[The first half of this article with a picture of the first church building was published in the Owasso Reporter on September 23, 2015. The second half was published on September 30, 2015.]
In the late summer of 1940, Owasso was what many would call a wide spot in the road, a sleepy little town of 200 to 300 citizens. The town was little more than two blocks wide and four blocks long plus a school on the east side, all residing at the northern edge of the perennially-flooding Bird Creek bottom lands. The two-lane concrete road was Highway 75 and doubled as Main Street as it passed through town before it took a sharp right at the south end of town on its way to Tulsa.
All was not well in the world in the late summer of 1940. It had been a year since war in Europe had begun. The news was deeply disturbing, even in a little backwater town in the middle of a country half a world away from the fighting. News from Europe was perpetually bad. From May 27th to June 4th, almost 340,000 retreating British, French, and Belgium soldiers were evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk to England across the English Channel. Paris fell in June, and the Battle of Britain fought in the skies over England began on July 10th and lasted through October. The bombing blitz of London began on September 7th and continued for 57 uninterrupted nights. Millions of Americans listened nightly to the voice of Edward R. Murrow saying, “Hello America, This is London calling.” His nightly broadcasts from the streets of London reported on the death and destruction in the beleaguered city while accompanied by the sounds of air raid sirens and exploding German bombs. An ominous omen of things to come occurred in September when the Oklahoma-based 45th Infantry Division was called up for a year’s federal duty and training. Draft registration of sixteen million men began in October.
All of these events were deeply unsettling as remembrances flooded back of 117,000 sons and husbands who fought and died in the European war to end all wars barely two decades earlier. As a result of those uncertain times in the late summer of 1940, several citizens of the area “felt a need to hold meetings.”
Evangelists George Cason and Lee Barnes agreed to conduct an open-air revival on a vacant lot in the 100 block of West Broadway, behind what was then Mounger’s Hardware at Two North Main (the present location of the Owasso Library). From this series of meetings a small church was birthed with Brother Cason and Brother Barnes acting as co-pastors. Charter members included Bonnie Barnes, Dora Cason, Lee and Myrtle Downey, Sadie Kauffman, Harry and Isadora Klahr, Gus and Jane O’Neal, Anna Reynolds, and Addie Rogers. First services of the newly launched church were in the old Masonic Lodge building located at 117 North Main. In the fall of 1942, the congregation moved to what had been the Pick and Pay Grocery at 15 North Main. After they had been in this building for a few months, lots on the corner of Main and First Streets were purchased from a Mr. Smith, and construction of a building was begun.
The 38’x50’ building was a one room structure built of red clay blocks by Gus O’Neal; his grandson, Lewis O’Neal; Harry Klahr; and other volunteer laborers. Pastor Cason worked for Spartan Trailers. This company gave him scrap lumber that was used to floor the church. The salary Brother Cason received went into the building fund. Brother Cason was a prayer warrior and everyone around knew when he prayed. God not only listened but his neighbors also listened when he entered his “prayer closet” (his tool shed) to intercede for the church and lost souls. The red block building was ready for occupancy by the fall of 1943. The church submitted its application to become a member of the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri, on September 13th of that same year and was “officially” accepted on September 29th.
Mrs. Lela McGuire became the pastor in January 1944 and stayed until November 13, 1944. She moved to California and began a radio ministry. The next pastor, George Schaum and his family, moved to Owasso in January 1945. For a while Reverend Schaum was the only resident pastor in Owasso and was called upon by the whole community to perform marriages, conduct funerals, and visit the sick.
During Reverend Schaum’s pastorate, two additions were added to the original structure. First, Sunday school rooms were built on the back, and in 1947, a two-story structure was built on the front enlarging the sanctuary and adding classrooms upstairs.
The Reverend A. N. Burns pastored the church for four years from January 1, 1955 to June 1, 1959.
In August of 1959, Charles Tomlinson assumed the pastorate along with his wife Wanda. The congregation had already started a building fund. Reverend Tomlinson drew plans and a new building was built on the north side of the old structure. Completed in 1962, the original church building and parsonage were razed to make parking space. Reverend Tomlinson pastored the church for twenty-one and a half years until March 1981. Wanda Tomlinson returned to Owasso First Assembly after Brother Tomlinson’s death and became the church secretary for several years under the pastorates of Brother Lambert and Brother Knight.
