October 1961

Arrival of Pastor Gordon Selbo.

By the time the first service was held at the Red Shirts Riding Club on December 17, 1961, much work had gone into the creation of St. Timothy's. The American Lutheran Church was helping plan and finance a hundred or more "start-up" churches across the country during the '50s and '60s. Thanks to the South Pacific Regional Director, the Rev. T. Arnold Thompsen, San Jose was considered an ideal prospect for development. Even before the arrival of the first pastor, the Camden property as well as a parsonage on Carter Ave. were purchased.
   When Rev. Gordon Selbo arrived in October '61, he had only two months to take the as yet unnamed St. Timothy's from concept to reality. But with God's help, he was able to name the church, canvass the community door-to-door, locate a temporary place of worship, determine a date for the first service, print a brochure to leave with prosoective members, choose an architect, select a contractor and get his family, which insluded four children, settled into a new home.
   Finally, the prayers of many were answered as 129 people showed up for that first service on December 17, 1961, and St. Timothy's was on the way.

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