First Baptist Church (Boron, California)
Encyclopedia
The First Baptist Church of Boron
was founded over 70 years ago in 1938, as the First Baptist Church of Amargo (the name of the settlement at that time), the first organized church in the community now known as Boron, California
, then renamed the Community Baptist Church of Boron, then finally the First Baptist Church of Boron in 1955. Many pastors have served this church since its foundation and have seen to the spiritual well being of its members.
began as a Sunday School
ministry in the original "company town
" north of the present town limits next to the original underground Borax
mine. One road of housing was nicknamed "Baptist Road" because several of the families who lived there were Baptist
.
About 75 to 100 persons attended the first meeting as a church on Easter Sunday morning in 1938 which was held outside on a platform that would soon become the original parsonage at 12315 Roberts Ave. which is next door to the existing, currently used parsonage owned by the church. Members continued to meet in the parsonage until the church building was completed one block away at 12255 Boron Avenue in 1940. It was organized as the First Baptist Church of Amargo, California
, which was the original name of the settlement a few miles south of the underground mine, on August 21, 1938 with 13 charter members. Three of these original members were Dixie Hill, Leone Jamison, and Stan Sausser who attended the 50 year anniversary of the church which was held on September 18, 1988.
of the church and served until 1942 when he left to become a chaplain
in the U.S. Army. Both the Parsonage
and the Sanctuary were built by the men of the church. The men made the cement blocks which formed the church by pouring cement into hand-made forms. A basement provided space for classes as well as social activities at the time.
When the community's name was changed to Boron the church was renamed to Community Baptist Church of Boron. In the early years, as the only church in Boron, there were people from varied religious backgrounds attending and worshiping together. As the church and the town grew groups left to establish other churches that followed the pattern, ecclesiastical polity
, and worship style each group favored.
Rev. George Kevorkian served as pastor from May 1942 to December 1943 when he and his wife left to become missionaries
to the Belgian Congo
. In 1948 Rev. Kevorkian was killed in a plane crash there, But Mrs. Kevorkian continued to serve in Africa until she retired. They were the first in a long line of missionaries of who served the Boron church before going to the mission field.
Rev. Clell Horton first served as pulpit supply in Boron in 1944 and was officially called as pastor in 1945. He and his family served the Boron church for nine years until 1954. The members of the church built the Nursery Building which housed multiple classrooms, and the church grew to average an attendance of 150 to 175 during these years.
Pastor J. Earl Reavis and his wife MaryJo moved to serve the Boron church in March 1954 and during that 6 year ministry they oversaw the building of a new parsonage and the erection of the current Social Hall and Sunday School
class building using two barracks buildings bought from Edwards Air Force Base
. Harlee Sallee and Pastor Reavis barely escaped when the building settled and shifted before final placement.
In 1955 the church name was officially changed to the First Baptist Church of Boron. The next pastor of the church was Rev. Fred Hobson of Delano
who served the church family from June 1960 to October 1962.
Pastor Norvall Pickett's seven year ministry began in January 1963. He oversaw the redecoration of the interior and exterior of the Sanctuary building and the paving of the church parking lot, adding lights to the parking lot for evening activities as well. He led the congregation in the decision to purchase an additional five acres of land adjacent to the current parsonage across the street from the Boron Junior-Senior High School for future expansion of facilities. Vacation Bible School
was held for two weeks each summer serving many children from the community, as well as a family summer camp held at Thousand Pines Christian Camp & Conference Center in Crestline, California
most summers. His wife Jean Pickett served the community as a registered nurse during this time. Rev. Pickett left the church to pastor the First Baptist Church of Ridgecrest
in January 1970. Membership during this time grew to an average of 200 to 250.
Rev. Cal Gregory was pastor of the church for one year from October 1970 to October 1971, while Rev. Renolds VanBuskirk was pastor of the church for three and one half years, from May 1972 through October 1975. Rev. Robert Estus served the church as Interim pastor three separate times between pastors.
Rev. Dick Seymour came to Boron First Baptist Church as its tenth pastor in September 1976 through August 1994, a period of almost 14 years. Rev. Al Stilley was the eleventh pastor serving from October 1994 through August 1998, when the church celebrated its 60th anniversary. It is unknown when he left.
The church's current membership is around 100 and the pastor (2010) is the Rev. Thomas Kinsfather.
in November, 1963 at which time this bell was tolled.
Labor Day picnics held in the Tehachapi
City Park have long been a tradition of the church family, where many families and old-timers came together for an annual picnic and reunion to mark the end of summer.
Easter Sunrise Services have been held over the years. While Rev. Pickett was pastor, he was also chaplain
at the Boron Air Force Station (750th Radar Squadron) which later became the Boron Federal Prison Camp/Boron AFS (site). Easter Sunrise services were held there each year while he was chaplain.
