History
Our parish had its beginning in 1907 as All Saints Mission, an outreach of All Saints Church in Pasadena, California. The mission grew quickly and on Easter Sunday, April 6, 1914, was consecrated as St. Mark’s Parish, with the Reverend Albert L. Hall as rector. Work began to build a church and small parish hall for one hundred parishioners. The centerpiece of the new building was the Good Shepherd stained glass window, an important St. Mark’s artifact to this day. Albert Hall was rector until his death in 1926.
Stephen Cutter Clark became the next rector of St. Mark’s. Donations from the expanding congregation allowed a rectory to be purchased, and the church and parish hall were joined as one unit. Then the Great Depression struck. The early 1930s were difficult financially.Nevertheless, under Fr. Clark’s jurisdiction, the parish of St. Mark’s grew strong. Continued growth once again required larger quarters. Sensing that population growth in the cities would push people toward the mountains, Fr. Clark selected Altadena as the site for the new church. Plans were laid in 1941 to raise funds for the move north, but the entry of the United States into World War II effectively delayed further progress. In 1946, vestrymen were instructed to investigate possible sites for a new church in Altadena. Through the persuasive efforts of Fr. Clark, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Markham donated their property, the site of our present church and parking lot. The Reverend Stephen Cutter Clark served the parish until 1946, when he resigned to become the Missionary Bishop of Utah.
In 1947, the Rev. Edward Everett Hailwood became rector of St. Mark’s, taking on the project of building a new church in Altadena. Ground was broken on Nov. 2, 1947 and the new church was dedicated by Bishop Robert B. Gooden on June 16, 1948. The mortgage on the new church building required constant fundraising on the part of the vestry. An every-member canvass in the fall of 1954 allowed St. Mark’s to burn the mortgage in June of 1955. Two houses adjacent to the church were purchased in 1956. One house was used for Sunday School and as a nursery. Another was redecorated and became the Rectory. Fr. Hailwood resigned after the unexpected death of his wife.
Stepping in as rector in this emergency situation was Charles Howard Perry. He was a dynamic priest, and with his arrival in 1957, he brought much-needed momentum to a church and school expansion program. The Youth House was completed in 1958. An administration building, with offices and classrooms, was completed in 1959. He also started the monthly publication of a church newsletter. St. Mark’s opened a preschool in the fall of 1960.
The Reverend Robert L. Cornelison, who had been a Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral in Los Angeles, was the next rector of St. Mark’s from 1961 to 1967. Under his direction, the parish day school expanded to include a kindergarten in 1966 and first and second grade classes in 1967.
The 1960’s were a time of change for the community of Altadena as well as for our nation. The church, which had previously been resistant to racial integration, slowly began to understand that being a welcoming congregation meant opening its doors to an increasingly diverse community on all sides. The inclusion of African Americans, Asians, and other ethnicities accounted for much of the growth of the parish and the day school. The diverse and inclusive congregation that we enjoy today is the legacy of that important shift in attitudes.
The Rev. Richard Harms was rector from 1968 to 1973. Father Harms, who had been Curate under Howard Perry, came back to St. Mark’s after serving as a rector in Puerto Rico. He saw that the current buildings were unable to house the growing needs of the parish day school. The old Sunday School house was razed, and in its place was erected a modern, two-story elementary school building, with classrooms for kindergarten through sixth grade.
The Reverend Canon Nicholas Kouletsis served as rector from 1973 to 1981. During his tenure, he encouraged the school’s growth. His choice of Merrily Dunlap as principal of the school in 1975 proved to be the catalyst for establishing St. Mark’s School as not just a parish day school, but as an accredited educational institution of great renown in the San Gabriel Valley.
In 1978 parishioners spearheaded a drive for a new organ. A Karl Wilhelm tracker (mechanical-action) organ was installed in 1983. To accommodate it, the sanctuary had to be remodeled. Included was a new altar, a new pulpit, reorientation of the choir, removal of the Good Shepherd window, and the installation of new skylights over the altar area.
The Rev. Canon Thomas M. Fowler was then called as rector, and was asked to resign in 1984.
In 1985 we called the Rev. Richard Warren Graves as Rector. He was faced with a deeply divided congregation, a mistrustful school staff, and significant financial difficulty dating from Father Fowler’s tenure, including a new mortgage. Father Graves worked to reestablish an atmosphere of cooperation between the church and school leadership. In 1990 he appointed Dr. Doreen Oleson as Head of School, in which capacity she serves today. That same year saw a visit from Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who came for the dedication of a new stained glass window honoring him. At about that same time, we entered into a covenant relationship with Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church in Altadena (ELCA). Fr. Graves also empowered lay leaders to take stronger roles in the governance and control of the church. In 1993, for family reasons, he accepted a call to serve as Vicar of St. Paul’s, Grinnell, Iowa.
We called the Rev. Colville Smythe as rector in 1995. At that time, the school was ready for dynamic growth, and had been working on a long range plan that would require significant changes in the church and school. Fr. Smythe appointed a committee to conduct a long range planning process for the church. In 1997, the vestry approved a plan for the growth and modernization of the school. This initiative included adding an additional classroom at each grade level, reducing class size, integrating media and technology, and strengthening instruction in Spanish, music, art, computers, and physical education. The school and the church agreed to partner in a joint capital campaign to raise money for new buildings and to reconfigure shared spaces.
The Rectory became the school administration building, the Rectory garage was modified to house the art program and additional administrative offices, and the parish hall was redesigned as two kindergarten classrooms. The largest and longest project was the building of a new community hall to serve both church and school. The Good Shepherd stained glass window, from our original sanctuary, was installed in a place of prominence.
In 1996 Father Smythe and the vestry called Deacon Susan Russell to join the staff as school chaplain. She served until her ordination to the priesthood. When she left, the congregation wholeheartedly supported the calling of the Reverend Betsy Hooper-Rosebrook to serve as Assistant Priest and School Chaplain. She was named Associate Rector in April 2007.
Under Fr. Smythe’s leadership, we invested a portion of our cash reserves to provide programs and ministries to meet the needs of our growing congregation. The music program was strengthened, stewardship improved, and skilled, enthusiastic lay leaders revitalized the youth group. New worship services were introduced, including a 9:00 a.m. Sunday service aimed at families with children. In early 2007, generous capital gifts made it possible to pay off our mortgage.
Beginning in the fall of 2006, we celebrated our Centennial with a year-long series of special events including an exuberant Festive Eucharist, celebrated by our Diocesan, The Right Reverend J. Jon Bruno in April 2007. At the luncheon that followed, Fr. Smythe announced his forthcoming retirement. At his formal retirement celebration in June 2007, he was named an Honorary Canon of the Cathedral. He left St. Mark’s a strong, healthy parish, poised for new ministry opportunities.
