Naperville church to celebrate 50th anniversary
The Evangelical Free Church of Naperville's 50th anniversary celebration will focus on the church and all that each pastor contributed at 6 p.m. Sunday at 1551 E. Hobson Road, Naperville.
The community is invited to the celebration, "Stones of Remembrance."
"We will have a stone for each pastor because each pastor has contributed something to the church. It's been a progression through the years," said Ruth Sawyer, chairwoman of the 50th anniversary committee.
After the celebration, the stones will be added to the church's landscape.
While none of the former pastors are attending, each will be represented with a stone labeled with what that pastor contributed.
Throughout the church's history, spiritual themes have guided the pastors' direction to meet a specific need of the parishioners at that time. One example is "Acceptance," representing the teaching that personal appearance is not as important as attending church.
"This happened at a time when members felt that some of the teenagers from the high school who were attending services weren't dressed right for church," Sawyer said.
The celebration includes a video of the church's history, reflections from some members who grew up in the church, music from the church band and the unveiling of a mural collage.
The mural is a time line of the church, including when each pastor served and three main church buildings and four additions were built.
In 1957, when Naperville was still a farm town, two men from the Evangelical Free Church in Wheaton decided to start their own congregation in neighboring Naperville to reach more people. Seventeen people attended the first service at the Bank of Naperville Church.
"Music was so important that they bought 50 to 100 hymn books for use during the services, and someone in Chicago donated a piano," Sawyer said.
Throughout the church's early years, the members met in locations familiar to long-time and recent Naperville residents. After meeting in the Bank of Naperville for years, the growing congregation moved to Beebe School in 1964. Then members met in the Women's Club Building in 1965 before moving to the new building on North Main Street in l966.
An educational wing was added in 1968, followed by an enlarged sanctuary in 1975.
The additions to the first church building met the needs of the congregation until 1982, when 200 people regularly filled the sanctuary to capacity. The decision was made to hold morning services at Naperville North High School, and for the next three years the congregation met there.
"In 1985, 18 acres of land at the corner of Hobson and College roads were purchased, signifying a huge step for the church," Sawyer said.
On Oct. 15th, 1985, a long caravan of cars followed the road from Naperville North to 1551 E. Hobson, where the first service was held in the new sanctuary. A standing-room only crowd of 600 people attended. The following Sunday two services were held to accommodate all the people.
New additions in 1988 and 1996 for education space accommodated the growing needs of families. A Worship Center to seat 1,500 people was dedicated in October 2005.
"It is a state-of-the-art facility with high-tech lighting and sound systems, which makes it a favorite venue for concerts and other events," Sawyer said. "Each Sunday morning, a total of over 2,000 people meet during two services to sing, worship, pray and receive biblically-based teaching."
With services at 9:30 and 11 a.m. Sundays, additional services will be added at 5 and 6:30 p.m. Saturdays in December.
For details, visit www.efcn.org or call (630) 983-3232.
If you go
What:The Evangelical Free Church of Naperville celebrates its 50th anniversary
When:6 p.m. Sunday
Where:1551 E. Hobson Road, Naperville
Call: (630) 983-3232