Years of Growth, 1975-1987

On July 1975, Father John Ocana was assigned to the church with his wife Eileen and their four children. At that time, the Eastern Rite Liturgy was introduced and the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom was fully implemented. Under Father John’s spiritual guidance, and using his experience as an educator, he focused on growing the church spiritually, and spreading Orthodoxy to all. Father John served the parish until the middle of 1983.

During this period our church witnessed a dramatic growth of new parishioners, many of whom were new immigrants from the Middle East. The original chapel became too small to accommodate the growing community. In 1977 the parish council began serious discussions about building a new church structure that would accommodate a larger congregation. A building committee was formed, consisting of Wageeh Tawfik and Cam Hanna of blessed memory and Fuad Kattuah, who worked tirelessly on the project from its beginning through completion. The ground breaking was in June 1980 and work proceeded as funds were raised over the next five years. Once again, parishioners put their homes up as collateral for a construction loan. In September 1983, construction reached a critical stage when the church needed to raise funds to seal the exterior of the building before the winter rains. Lenore Baba organized the first International Food Festival to raise the necessary funds, and the food festival has been the principal annual fundraiser for our church ever since.

In 1983, Father Kirrill Gvosdev was assigned to the church to replace Father John and served until 1986.  During this time, construction continued to proceed, with the electrical and plumbing completed in 1983, and the interior walls in 1984. The baptismal font was dedicated in memory of Maryann Ajlouni by her parents Basem and Maha in 1984. Finally, in 1985 the church passed inspection by the county and an occupancy permit was issued. The church was completed with the exception of pews and an altar, and the first Divine Liturgy was held the week before Christmas 1985. From 1986-7, the church was served by two priests, Father Dennis Lajoie followed by Father James McLuckie. In 1987, the Very Reverend Thomas Ruffin of blessed memory was assigned to the church, where he faithfully served for the next twelve years.