Row Call: Inside the Anchor's New Look

By Justin Cooper
Photos by Andrew Faulk

On a Sunday morning, towards the beginning of the first 9:00 am service, more than a hundred churchgoers were crammed into the annex building. The summer months had been hot and now watchful ushers monitored the doors in order to keep the air-conditioned coolness inside. The annex is a smaller building that was used during the Anchor churches’ ongoing renovation. As people were getting settled in, Pastor Larson entered and told everyone to move.
Outside.
The crowd marched down the walkway and into the brand new sanctuary. Astonishment showed on faces as people admired the new burgundy carpet and tried out chairs so soft, one simply sank into them. That fresh “brand new” smell permeated the air and a new coat of paint decorated the walls. Feeling right at home, some saints were in for a second surprise as Pastor Larson told everyone to go back to the annex. The time for the Sanctuary's debut was not just yet.



That Sunday night, saints worshipped God for the first time in the newly renovated sanctuary. The enthusiasm was contagious. Following that Sunday, the first large event to utilize the new sanctuary was the Impacto conference, a sectional gathering of Spanish churches and ministers. The Anchor's Spanish Church Puerto Seguro, under the leadership of Pastor Luis Piaz is a dynamic body of believers, which, during the renovation, gave money and worked right along with the English church.
"80% of the changes are done," announced Bro. Gutierrez in an interview last week. The changes are not just in the visible carpet and chairs but also updates were made to the churches' business office and the foyer. The restrooms and the churches’ back hallway are set to be completed soon. The new look comes with a renewed emphasis on some old rules-such as no chewing gum or food in the sanctuary. The Anchors' leadership said that it was important to keep the sanctuary looking as nice as possible.
The renovation startled slowly at first as minor changes were made to the church. But as construction continued, saints were forced to hold services in the annex and the evening service time was changed to start earlier in case the church desired to hold outside services.
All this is part of the Anchor's Nehemiah Project, which began with the dismantling of the old King of Kings set and changed the Anchor's church schedule to 9:00 am and 11:00 am services with Sunday school in between.


Perhaps the unsung hero of the renovation is someone who moved behind the scenes.
Joni Larson, the Pastors’ wife, along with the tremendous help of Mary Wratislaw designed the look of the carpet, selecting the burgundy color and making sure that it complemented the walls and chairs. She also researched a great loan to cover the renovation, which astounded the experts when the loan was sent for a second opinion.
The Anchor has long been in need of a modern update. The pews were old and stained. The new sanctuary fits more people and more comfortably so.
Many hands made for light work during the renovation. A new 24-line phone system was installed. The painting, and installation of the carpet was done by professionals. Also hundreds of hours were given sacrificially by church members including RIOT.
"We had many work days where RIOT youth was involved cleaning up the church," said Pastor Gutierrez. "They have done an outstanding job."