Riverside Victoria Presbyterian Church to celebrate 115th anniversary – press enterprise

Members of Victoria Presbyterian Church, one of the oldest Presbyterian churches in the Riverside area, will celebrate the church’s 115th anniversary during the 10:30 a.m. service on Sunday, October 3.

The church is located at 6091 Victoria Avenue.

The Victoria Presbyterian Church began with services celebrated in the Swedish Lutheran Church on the corner of 11th and Orange streets in downtown Riverside. In 1906, the rectory purchased land across from the Lutheran Church and built a church which was consecrated on Oct. 7, 1906, according to a press release.

In 1915 Reverend Howard Jamieson became pastor of the church, then called Riverside Presbyterian Church, and in 1925 the church building was enlarged.

In 1957, under the direction of the Reverend Robert Bingham, the church sold its land to Riverside County and purchased land at the corner of Victoria Avenue and Lincoln Street. The Victoria Presbyterian Church building was inaugurated on May 31, 1959.

In the 1960s, the church added an education building, and after Reverend William Dittler became pastor in 1969, the church added programs that included a youth group and a Vacation Church School. The church also established a council of deacons in 1974.

Membership declined in the 1980s and 1990s, as did many churches nationwide, accelerated by downsizing at Riverside March Air Force Base.

Reverend Nancy Pat Richardson is now the pastor of the Victoria Presbyterian Church, which holds services at 10:30 a.m. on Sundays. Jeanette Wong is Minister of Music.

Church members regularly collect food and clothing to support Bergerie and the Salvation Army, with large collections at Thanksgiving and Christmas. The church is also participating in Operation Christmas Child, a Samaritan’s Purse project that distributes gift boxes of essential items around the world.

For more information, visit victoriapresbyterianchurch.org or call 951-686-2008.