The legendary "Walking George" Swain
served as pianist/organist for First Baptist Church from 1965 until near his death in 2000. He started playing for the church after an encounter with him as he walked past the parsonage where Rev. Pickett learned of his genius musical talent. He was invited to stop by the church anytime it was open to practice, and he soon became a regular, playing for services as needed. He rarely missed a meeting even though he walked everywhere he went.
Boron, California
Boron is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. Boron is located east-southeast of Castle Butte, at an elevation of 2467 feet . The population was 2,253 at the 2010 census, up from 2,025 at the 2000 census...
was founded over 70 years ago in 1938, as the First Baptist Church of Amargo (the name of the settlement at that time), the first organized church in the community now known as Boron, California
Boron, California
Boron is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. Boron is located east-southeast of Castle Butte, at an elevation of 2467 feet . The population was 2,253 at the 2010 census, up from 2,025 at the 2000 census...
, then renamed the Community Baptist Church of Boron, then finally the First Baptist Church of Boron in 1955. Many pastors have served this church since its foundation and have seen to the spiritual well being of its members.
Foundations
The church in Boron, CaliforniaBoron
Boron is the chemical element with atomic number 5 and the chemical symbol B. Boron is a metalloid. Because boron is not produced by stellar nucleosynthesis, it is a low-abundance element in both the solar system and the Earth's crust. However, boron is concentrated on Earth by the...
began as a Sunday School
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
ministry in the original "company town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
" north of the present town limits next to the original underground Borax
Borax
Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...
mine. One road of housing was nicknamed "Baptist Road" because several of the families who lived there were Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
.
About 75 to 100 persons attended the first meeting as a church on Easter Sunday morning in 1938 which was held outside on a platform that would soon become the original parsonage at 12315 Roberts Ave. which is next door to the existing, currently used parsonage owned by the church. Members continued to meet in the parsonage until the church building was completed one block away at 12255 Boron Avenue in 1940. It was organized as the First Baptist Church of Amargo, California
Boron, California
Boron is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. Boron is located east-southeast of Castle Butte, at an elevation of 2467 feet . The population was 2,253 at the 2010 census, up from 2,025 at the 2000 census...
, which was the original name of the settlement a few miles south of the underground mine, on August 21, 1938 with 13 charter members. Three of these original members were Dixie Hill, Leone Jamison, and Stan Sausser who attended the 50 year anniversary of the church which was held on September 18, 1988.
Pastors
A. Byron Chase was called as the first pastorPastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of the church and served until 1942 when he left to become a chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
in the U.S. Army. Both the Parsonage
Rectory
A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...
and the Sanctuary were built by the men of the church. The men made the cement blocks which formed the church by pouring cement into hand-made forms. A basement provided space for classes as well as social activities at the time.
When the community's name was changed to Boron the church was renamed to Community Baptist Church of Boron. In the early years, as the only church in Boron, there were people from varied religious backgrounds attending and worshiping together. As the church and the town grew groups left to establish other churches that followed the pattern, ecclesiastical polity
Ecclesiastical polity
Ecclesiastical polity is the operational and governance structure of a church or Christian denomination. It also denotes the ministerial structure of the church and the authority relationships between churches...
, and worship style each group favored.
Rev. George Kevorkian served as pastor from May 1942 to December 1943 when he and his wife left to become missionaries
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
to the Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
. In 1948 Rev. Kevorkian was killed in a plane crash there, But Mrs. Kevorkian continued to serve in Africa until she retired. They were the first in a long line of missionaries of who served the Boron church before going to the mission field.
Rev. Clell Horton first served as pulpit supply in Boron in 1944 and was officially called as pastor in 1945. He and his family served the Boron church for nine years until 1954. The members of the church built the Nursery Building which housed multiple classrooms, and the church grew to average an attendance of 150 to 175 during these years.
Pastor J. Earl Reavis and his wife MaryJo moved to serve the Boron church in March 1954 and during that 6 year ministry they oversaw the building of a new parsonage and the erection of the current Social Hall and Sunday School
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
class building using two barracks buildings bought from Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
. Harlee Sallee and Pastor Reavis barely escaped when the building settled and shifted before final placement.
In 1955 the church name was officially changed to the First Baptist Church of Boron. The next pastor of the church was Rev. Fred Hobson of Delano
Delano, California
Delano's climate is characteristic of the San Joaquin Valley. The weather is hot and dry during the summer and cool and damp in winter. Frequent ground fog known regionally as "tule fog" can obscure vision. Record temperatures range between 115°F and 14°F...
who served the church family from June 1960 to October 1962.
