The same year the country saw the first movie theatre open and the first Rose Bowl played, a tiny flock of faithful parishioners witnessed the construction of the first house of worship in Simi Valley.

The year was 1902 and it had taken three years from the time U.S. Sen. Thomas Bard donated the plot of land at Third Street and Pacific Avenue for the group of 11 Presbyterians to find an architect and raise the nearly $2 thousand needed for the church.

Simi Valley City Councilman Glen Becerra, who has a personal connection to the church because several members of his family have been baptized there, says the church represents an important part of the city’s ecumenical history. Rennovations to the structure are underway, but funds are short.

According to the Simi Valley Historical Society and Museum, the original church featured redwood and Oregon pine, brass fixtures and cathedral glass windows. But the structure was expensive to maintain and it wasn’t long before the building was closed.

In 1910, Catholics re-opened the church as a mission. It wasn’t until 1921, however, that the church was dedicated and given the name St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church. Twenty families attended services there.

As the county population grew, so did church membership. By 1964, the congregation moved to a larger structure on Royal Avenue and let the old building fall into the hands of a succession of owners.

The Rancho Simi Valley Recreation and Park District purchased the church in 2002, but the building bore little resemblance to its former glory days. The park district moved the church to its present location—the Robert P. Strathearn Historical Park and Museum with hopes of completely restoring it.

The move and renovation is costing an estimated $200,000. The city donated $46,000 toward the project. The joint fundraising efforts of the park district and Simi Valley Historical Society and Museum raised an additional $30,000.

Ed Hayduk, park district planning manager, said a new foundation and structural repairs to the building already have been completed. Workers are now in the process of putting on a new roof and he estimates that by this summer the siding, doors, and windows will have been restored. The flooring, drywall, garden and pergola are scheduled for completion by the summer of 2005, Hayduk said.

In addition to structural restoration, an effort has been made to record the church’s history. Colleen Janssen, park district supervisor, visited several museums and contacted a church archivist. Janssen was able to obtain church records dating back to the early 1900s, and even found a 1910 baptism certificate on one of Simi Valley’s oldest families.

Janssen said the church represents an important step in the effort to make Strathearn Park a symbol of the past.

"What we have now is basically a small town," Janssen says.

Fundraising events to pay for restoration of St. Rose of Lima will continue throughout the year., officials say.

For more information, contact Colleen Janssen at (805) 584-4400.