|  |  | | HISTORY OF OWASSO FIRST ASSEMBLY | ||Compiled by Larry G. Johnson [September 1, 2002] |
| | In the late summer of 1940, evangelists George Cason and Lee Barnes conducted an open-air revival on a vacant lot in the 100 block of West Broadway, behind what was then Mounger’s Hardware at Two North Main and now the Owasso Library. From this series of meetings the Owasso Assembly of God was formed with Brother Cason and Brother Barnes acting as co-pastors. Charter members included Bonnie Barnes, Dora Cason, Lee and Myrtle Downey, Sadie Kauffman, Harry and Isadora Klahr, Gus and Jane O’Neal, Anna Reynolds, and Addie Rogers. First services of the newly launched church were in the old Masonic Lodge building located at 117 North Main. In the fall of 1942, the congregation moved to what had been the Pick and Pay Grocery at 15 North Main. After they had been in this building for a few months, lots on the corner of Main and First Streets were purchased from a Mr. Smith, and construction of a building was begun. | | | | The 38’x50’ building was a one room structure built of red clay blocks by Gus O’Neal; his grandson, Lewis O’Neal; Harry Klahr; and other volunteer laborers. Pastor Cason worked for Spartan Trailers. This company gave him scrap lumber that was used to floor the church. The salary Brother Cason received went into the building fund. Brother Cason was a prayer warrior, and everyone around knew when he prayed. He would enter into his ‘prayer closet’, his tool shed, to intercede for the church and lost souls. He never lost his fervor when petitioning heaven for those needs. This is one of the reasons that Owasso First Assembly has weathered the storms and continued to grow through the years, both spiritually and numerically. The red block building was ready for occupancy by the fall of 1943. In September of that same year the church became “officially” affiliated with the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri. | | | | Mrs. Lela McGuire became the pastor in January 1944 and stayed until November 13, 1944. She moved to California and began a radio ministry. The next pastor, George Schaum and his family, moved to Owasso in January 1945. For sometime Reverend Schaum was the only resident pastor in Owasso and was called upon by the whole community to perform marriages, conduct funerals, and visit the sick. | | | | During Reverend Schaum’s pastorate, two additions were added to the original structure. First, Sunday school rooms were built on the back, and in 1947, a two-story structure was built on the front enlarging the sanctuary and adding classrooms upstairs. | | | | The Reverend A. N. Burns pastored the church for four years from January 1, 1955 to June 1, 1959. | | | | In August of 1959, Charles Tomlinson assumed the pastorate along with his wife, Wanda. The congregation had already started a building fund. Reverend Tomlinson drew plans, and the sale of bonds raised the additional funds needed. This was the first church in the area to sell bonds. A new building was begun on the north side of the old structure. Again, this building was built, for the most part, with voluntary labor and completed in 1962. A loan of $6,000 was obtained for carpet and pews. The first church building and parsonage were razed to make parking space. Offices for the pastor and secretary and classrooms upstairs were added in 1973 and paid for with $30,000 in borrowed funds. Two lots for additional parking just west of the Standard Auto building were acquired. Reverend Tomlinson pastored the church for twenty-one and a half years until March 1981. During that time all debts were paid off, and a sizable building fund was established. Wanda Tomlinson returned to Owasso First Assembly after Brother Tomlinson’s death and became the church secretary for several years under the pastorates of Brother Lambert and Brother Knight. | | | | Don Dorsey was pastor from 1981 to April 1986 along with his wife, Norma. An unfortunate automobile accident and resulting injuries led to Reverend Dorsey’s early retirement from full time ministry. However, under his leadership, 9.9 acres of land at 9341 North 129th East Avenue was purchased for $59,527.50. Considering land values in 1982 and land values today, the acquisition was the beginning of a series of manifestations of Divine Providence. An earlier donation (October 28, 1977) of another parcel of land by long time member Elsa O’Donnell Tate was sold in August of 1982, and the $22,000 proceeds covered over one-third of the cost of the acreage. The building fund continued to grow. | | | | The Reverend Clarence E. Lambert was called as pastor May 21, 1986 along with his wife, Lorene. They moved to Owasso on July 25th. Prior to his call to Owasso, Reverend Lambert had served as the Secretary of New Church Planting at the Headquarters of the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri. Prior to that he was the as the Rocky Mountain District Superintendent of the Assemblies of God. Under his leadership, the sanctuary and office area of the church at 106 North Main were totally remodeled and redecorated. In 1987, and again through this same Providence of God, the church learned of the availability of church architectural and engineering plans and fabricated structural steel originally acquired at a cost of $305,756. At the beginning of the construction of a new church, the Southern Hills Church of Christ in Tulsa found another church facility for sale that met their needs. Their construction plans and efforts were stopped, and Owasso First Assembly was able to acquire the architectural and engineering blueprints, with four phase expansion schematic, project manuals, artist concept, and fabricated steel for $45,000. | | | | Groundbreaking for the new church occurred on September 11, 1988. Dr. Joseph R. Flower, General Secretary of the Assemblies of God, was the guest speaker. From 1987 through 1991, the congregation invested over $1,000,000 in construction of the building and was able to pay for each segment as it was built. | | | | Several attempts to sell the Main Street church property were made as the new building was moving toward completion. In April of 1992, negotiations were being held with a new church group, Friendship Baptist, regarding their interest in acquiring the Main Street property. Final word was received from their representatives that they would acquire the Main Street facility for $300,147, substantially the same price being asked for the property. Word came of their decision approximately 45 minutes prior to a congregational meeting called to decide whether to borrow funds to finish the new structure. | | | | In May 1992, the church borrowed $750,000 for installation of the plumbing, heat and air, carpeting, and furnishings. That loan coupled with the proceeds from the sale of the church buildings at 106 North Main allowed for the completion of the building. Following four years of hard work and dedicated effort, the new church was occupied on October 4, 1992. The building and property valued at $2.5 million was dedicated on May 2, 1993 with Armon Newburn, Oklahoma District Superintendent, as guest speaker. | | | | Reverend Arvle Knight followed Brother Lambert’s pastorate and began serving as pastor in October 1993 along with his wife, Beverly. Under Brother Knight’s leadership, construction of a multi-purpose building including gymnasium, aerobics room, kitchen, classrooms, storage, and offices was built in 1996 at a cost of $1.3+ million. The uncompleted upstairs portion of the Activity Center was later completed at a cost of approximately $450,000. To meet the anticipated expansion requirements, the corner property adjoining the church to the north and fronting on East 96th Street North and North 129th East Avenue was acquired on June 1, 2000. The 4.5-acre tract was acquired for $1,000,000 and was considered to be one of the most prime pieces of real estate in the Owasso area. Under Brother Knight's leadership, Owasso First Assembly's Sunday morning worship services grew from approximately 250 in 1993 just after the congregation moved into the building to over 700 shortly before his resignation in March 2001. | | | | Reverend Bruce McCarty was called as Pastor in August 2001, along with his wife Janet. Pastor McCarty served as the Southern Missouri District Youth Director and Pastored a church in West Memphis, Arkansas, prior to coming to Owasso. |
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