Over 75 Years of God’s Faithfulness: A Montage

carl_burnham

We trace our earliest roots to the Furnace Street Mission in 1933. In 1934, the rubber industry was strong, the Akron community was growing, and some pioneers sensed the need for a church that would have a special attachment to the Bible, a call to emphasize Christ and his wonderful grace, and a terrific love for people.

Carl Burnham

Five Points

Rev. Carl Burnham preached the first sermon at 7:30 at night on January 15, 1934 at The Chapel at Five Points.

The topic was: “The Devil’s Righteousness,” and between 40 and 50 were in attendance. Carl and Agnes Burnham had prayed to transform a 20 x 50 foot storeroom into a church.

They would name it “The Chapel” to signify a small and humble place where the teaching was based solely on the basics of the Bible.

A trap door near the platform led to Sunday School. A pot-bellied stove kept them warm. Focus: invite unchurched loved ones to the tiny church.

Brown & Vine

In 1936, they began to raise money to purchase a lot on the corner of Brown and Vine, and work on the church building began with the basement structure built by volunteer labor.

Until the building was completed, they met in the chilly basement and when it rained they scattered buckets and propped their feet up on the pews to keep dry.

The building was completed in 1947, 450 members strong. Doctrinally: non-denominational, evangelistic, missionary and Bible loving.

Fir Hill

As growth continued, members found the need to yet again “enlarge their tent.” They unanimously voted to purchase the lot on Fir Hill. On Palm Sunday 1954, the cornerstone was laid. On March 27, 1955, 1,000 men, women and children walked from Brown and Vine to The Chapel’s new home on Fir Hill.

From the beginning it was about a spirit of unity and oneness. A story exemplifies this: A farmer became ill and was unable to harvest his corn. Thirty men from The Chapel showed up to complete the task. What an amazing story among many of banding together in difficult times. Outreach to the city and a vision for overseas mission began to build during these years.

Carl Burnham died in 1962 following heart surgery, and son David took the helm.

3_pastors_580

Paul Sartarelli	Dave Burnham	Knute Larson
2009-2012	1962-1983	1983-2009

Listen to the messages all three senior pastors gave at the 75th celebration.

Looking to the Lord | The Love of Christ | God’s Goodness

Dave Burnham

By 1969, membership had grown to 3,200 members. Groundbreaking took place in 1971 for a new sanctuary that would connect to the Fir Hill buildings, dubbing the old sanctuary as Memorial Chapel. The building was dedicated in 1973, and the congregation numbered around 5,000. Pastor David and Sue Burnham upheld the same biblical principles foundational since the beginning.

These years witnessed: Camp Carl, outreach to singles, seniors, and young children. An emphasis on missions exploded during this time. Support for missionaries, seminary students, Kent State and University of Akron campus ministries, local missions such as Shelter Care, Summit County Jail experienced great growth. Christmas and Easter concerts emerged as the music ministry reached a crescendo. Membership 6,700 strong.

A tremendous outreach during this time was Neighborhood Bible Studies. Dave and Sue wrote the first study materials and trained the leaders. The initial invitation was via telephone to every Chapel member. Then people began inviting friends and neighbors. At its peak, there were more than 100 home Bible studies cranking out the Word of God.

In 1982, Pastor Dave Burnham made a jarring announcement—his candidacy for a church in Florida. In the months that followed, a search for a new pastor took place. Pastor Knute Larson stepped in at that time with his wife Jeanine and two daughters.

Knute Larson

Under Knute’s leadership, The Chapel would continue to build upon the solid rock of Christ. From 1983–2000, ministry highlights: continued growth of Adult Bible Fellowships (ABFs) (now called Campus Groups) equipping families to minister, increased expansion into the Akron community through local ministries, radio and TV spots and media visibility, programs for kids, teens, singles, international and cross-cultural ministries.

The year 2000 brought about yet another common “problem” for The Chapel: membership outgrowing the church building. With attendance hovering at around 8,000 and multiple services maxed out, “2020: The Next Chapter” was launched. This was the concept of becoming One Church, Two Locations.

In June of 2003, the Green Campus opened its doors. Two campuses offering worship times, campus groups, programs, Bible studies, support groups now expanded. It was about what The Chapel has always been about: reaching people for Christ.

Paul Sartarelli

With the announcement of Knute’s pending retirement, a search began far and wide for the next senior pastor. The “far and wide” part really wasn’t necessary as God’s choice for the next shepherd of The Chapel was found in a former associate pastor, Paul Sartarelli. And so in 2006, Paul and Susie came on in a unique transitional phase, with Knute officially passing the baton to Paul in June of 2009.

In 2010, the congregation voted to enfold Valleyview Chapel as a third campus of The Chapel. We are now “One Church, Three Locations,” with the addition of Wadsworth Campus.

In 2012, Paul announced that God was calling he and Susie away from The Chapel.

The Chapel, Let’s Keep Growing in Christ

And so we honor our 75+ year heritage with outstretched arms to embrace tomorrow. On Christ the solid rock we continue to stand, and we like to say our DNA consists of Worship, Community and Mission. We also like to think beyond the physical church building and encourage our members to think of themselves as the church “out there.”

And thinking back to the origin of the name, guess you can’t really say we’re small, but may we always show humility and may the Word of God be held high.