The MVUUC History Project
Researched and Written by Kathleen Reeves
The Monte Vista Unitarian Universalist Congregation has a long and rich history with origins in the late nineteenth century. It was founded in 1888 as The “First Unitarian Society of Pomona” and has served as a prominent beacon of liberal religion in the Pomona Valley almost continuously since that time. One of our active and talented members, Kathleen Reeves, began the process of collecting and compiling our congregations history in 2010 as a “labor of love”. As a result, the “MVUUC History Project” was born and published in a series of newsletter articles in 2012. You can review those articles by clicking on the button, below.
In reading about our Congregation’s history one is reminded that, as we face the future, we are better prepared because we are standing on the shoulders of amazing past leaders.
Ministers Through the Years
Researched and Written by Kathleen Reeves
Oscar Clute 1888-1889
Edwin C.L. Browne 1889-1891
Leslie W. Sprague and Lila Frost Sprague 1891-1893
Ulysses G.B. Pierce 1893-1897
David Heap (interim) 1897-1898
Charles A. Livingston 1898-1900
N.M. Jones 1900-1901
Oscar Clute 1902
H.W. Knickerbocker 1902
Leo W. Fuller 1902-1903
Missing information 1903-1916
Francis Watry 1916-1928
Miss Buillony 1935
Earnest Whitesmith 1936
Richard Borst 1939-1940
Peter Samsom 1940-1943
Nine years between churches
Members continued meetings through women’s alliance
Pomona Valley Unitarian Fellowship 1952
Lealand Stewart 1952-1952
Fellowship granted Charter from AUA With official recognition became:
Pomona Valley Unitarian Society
Herring 1957-1961
Walton Cole 1961-1966
Ernie Howard 1966-1984
Vernon Curry (interim) 1984-1986
Ellen Livingston 1986-2005
Sonja Montana (interim) 2005-2006
Paul Sawyer (interim) 2006-2007
Ann Schranz 2007-
Student Ministers
Dennis Daniel
Linda Stowell 1988-1989
Walter Mattingly 1994-1996
Betty Stapleford 1996-1998
Monica Cummings 1998-2000
Tom Schmidt
Beth Johnson 2001-2003