Written for Lakeside’s 50^th Anniversary Celebration, February 1, 1992

I believe that it was Oscar Wilde who said,

“It is personalities, not principles, which move the age.”

With that as my inspiration, I am going to tell you about the personalities of our former pastors, the time in which they served, and how each one served Lakeside and left his imprint on the church.

The Rev. Dr. Harry Clayton Rogers was nearing retirement age and was a much loved pastor of Linwod Presbyterian Church in Kansas City, when he was approached at the General Assembly by the Rev. Dr. W. Clyde Smith and asked to consider coming to San Francisco and establishing a new church. This is the same Smith to whom the tower at Lakeside is dedicated.

Dr. Rogers had declined many invitations to leave his current church but, starting a new church intrigued him.   Year-round golfing and all those beautiful mountain streams to fish in - now that was something to think about. So Dr. Rogers, with Mrs. Rogers (his beloved Fannie), his golf clubs, and fishing pole, set out in his trusty Buick for San Francisco. They arrived here in June 1941. As soon as their furniture arrived, they began holding Sunday Worship Services and invited the neighbors. He preached and everyone sang. When the house they opened the doors and windows, and Dr. Rogers stood in the window and preached so that they all might hear.

It was different, but then it was Dr. Rogers’s belief that a “preacher,” as he liked to be called, required a bit of the dramatic, and that it required a good jazz player to play the hymns. He had both requirements at hand - he preached and the piano player taught jazz during the week.

By December 7, 1941 they had one hundred members and were ready to organize the church. And, but for Pearl Harbor, we would have been holding this celebration two months ago.

Dr. Rogers lived by the creed taken from Romans 1:16: “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone that believeth.” His was a simple, straight-forward faith. When I joined the church, I recall that, as we were all standing at the foot of the Chancel steps - filling the entire area, we were asked simply and sincerely if we accepted “Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.”

Dr. Rogers often used his love of the outdoors as an illustration in his sermons. He said that bringing someone to Christ was like casting out a line. You cast and then you waited, when they were ready they would tug on the line, and then you would very carefully bring them in.

We were a joyous, singing church. We could hold our own with all of the traffic on 19^th Avenue, and I am sure some of our singing was helped by the members who were former Methodists. No one ever inquired what you had been. We were all members of what was simply to become known as “Lakeside”.

The present sanctuary was not even completed when we realized it was not large enough. But that did not bother Dr. Rogers. He went to the Board of Missions and explained our delightful problem, and plans were begun for what we then called the Westminster Annex. 

It was Dr. Rogers who first named us “The Church by the Side of the Road” and wrote a paraphrased poem to that effect; reminding us of the importance of remaining such - open to all: the good, the bad, the lonely, and the unloved.

After the annex and the chapel were completed, Dr. Rogers explained that Mrs. Rogers wanted to go to Carmel to be with the birds and bees, but he said, “I want to go down to the Palace Hotel and be with the people.” So they compromised. They moved to Carmel, his beloved Fannie to her grandchildren and the flowers, and it was there that Dr. Rogers founded and established the Carmel Presbyterian Church.

In our search for a new pastor, the Committee learned much from the ministers who were interviewed or with whom they spoke. What they emphasized was for us not to be misled. Many ministers would like to come to California looking for retirement, and Lakeside was not for them. We had a big job ahead, and it would be a real challenge for whoever accepted the position.

That man turned out to be the Rev. Dr. Clark Neale Edwards from St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. He had inherited Lakeside as a very healthy, fast growing, and unpolished teenager. It would not be his goal to take us to maturity. Not only did he have a rowdy teenager on his hands, but an unfurnished church. We had no pews or carpeting in the sanctuary. The only furnishings were mostly folding chairs.

We furnished the Fireside Room and purchased pews for the Dr. and Mrs. Rogers Memorial Chapel and through it all we continued to sing. San Francisco State was moving in and had a fine music department, so we borrowed their choral director and department head, Dr. Roy Freeburg, and voice teacher, Harold Hollingsworth.

The adult or “Chancel Choir” sat on the left side of the chancel, and the Youth Choir sat on the right side in back of the pulpit and beside the organist. Our choirs brought us Vaughn Williams’ The Magnificat, as well as excerpts from The Messiah. We learned to stand for the “Halleluiah Chorus” and not to applaud it or any music by the choir because it was a part of the worship service and was sung to the glory of God.

