving some $500,000 in labor costs. Dinners on Tuesday and Saturdays were organized by the women for the men who came to work. Men came after work to work on the building almost every day. The building program was a great time of bonding in the church and an attraction for new people in the area. The sanctuary and additional Sunday School units were dedicated in May of 1961. By the end of 1961 the membership was 343, with an average of 199 in Sunday School for the year.
During his tenure, Rev. Wyne hired a number of seminarians to serve as youth ministers. Many of the youth attended the regional camps. Several of the youth ministers, notably Tom Blackburn, George Fletcher and Prince Altom went on to do significant pastoral work. The most talked-about youth ministry time was 1971-1973 when Ted Mount served as Youth Minister. People talk about the big attendance, socials, trips, etc. His ministry is looked upon as the “golden age” of youth ministry in the church.
A Craft group was formed to raise money for missionaries and the church. Home Bible studies were also started. Initially 5 groups were started.
Dr. Roy Cummings was the interim minister after Rev. Wyne.
In 1981 the Rev. Roger Jump became the pastor. There was growth in the early part of his ministry as some younger adults were attracted to the church. Rev. Jump played the guitar and introduced contemporary music. He hired a staff member, Gary Ennis, to work with the youth and young adults. Gary created some programs that attracted some new members, especially with his counseling ministry. Some problems developed, and Mr. Ennis left to enter a counseling ministry in Southern California. During Rev. Jump’s tenure, the church’s mortgage was paid off. The church now owned the building.
Rev. Henry Toews and his wife, Charline were the interim ministers after Rev. Jump.
In December of 1986, Dr. Floyd Roseberry was called as pastor. One of his goals was to set a new direction and a new vision for the church. Conferences were attended and people learned what to do with a church in the 1990s.
In 1987, the church was renovated and several areas were remodeled with a bequest from Alma Fairbanks. The men of the church volunteer much of the labor. Changes that were enacted include:
- Updated the church office
- A new constitution in 1993
- Significant prayer ministries were started
- A praise team was created in 1996
- The church rented to a Filipino Seventh Day Adventist Church on Saturdays and a Russian Baptist Church on Sunday Afternoons
- The church started to support two social programs: SHARE, which was a food sharing program and FESCO which was an emergency shelter ministry
- A yearly stew3ardship emphasis was started
- A healing ministry was started in 1996 with weekend training by Rev. Mike Evans
The church celebrated its 50th anniversary in September of 1996. The celebration lasted for five Sundays. Rev. Jack Wyne returned to preach and was given the title of Pastor Emeritus. 260 people attended the celebrations.
From November 1996 to May of 1997 30 new people came to the church. Many new leadership gifts came to help the church. A new Wednesday night family night was started with a Bible study for adults and Pioneer clubs for children and youth.
It was during this time that the church started a self-evaluation working toward a vision for the future of the church.
Dr. Roseberry resigned his position in April of 1998.
Rev. Roy Herndon was brought in as an interim pastor in May of1998
Rev. Gary Rice became the pastor in 1999. Pastor Gary was a single man and found his true love while at this church. He married Mary, who was very musical. Through her ministries, the music programs of the church flourished and grew. Pastor Gary resigned in 2004.
Pastor Michael Wilson returned to pastor San Lorenzo Baptist Church in March of 2005. In September of 2006 the church celebrated their 60th anniversary. They changed their name to Cornerstone Fellowship to signify our new direction.
Cornerstone Fellowship
P.O. Box 525 (all mail)
180 Lewelling Blvd
San Lorenzo, CA 94580
Right across the street from OSH
(510) 278-2622
Our facilities are availalble for rent...
- Parties
- Banquets
- Weddings
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