Saint Peter Lutheran Church (San Leandro, California)

This congregation originally used only the German language for worship, beginning in 1910. Rev. John Gutlebem was the pastor. Due to ill feelings toward the German society during and after World War I, the church disbanded. Only the Ladies Aid remained, Rev. Herman Theiss was called in 1930 by the Mission Board of the Lutheran Church to serve the church now called Saint Peter in Oakland. A school was started using the back of the church building as the classroom in 1935. A decision was made that it would be beneficial for the congregation to move to San Leandro, so in October, worship only began in the Rose Garden Chapel of Guerrero Mortuary. The Day School remained in Oakland. The congregation started a building fund and purchased property in 1939. They enlarged the living room of the home to provide a room large enough for a combination chapel and school room. The rest of the home was used as living space for the Theiss family. Due to growth, the congregation knew they would need to build a new church, school, or both. Initially, they bought two portable government surplus buildings, moved them onto the property, and began renovations. In 1948 the congregation decided to build a combination parish hall and church large enough to provide facilities and space for worship and social activities. Construction started in early 1949, and the building was dedicated that April. In May 1949, the school was enlarged to make three classrooms. Overcrowding occured by 1952, so the congregation purchased a home for the parsonage. The old parsonage then provided several Sunday School rooms. The Church Council presented a new building program to the congregation in May 1953. They would build a new church and a new school, preferably, simultaneously. The congregation approved the plan. In 1955, building plans were accepted. It was decided that the school would be built, a meeting room and storage space would be added, and the kitchen in the current church building would be enlarged. This work began in late 1956. This project was completed and dedicated in May 1957. The 25th anniversary of the congregatin was celebrated in 1959. The school was closed in 1981 due to economic and other changes. The last building project was a new church building. This was completed and dedicated on January 28, 1962. Part of the school building was leased to a 3-R School and a Counseling Center, in an efffort to serve the community. In 1984, Saint Peter's Community Adult Day Care Center was opened. As of 2004, Grace Chinese Church leased part of the space and the rest was used for a food pantry, library, and Sunday School classrooms. The 50th anniversdary was celebrated on September 30, 1984, with the 30th anniversary of the dedication of the church building celebrated on February 2, 1992. The 70th anniversary of Saint Peter's was celebrated on February 22, 2004. THe church and school building were sold in 2021. There was a closing servicr held in the Sanctuary on September 26, 2021. The congregation rented space at Hope Lutheran Church in San Leandro and began worshiping there on October 24, 2021. It was planned to dissolve the congregation in mid 2023, but Pastor Oatman accepted a call, so the final service was held on January 1, 2023. (Most of this information was taken from a history of the congregation that was written at the time of their 70th aniversary in 2004.)