It was about this time that we began having three hour Good Friday Services and exchanging Thanksgiving services with neighborhood churches. I recall attending a Thanksgiving service at Pilgrim Congregational Church out on 19^th Avenue.

Dr. Edwards started the church library, and we had Library Sunday, when a special offering was taken. We were encouraged to purchase a book or donate to the purchase of specific books. 

The nursery school was started as a sort of outgrowth of our Sunday baby care. Dr. Edwards thought that it would be a way of bringing young parents into the church and helping them to become acquainted. That was the beginning of what is today one of the outstanding day-care schools in the City. 

About that same time, a young soldier leaving San Francisco for Korea wrote back that the last sight he had of San Francisco was the cross atop Mt. Davidson. At that time it was only lighted during Christmas and during Holy Week. Through Dr. Edwards’ efforts and, in cooperation with the Department of Parks and Recreation, it was agreed that the cross would be lit every night. We agreed to contribute $1,300.00 per month for the lights and electricity and Parks and Recreation would take care of the labor involved. This fund was never a part of the church budget and, while it was mostly provided by Lakeside people, it was ecumenical, and we did receive contributions from throughout the City.

The lighting of the cross was discontinued in the early sixties, not for any ethnic or religious reasons but rather simply because the lights provided a place for target practice and, as fast as the lights were replaced, they presented a fresh target. It had become a trouble spot for the neighborhood and, as a result, the Parks and Recreation Department suggested discontinuing the project.

By now Lakeside had reached her maturity, and with age one experiences heartache and disappointment. The death of Dr. Edwards was our first experience in dealing with tragedy, and we were devastated.

But no one is ever really left alone, and to assist us through this time, we were sent the Rev. Dr. R. Paul Scherrer as an interim for a year. He was truly a Christian man with a healing and conciliatory touch who suited our needs.  He helped us carry on during a difficult time and gave us the determination and strength we needed.

I recall walking into the sanctuary one mid-September morning, just as the services were beginning, and in the pulpit stood a big, dark-haired man, wearing a new crew cut and clerical collar. That was a first for both of these at Lakeside. He had a big smile and hands to match. He was a former Naval Academy football player who had been serving the First Presbyterian Church of Indianapolis. When he spoke, his voice came from somewhere down deep, and when he laughed, it was a deep chuckle! And most amazing of all, when he stepped out of the pulpit, he was still tall! He did not use the step! This was the Rev. Dr. Roe H. Johnston. I do not believe that he had any idea of the task before him, but he was truly the man for the job.  He was the minister to guide us through the times now referred to as the “sixties”.

The students at San Francisco State were not about to let Berkeley get all the publicity attached to the protests, so they began some of their own. Roe had a sincere desire to help the students and to let them know that we understood their concerns, yet did not encourage violent protests. I believe that it was his unique gift for understanding the young people, and adding a touch of maturity, that helped us through that time.

A part of Roe’s outreach was the creation of our informal early service. It was held in the Social Hall so that we could meet “in the round”.   People brought their concerns and they were supported with prayers by the congregation. The emphasis was on sharing concerns and problems and asking for divine guidance. I recall two songs that I heard there for the first time: “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love” and “The Lord Of The Dance.” It surprised me to learn that “Morning Has Broken” was in our church hymnal all these years, and yet we had never sung it.

These were difficult times and we were shaken. But Dr. Johnston kept us from falling apart. It was the first time that a high school student was elected to the Session, and Roe helped us to understand that the youth should and must be heard. It was under his guidance and the chairmanship of Louise Enberg that we began working with “Friends Outside”. It was a Christian group to help the families of prison inmates with food, clothing, housing and spiritual needs.

While Dr. Edwards was still with us, there were some who wished to contribute to an organ so, to accommodate them, an organ fund was established. And shortly after Dr. Johnston’s arrival there came on the market an affordable pipe organ made in Germany. It was now the time to develop that project. In 1965 the installation of the present pipe organ began and Lakeside was singing “a new song” - folk hymns in the round to the accompaniment of a guitar and the new pipe organ in the sanctuary.

It was now that Dr. Johnston decided he wanted to accept a call to another church. It was difficult for many of us to understand why anyone would elect to leave Lakeside and San Francisco for the cold of the East, but I guess if you are born and raised in Iowa, the changing of the seasons sort of remains a part of you.

