Cedar Rapids Community of Christ
1500 Blairs Ferry Road Hiawatha, IA 52233-2035
(319) 393-5154
Sunday School: 9:30 AM
Worship: 10:30 AM
Scripture Study: 2nd & 4th Tuesdays
Wednesday Night Live: 5:45 PM – 7:30 PM during the school year for 1st through 12th grades
Pastor: Brenda Mitchell (Contact Brenda)
A Very Brief History of the Cedar Rapids, IA, Congregation.
In August 1903 the "Marion Branch of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" was organized with 17 charter members. In June 1914, since most members by then lived in Cedar Rapids, the name was changed to the "Cedar Rapids Branch". Services were held on Sunday afternoons in members’ homes, most frequently in the home of the then-current pastor. By 1922, the congregation was well organized and met in rent-free rooms, such as the YMCA.
About 1935, with a membership of about 80, the congregation moved to Sokol Hall "temporarily" and stayed 18 years. The rent was $2 per Sunday morning. During services, basketball games could be heard from the gym. Sometimes the first person to arrive had to gather up the spittoons. Although Sokol Hall was not suitable for worship, the congregation grew, both numerically and spiritually.
In 1943 a girl—at the time, a non-member—donated $4 toward a non-existent building fund. In December 1953, volunteer labor having helped to cut the expense, the 95-member Cedar Rapids congregation occupied its first church home, 19th St and A Ave. NE. With devotion, consecrated giving, conservative budgeting, and fund-raisers, the loan was repaid in less than 10 years. Enthusiastic youth groups met weekly for worship and recreational activities. In the late 1960s, Assist groups (small groups of families) met regularly, some concentrating on study, all enjoying meals and fellowship.
In 1975, 20 acres of land on Blairs Ferry Road in Hiawatha were purchased. Again, men, women, and children volunteered their labor. The Freedom Festival in September 1985 dedicated the building and celebrated paying off the loan. The building was built on five of the 20 acres. Parcels of the land have now been sold for Mercy Care North, a dental office, and a hospice. The current building has provided meeting space for Boy Scouts, Parents in Need, weight-loss and other groups; provided recreational facilities for volleyball and Little League; provided a location for a voting precinct; provided facilities for weddings, showers, baptisms, dinners. For months after the flood of 2008, Horizons Family Services credit and home counselors used our educational wing for their temporary offices.
Our congregation mission statement is "We are called to be followers of Jesus Christ, offering the invitation for all people to join us in living out the gospel and pursuing peace." We invite you to come and share with us in worship and fellowship.
