The First United Methodist Church of Arroyo Grande Celebrates 125 Years of Ministry
Rock founded, Christ centered, Faith sustained
Rooms by Any Other Names
Criswell Hall
Criswell Hall was named after the Rev. Kenneth Criswell who served this church from 1959-1968. His tenure included the period of time when the church built and moved to the new facilities on Halcyon Road. He worked it "hammer in hand".
Criswell Hall is the building on the right. It was originally the sanctuary of the new church on Halcyon Road. This picture was taken before the newer (current) sanctuary was added (which would obscure this view of Criswell Hall).
McMillen Room
David and Ruth McMillen's portrait hangs in today's McMillen Room, and much of the furniture (the couch, chairs, end tables, and coffee table) in the room came from their home as well. All the renovation at the time was paid for by the McMillen trust they had left for the church. This included redoing the floors and carpet, and getting new tables and chairs for the ladies and any other festivities held in the room. David was probably best known for the numerous adult study courses he led. The McMillen Room is on the first floor of the building to the left (pictured above), the "Education Building".
Jesse Wickham Library
Early in the 1970s, Sunday School Superintendent Jessie Wickham spearheaded the creation of a church library. The small room off the Narthex was the perfect place for it. Carmonde Cochran joined in Mrs. Wickham's efforts and remained active in running the library for over twenty years. In the 1980s, Bettie Hammond joined the library team and introduced the Dewey Decimal System for cataloging books. In 1986, the library was officially named the Jessie Wickham Library and dedicated in her honor.
Elsie Heidi Nursery
"Sweet, sweet Elsie." She was the nursery attendant for a very long time, dedicated to it you might say. You may recall her sitting right next to Judy Leonard in church. Elsie came to this church in the 1970s and passed away in the mid 1990s.