When the Rev. J. W. Gregg Meister was sent to Lakeside as its Interim Pastor, the congregation was so pleased with the vigor of his spirituality that they wanted to call him early to be our Senior Pastor. The “sixties” had left us drained. We were weary with protests, casual worship services and in need of prayer and the scriptures. We were advised by Presbytery that, according to their rules, an interim could not be called as a Senior Pastor without first serving as Stated Supply. I do not know how it was accomplished, but Lakeside was successful in
by-passing that process, and Pastor Gregg was called.

The early service remained in the Social Hall in an informal setting. Those attending this service were a devoted, serious group of worshipers, praying for each other and sharing concerns. The service included the same sermon that was preached at the 11:00 a.m. service and concluded with Communion.

This was also the beginning of the early Friday morning Bible study which was held at 7:00 a.m. in order that persons needing to go to work could attend. Silence and meditation in worship services became very meaningful to some, and silent retreats were encouraged. We chanted, “ I am the vine; You are the branches,” as we partook of the Lord’s Supper. We had again learned to sing a new song.

There was at this time an ecumenical radio program on the air sponsored by churches from the East Bay to San Jose. Lakeside became the Presbyterian participant in this for several years and, when we concluded, the Rev. Roland Gordon of Ingleside Presbyterian replaced us and it became a service to the black community.

It was while Pastor Gregg was making a routine pastoral Communion call that he introduced this radio ministry to an elderly shut-in. She had Gregg set her radio on that station so that she could listen to it regularly. She was never able to attend Lakeside but was faithfully cared for by our Deacons and our pastor. As an expression of appreciation, at the time of her death, she bequeathed the sum of $250,000.00 to our Memorial Endowment Fund.

The video ministry followed with the installation of lights in the sanctuary and the video room in the tower. Video tapes of our 11:00 a.m. service were taken to St. Mary’s Hospital each week and were made available to anyone with a VCR who wished to experience the service. Audio cassettes of the service were delivered either by mail or the Deacons to anyone wishing one.

Some of our most cherished memories are of pilgrimages to the Holy Land. It was on Pastor Gregg’s return to San Francisco from his last pilgrimage that he announced he had unexpectedly, but gratefully, been accepted to the Annenberg Graduate School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. It was an opportunity Gregg could not afford to pass up and, while we understood, we did not want to believe it.

Trenna Roth and I just began the long overdue renovation of the Lakeside sanctuary and had formed a committee of three, with Billie Didier consenting to be our secretary and treasurer. The shock of Pastor Gregg’s leaving was a little softened when he was able to turn over to us the remaining $80,000.00 from the Kirkman Fund. I would like to say here that we were only able to accomplish our goal through the wonderful cooperation we received. Everyone helped. It was a sort of a committee-of-the-whole, the “whole” being the entire congregation. No one person or group refused us anything we asked of them, and it was personally very rewarding to me. I made new friends and old friendships were strengthened. It was a big challenge but our joy in being able to meet it was indescribable.

It was while I was in the church one afternoon that I saw this tall gentleman in a plaid shirt, wearing cowboy boots and a hat, stroll in the door. After a little whispered inquiry, I learned that he was our new pastor, the Rev. Dr. Deane A. Kemper and not unlike our founding pastor, had just driven into town - not only from Kansas, but from New England and, as a symbol of the times, he had not driven a Buick but a Toyota. I will bet you one thing – that he also had his golf clubs in the trunk!

Pastor Deane invited our Assistant Pastor, Kathy Ray, to remain on staff with him. We were delighted to have this shiny-faced former seminarian intern from Cutbank, Montana remain with us. She had become a part of our church family.

So here we are in the present – the decade of the nineties – that some are referring to as the “Decade of the Family.”  On looking back, while our vision is always 20/20, no one can foresee what lies ahead. In one of Pastor Kemper’s sermons he mentioned the 13^th chapter of First Corinthians and the reference to faith, hope and love, but hope has been rather slighted. Perhaps that will be your gift to us.

We cannot look into the future and, like weaving a tapestry; we cannot see the results until it is completed. I do not know if it will be a Gobelin tapestry or a Degas mural but I do know that the faces of the saints will be of many colors – red, yellow, black and white, and while the little cherubs may be wearing Reeboks or Nikes, the signature in the corner will be Deane’s. I do know we will be singing – perhaps to a brass band or a guitar. Maybe our song will be “When the Saints Go Marching In,” or maybe it will be “How Great Thou Art,” but we will be singing,  joyously, with the doors wide open and arms extended to all who pass, and we will be “The Church by the Side of the Road.”