St. Paul's Lutheran church was organized in 1920 with five charter families conducting the first services in German in the Odd Fellows Hall on Park Avenue in downtown Pomona. The first pastor, Rev. J. H. Heiserman, arrived in 1923 and found a small struggling group. By 1925, the congregation had grown large enough to build a small chapel which is now the present Parish Hall. By the mid 1930's they had outgrown the chapel.
In 1939, the second pastor, Rev. Lawrence Faasch, arrived and plans were developed to build a larger church building. Finally, in 1941, an architect was hired to draw up plans for the church building incorporating the old chapel. The present church was built during World War II, where the congregation worshiped the first winter with no heat in the building due to the War efforts.
In 1947, a Lutheran Day School was established for grades 1-8 in the Parish Hall. By 1950, the first wing of the school building was constructed. In the mid 1970's, the school grew to almost 200 students. By 1987, the school closed due to the changing neighborhood. Presently, the three North classrooms are rented to Soledad Enrichment Action, a charter school for teenagers who have difficulties in the regular classroom setting.
St. Paul's has always been mission-minded with her members, establishing Redeemer Lutheran Church in Ontario, St. Luke Lutheran Church in Claremont, Peace Lutheran Church in Pomona, and helping start many other Lutheran congregations in the Valley. St. Paul's has also supported mission work throughout the world.
Today, St. Paul's has about 120 baptized members. Our members live in and around Pomona and come from diverse ethnic and family backgrounds. We are a traditional Lutheran church with a proud history of serving the Pomona area for the past 85 years. We look forward to Proclaiming Christ and Serving Others for many years to come.
If you are interested in knowing more about the history of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, a book entitled The Mother of the Valley was published about her in 2001. Currently, copies of the historical book are available from the author, Mr. Michael Doyle. He can be reached at: mikedoyle@adelphia.net.