Don Dorsey was pastor from 1981 to April 1986 along with his wife, Norma. An unfortunate automobile accident and resulting injuries led to Reverend Dorsey’s early retirement from full time ministry. However, under his leadership, 9.9 acres of land at 9341 North 129th East Avenue was purchased for $59,527.50.
The Reverend Clarence E. Lambert was called as pastor May 21, 1986 along with his wife Lorene. Reverend Lambert had served as the Secretary of New Church Planting at the Headquarters of the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri. In 1987, and again through the providence of God, the church learned of the availability of church architectural and engineering plans and fabricated structural steel originally costing $305,756. It was acquired by Owasso Assembly for $45,000. From1987 through 1991, construction costs amounted to over $1,000,000., and the church was able to pay for each segment as it was built.
Several attempts to sell the Main Street church property were made as the new building was moving toward completion. In April of 1992, negotiations were being held with a new church group, Friendship Baptist, regarding their interest in acquiring the Main Street property. Final word was received from their representatives that they would acquire the Main Street facility for $300,147, substantially the same price being asked for the property. News of their decision to buy the Main Street church came only 45 minutes prior to a meeting of the congregation that had been called to consider borrowing additional funds to finish the new structure. Through proceeds from the sale of the church located on Main Street, $750,000 in additional borrowed funds, and four years of hard work and dedicated effort, the new church was completed and occupied on October 4, 1992. The building and property were valued at $2.5 million at that time. The foresight of the leaders who purchased and built the property is evident when one considers that there were no commercial properties for over a half mile in any direction upon completion of the church in 1992.
Reverend Arvle Knight followed Brother Lambert’s pastorate and began serving as pastor in October 1993 along with his wife Beverly. Under Brother Knight’s leadership, construction of a multi-purpose building including gymnasium, aerobics room, kitchen, classrooms, storage, and offices was built in 1996 at a cost of $1.3+ million. To meet anticipated future expansion needs, the corner property adjoining the church to the north and fronting on East 96th Street North and North 129th East Avenue was acquired on June 1, 2000. The 4.5-acre tract was acquired for $1,000,000 and considered to be one of the most prime pieces of real estate in the Owasso area.
Reverend Bruce McCarty was called as pastor in August 2001 along with his wife Janet. Brother McCarty served as the Southern Missouri District Youth Director and pastored a church in West Memphis, Arkansas, prior to coming to Owasso. Under his leadership a 26,000 square foot Youth building and a state-of-the-art children’s wing were constructed. Not only has Brother McCarty served the church well for fourteen years, he also serves as one of two executive presbyters for the Oklahoma District of the Assemblies of God.
Personal Remembrances
I have been blessed to have been a part of Owasso Assembly for almost seven decades. The oldest member of my family tree that has been associated with Owasso Assembly was Mary Elzina Downey, my great grandmother who was born in 1868 and came to the Owasso area in 1895 by wagon from Ryan Indian Territory on the Red River. She was a part of that early church along with two of her daughters and a son—Pearl Hart (my grandmother) and Josephine (Toots) Downey. Josephine never married and lived with my great grandmother in a small house behind Komma Grocery. She was the town clerk and later city clerk between 1945 and 1976. Komma Grocery (now the Owasso Historical Society building) was owned and operated by Rose Komma, sister to Pearl and Josephine. Lee Downey was their brother and one of the original deacons at the church.
Since those early days, there have been many of my family members (myself included) who have been loved, taught, and birthed into the kingdom of God by members of the church. And there have been many baptisms, marriages, and burials of family members conducted by the pastors and members of the congregation.
Because The Church is what might be called a spiritual family tree, the true beginnings of Owasso First Assembly stretch all the way back to Calvary; a crimson thread that runs from the foot of the Cross through the centuries to that point in time when we made our personal decisions to become followers of Jesus Christ while at Owasso First Assembly. Many others have found Christ on another branch of this spiritual family tree but have been grafted into the body at Owasso First Assembly.
I shall be eternally grateful that God has allowed my family and me to have been a part of this wonderful church family.
Larry G. Johnson