Pastor Norvall Pickett's seven year ministry began in January 1963. He oversaw the redecoration of the interior and exterior of the Sanctuary building and the paving of the church parking lot, adding lights to the parking lot for evening activities as well. He led the congregation in the decision to purchase an additional five acres of land adjacent to the current parsonage across the street from the Boron Junior-Senior High School for future expansion of facilities. Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School is a specialized form of religious education which focuses on children. Churches usually hold the week long events during the summer, though the lengths of such programs may vary, and they are sometimes held during other times of the year.-History:The origins of Vacation...
was held for two weeks each summer serving many children from the community, as well as a family summer camp held at Thousand Pines Christian Camp & Conference Center in Crestline, California
Crestline, California
Crestline is a census-designated place in the San Bernardino Mountains of San Bernardino County, California, USA. The population was 10,770 at the 2010 census, up from 10,218 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Crestline is located at ....
most summers. His wife Jean Pickett served the community as a registered nurse during this time. Rev. Pickett left the church to pastor the First Baptist Church of Ridgecrest
Ridgecrest, California
Ridgecrest, formerly known as Crumville, was incorporated as a city in 1913. It is located in the Indian Wells Valley in northeastern Kern County, California, adjacent to the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake . Ridgecrest is the only incorporated city along US 395 in Kern County...
in January 1970. Membership during this time grew to an average of 200 to 250.
Rev. Cal Gregory was pastor of the church for one year from October 1970 to October 1971, while Rev. Renolds VanBuskirk was pastor of the church for three and one half years, from May 1972 through October 1975. Rev. Robert Estus served the church as Interim pastor three separate times between pastors.
Rev. Dick Seymour came to Boron First Baptist Church as its tenth pastor in September 1976 through August 1994, a period of almost 14 years. Rev. Al Stilley was the eleventh pastor serving from October 1994 through August 1998, when the church celebrated its 60th anniversary. It is unknown when he left.
The church's current membership is around 100 and the pastor (2010) is the Rev. Thomas Kinsfather.
Pastors
| First | Rev. A. Byron Chase | August 1938 - April 1942 | 3 yrs. 8 mo. | |
| Second | Rev. George A. Kevorkian | May 1942 - December 1943 | 1 yrs. 7 mo. | |
| Third | Rev. V. Clell Horton | March 1945 - February 1954 | 8 yrs. 11 mo. | |
| Fourth | Rev. J. Earl Reavis | March 1954 - April 1960 | 6 yrs. 1 mo. | |
| Fifth | Rev. Fred Hobson | June 1960 - October 1962 | 2 yrs. 4 mo | |
| Sixth | Rev. Norvall J. Pickett | January 1963 - January 1970 | 7 yrs. | |
| INT | Rev. Lee Payne | January 1970 - September 1970 | 8 mo.(Interim) | |
| Seventh | Rev. Calvin Gregory | September 1970 - November 1971 | 1 yr. 2 mo. | |
| Eighth | Rev. Reynolds S. Van Buskirk | May 1972 - October 1975 | 3 yrs. 5 mo. | |
| INT | Rev. Robert Estus | November 1975 - September 1976 | 8 mo. (Interim) | |
| Ninth | Rev. Richard Seymour | October 1976 - August 1994 | 17 yrs. 10 mo. | |
| Tenth | Rev. Al Stilley | October 1994 - unk | ||
| ?? | ||||
| ?? | Rev. Thomas Kinsfather | unk - unk |
Church traditions
The church has had a railroad bell in its steeple for over 50 years. It has been rung to call worshipers to service each week as well as to commemorate weddings and many other events happening in the community and the nation as well. A memorial service was held for the community on the death of President John F. KennedyJohn F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
in November, 1963 at which time this bell was tolled.
Labor Day picnics held in the Tehachapi
Tehachapi, California
Tehachapi is a city incorporated in 1909 located in the Tehachapi Mountains between Bakersfield and Mojave in Kern County, California. Tehachapi is located east-southeast of Bakersfield, at an elevation of...
City Park have long been a tradition of the church family, where many families and old-timers came together for an annual picnic and reunion to mark the end of summer.
Easter Sunrise Services have been held over the years. While Rev. Pickett was pastor, he was also chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
at the Boron Air Force Station (750th Radar Squadron) which later became the Boron Federal Prison Camp/Boron AFS (site). Easter Sunrise services were held there each year while he was chaplain.
The legendary "Walking George" Swain
George Swain
George Swain was a local legend from Boron. His knickname was "Walking George."He had penchant for walking that made him a legend among locals, in the Los Angeles Times, and even on national television...
served as pianist/organist for First Baptist Church from 1965 until near his death in 2000. He started playing for the church after an encounter with him as he walked past the parsonage where Rev. Pickett learned of his genius musical talent. He was invited to stop by the church anytime it was open to practice, and he soon became a regular, playing for services as needed. He rarely missed a meeting even though he walked everywhere he went.