Significant Events in the History of The Assembly

[DavidM]

As part ofthe Oral History project I need to write a paper detailing time line of events in the Assembly. For example;


              August 1st 1970:  The Assembly Breaks Bread for the 1st Time in Hillcrest Park.


please feel free to contribute anything that would apply,   Thank You!

[Margaret]

It was February, 1971. Other events someone might remember a date for are: When did the Assembly bring a lawsuit against the City of Fullerton for no longer granting us the exclusive use of the Hillcrest Park recreation facility on Sundays? When did the Assembly move to the Assistance League? (Probably at the same time?) When was the first full time Worker? When did Cornerstone begin? When was the first Mission and Training Team? When was the first tent meeting? When was the first gospel march? When as the first seminar at CSUF? When was the first summer school? When did each of the Assemblies begin? When was the first ANOP?

[Oscar]

Dave and Margaret,

I don't believe we sued the city of Fullerton over the use of the building in Hillcrest Park.  We all went to a city council meeting, but that's as far as it went.  We sued them over not allowing us to have tent campaigns in the city parks.  They were arguing that religious speech in public parks violated the vaunted "separation of Church and State" idea.  They lost.

The first tent campaign was held in the fall of the year I was transferred to Watts.  That was the 77-78 school year, so it must have been 1977.

I remember those other events you named, Margaret, but I have no dates.  I remember that Tim G. was the first paid worker, (at least the first openly paid worker).  He was supposed to work part time, but that only lasted a few months as I remember.  The date??  I just don't remember.

Tom Maddux

[Margaret]

Tom, I'll check with Steve, but I'm pretty sure we sued over Hillcrest and lost. Kerry Fox was the Fullerton city attorney. If anyone is in touch with Bob Anderson, he should remember.

[Oscar]

Margaret,

Now that you mention this, a memory has surfaced.  Tim G. rounded up some attorney who  I believe was willing to take the case on a pro bono basis.  I remember someone saying that his presentation was ridiculous.  That could well have been at a hearing over the Hillcrest building.

The guy who represented us over the tent campaign issue met with the Fullerton leading brothers while he was vacationing in Colorado.  We sat in the circle at the Glacier Lodge and discussed it.  Even then GG was still claiming that we were just a bunch of poor students with no money so he would take the case for free. 

I do remember that originally the city was very eager to have us use the Hillcrest building.  Some groups had used it for Rock music dances and there had been a lot of drug use and the neighbors were complaining.  The guy at the city signed us up for a whole year in advance.

After I left the assembly I had a casual conversation with an elderly woman at the Library one day.  She described to me how she and other neighbors from the affluent neighborhood east of Lemon Ave. had pressured the City to get rid of a pesky bunch that were holding church services in the building at Hillcrest. 

It seems they parked up the neighborhood all day on Sunday and bothered people in the park.   

Tom Maddux

[outdeep]

I would have to guess Tim G in the full time work was around 1978-1979 because it happened not long after I started coming consistently.  My first seminar was the Wars of David in September, 1978.  Then, In the Heavenlies in January, 1979.

I remember a Sunday when Tim gave his famous "the anchors of the faith are like four legs on a desk" sermon officially initiating Anchor groups.  George got up and proclaimed what a wonderful talk it was and how he loved the illustration about the annoying school desk where one leg always was shorter than the rest.  He then announced Tim being a leading brother and in the work full time.  Steve Irons then got up and shared a verse about Paul calling "Timothy whose father was a Greek" (we all thought that was a funny connection).  I remember it being early enough in my process that I really didn't fully grasp what it all meant.

Anyway, that is my fuzzy recollection of it.

I would guess it was around 1979-1980 where the ANOP moved from 10 PM - 5 AM to 7 PM -2 AM (if I have the times right). I never went to the true all night of prayer but started going when it was 7-2. 

Cornerstone had to start later when I was in college  (1982?).  It ran one year in the house of prayer because I remember a brother's meeting there with all the school stuff.  Tony Garisek sat in a little char because he had just hurt his back. 

Mission and Training Team was after I had already gotten out of college so I never had the chance to go on one.  I would guess that happened when I was living at the Irons around 1983-1985.

I would guess the first Huntington Beach tent meeting was around 1979.  I remember taking a friend from high school and being really obnoxious as to how much more the Assembly was over Calvary Chapel.  We met in the oil field somewhere in the middle of nowhere the first year and then just off the pier two years after that.

Gospel marches were pretty much a thing of the past by the time I came around in 1978.  In my later years, we participated in the Fullerton Labor Day parade but that was when Lorraine Sanners was pushing her baby carriage.

These dates are very general as I don't have an accurate memory.

[DavidM]

 What year did we move to the Palm address? What were the dates Santa Barbara, Placentia, Huntington Beach, The Valley, West L.A., Riverside started Breaking Bread?


  Dave My first prayer meeting is very vivid in my mind. 1980 Some guy was being excommunicated. Everyone was so serious, the tension in that crowded room was like nothing I had ever experinced in my life. From that point on I was in total fear that one day it could be me who was being publicaly judged. all the leading brothers would have this look of disgust as George read from a parchment, "David Mauldin has been caught reading pornography!"

[Oscar]

Dave,

The Valley started "breaking bread" soon after I moved to Fullerton in October of 1984.  So my best guess would be late 84 or early 85.

Dave, you said:

My first prayer meeting is very vivid in my mind. 1980 Some guy was being excommunicated.

I'm pretty sure it was Dennis Patrick.  BTW, today he is involved in a church planting ministry in the Denver area.  I guess GG's excommunication didn't "take".

Tom Maddux

[Margaret]

Tom, you're correct, it was Dennis. The move to Palm was not too long after we left (which was in March, 1990).

[outdeep]

Agree- move to Palm was after July 1990.  That is when we left and I never set foot in the Palm property.

Placentia started towards the end of when I lived at Steve's (1983-1985) .  It was a result of the gall the city had requiring us to honor the fire regulations of the Assistance League.

[soul dreamer]

The assembly in Huntington Beach first broke bread in the Woman's Club on 420 Tenth Street on Sept 18, 1983.  A little extra info: saints in HB also leased a storefront on Main Street for a total of about 11 years from the summer of 1981 to 1992.  We had many outreaches out of that building - God knows how many dozens of people prayed to receive the Lord Jesus there.  We also had Thursday night prayer meetings there starting 9-3-81.  The building is now called the Longboard Saloon.

[DavidM]

Thanks, Rick, could you tell me the names of the leading bros?

[Margaret]

This info would be great for ga.com! I've started to record this stuff over there. Here is a tentative timeline http://www.geftakysassembly.com/Reflections/AssemblyTimeline2.htm and also a list of the seminars http://www.geftakysassembly.com/Reflections/Seminars.htm. I've tried to include additional info from other articles on ga.com. Dave, you might take a look.

Questions: Was the third seminar, winter 1971, held in George's home or at Hillcrest? When were Kurt and Andra sent to Champaign? When was Dan Notti sent to St. Louis?

Margaret

[DavidM]

Thanks Maragret! Great Job!

[DavidM]

It would be interesting to look at the time line of events along with the growth of the work. Also if we could get all the seminar messages in order. (O.K. I don't want to overkill.) But I am just wondering if this could really open up light on the subject of cults! We might be able to identify specific dynamics at work!  etc...