The Blue Roof Church in St. Joseph is celebrating its 100th anniversary this month. Executive Pastor Yolanda Mendez tells us the congregation started out small in Benton Harbor, before it even had a building.
“It began way back in 1916,” Mendez said. “There was a group of people that had a passion for Benton Harbor and the St. Joseph area and began to have prayer meetings in their home. Then they became an official congregation, and it was the First Assembly of God.”
The first church was a wooden structure at Highland and McCord. They later replaced that building, and then moved to a building on Nickerson, which is now the Greater Grace Temple. The congregation broke ground on the current church at 3084 Niles Road in St. Joseph in 1997. Has it always had a blue roof?
“The initial plan was for the blue roof. Of course, over time people would say, ‘The church on I-94 with the bright blue roof,’ so then they did change the name from the First Assembly of God to the Blue Roof Church.”
The church sits on 40 acres and now has a variety of programs. Mendez says it’s continued to thrive through changing times. There will be a weekend of celebration July 29 and July 30. That Saturday be a ticketed event with a focus on the history of the church. They’ll also have a guest speaker and a dinner. Sunday’s activities will include a service with historic music, a bounce house, a picnic, and games. That will be open to everyone.
The original church building:
