St John's Lutheran Kutztown

Although the exact date the church was organized isn't known, 1752 has been accepted as the date, but it may have been as early as 1744. Services were originally held in a barn a half mile east of Kutztown., but the first meeting house was erected in 1755 on the west bank of the Saucony. In 1789 the congregation decided to erect a new union church (with the Reformed church) in Kutztown, at the cost of $3,307.33. In 1876 the cornerstone for a new, bigger union church was laid, at the corner of Whiteoak and Walnut streets, and the dedication was held on Oct, 28, 1877.

In 1896 the two congregations (Lutheran & Reformed) separated, although both continued to utilize the 1877 church structure. Each church had it's own finances, but shared the maintenance costs of the building and grounds. As early as 1925, St. John's Lutheran had ambitions to build it's own church, and in 1939 purchased a house and large lot known as the Benjamin Kramlich mansion, on the northeast corner of East Main and Maple streets, for $7,450. A recreation building was built on the site soon after, but fundraising for a new, separate church structure languished due to the depression and World War II.

In 1952 it was finally decided to build a separate St. John's Lutheran church, and the celebration of St. John's 200th anniversary that same year was a good platform to build the excitement. In 1953 a new building campaign was begun to raise $160,000 to build at the corner of Main and Maple streets. The total estimate for the new church was $225,000 but there was already $40,000 in hand (the final cost was closer to $300,000). Floor plans, which included seating for 590, facilities for a Ladies' aid room, Bible class room, Sunday school rooms, a stage, a scout room and a men's game room, were approved by Council and presented to the congregation. "The plans included everything needed for the modern, far reaching, seven-day-a-week program so effectively administered by the Christ-centered church of today." The pastor at the time was Pastor Bittner and he remarked "The day is nearly at hand when our dreams will be fulfilled and we shall rise up and build to the honor and glory of God." "There remains one giant to be felled before we can proceed, and that is to raise funds to pay for our new church. We plan to raise $160,000 before Easter in gifts and subscriptions. This is a high goal for a congregation the size or ours, but we know our people will give sacrificially and enable us to win the victory." The campaign was to be accomplished by a great corps of volunteers who would do the job of solicitation. The general campaign chairman was Harold Baldwin, and there were six vice-chairmen - John Dreibelbis, Paul Rohrbach, Lloyd Berger, Paul Fritz, Randolph Leibensperger and Harvey Merkel. Each vice-chair had 5 team captains, and each captain had 5 team workers. The total team equaled 187 volunteers to make contact with the congregation. Pastor Bittner remarked, "This is the greatest endeavor we have undertaken in our 200 years; we must not, we dare not, we will not fail."

More than $160,000 was raised and the groundbreaking took place on Easter day, 1953. The cornerstone was laid in August of 1953. The guest speaker for the day was Pastor L. Fetter who remarked, "Some of us are face stones, others back up those face stones; some are in the foundation; others in the belfry. Let each of us be the best stone possible." The cornerstone contained 17 articles, including a bible, hymnal, a Lutheran catechism and other historical records.

The new church was completed, and dedicated on Palm Sunday in 1957. The service was attended by many local dignitaries, as well as various Pastors from Berks County and Philadelphia. Twenty five students were confirmed and the choir, directed by Kathryn Druckenmiller, sang. A concert to dedicate the new organ was presented by Maestro Giuseppe Moschetti, music director at St. John's Lutheran Allentown, the following week. The new church was the culmination of countless hours by construction crews, as well as dedicated church member volunteers.

Since that exciting time, St. John's has continued to grow and minister to the Kutztown community and the world. The church opened a pre-school in 1965 and a day-care center in 1988, which still provides excellent daycare and latch key programs for local children today. St. John's has also sponsored a Cub Scout pack and Boy Scout troop for more than 60 years. And, our facility is used by many local organizations as well as those from Kutztown University.

St. John's has had many pastors over the years who have lead the congregation forward to grow and serve the community - from Rev. Knoske, Rev. Cressman, Rev. Bittner, Rev. Deisinger, Rev. Ritter, Rev. Wenzel, and now to our new minister, Rev. MaryAnn Hamm who joined us in October 2014. It is with excitement we look to the future and what this next generation will accomplish.

As in the past, so now in the present, St. John's is a forward-looking and forward-thinking congregation. God holds the future, and us, in his hands. What he will make of us is still to be determined, but our history teaches us this much, "God works for good with those who love him" (Romans 8:28).