Advancing the Kingdom

consider living in the projects except Mrs. C.

who would hate to, but feels ‘the projects or

the country seem to be the only places you

can go,’ if her house is torn down because

of the Third Street Highway...] people in the

housing projects, not all of it is completely

unfounded.

...hope can be fulfilled only if at the

same

time, attack is made upon the innumerable

forces of poverty which compound the

problems of prejudice in an area such as

that around Kingdom House.

Rogers’s study, although unsettling,

shows the real struggle that the

Kingdom House staff, the Kingdom

House Board and the Women’s

Board had to wrestle in choosing and

implementing programming. A delicate

balancing act of not catering specifically

to racial prejudices, while not alienating

one community at the expense of

another was the tightrope on which

programming balanced.

A slideshow script, “Kingdom House

Serves” found in the archives written

by Ralph Koeppe relates the excitement

and anticipation (as well as anxiousness)

with which the new building was

anticipated. The old Kingdom

House represented deterioration in

the neighborhood. The new edifice

celebrated a fresh start, and represented

a physical evidence of the commitment

of the mission to the people on the near

South Side of St. Louis.

...Quite often we sing the old hymn

which talks about ‘Change and

decay in all around I see’ and in

our neighborhood, this change and

decay is being implemented by the

fact of planned change and so the

bulldozer precedes the builder as the

neighborhood is changing its face very

rapidly.

...We have been a part of that process

and several buildings across from

Kingdom House have disappeared to

make way for our proposed building

which will provide a new look to the

area. In the skyline, viewed from the top

of our building, we can see the steeples

and all other buildings, the factories and

industries which make up the inner city.

We will be able to see it much better –

from a proper perspective – when we

can change the neighborhood and the

skyline and the intent for our society

by the erection of our new building to

serve the 8000 people who live in Public

Housing projects across 12th St.

...It’s a building carefully studied and,

we hope, well planned – a building in which

we have tried to provide for the known needs

of the neighborhood and yet flexible enough

so that as the changes continue, we will be

able to serve the community for the next 65

years as those who preceded us have done in

the past 65 years.

...We have tried to consider every

possible usage and for the present need as

well as long range planning, we believe

that this building is the answer for our

community and a vital demonstration of the

fact the Methodist Church will continue as a

neighbor to those who need it most.

...And so the dream moves into reality

– to provide an opportunity for ‘life and

that more abundant’ for those in need and

desolation.

...The chapel of ‘The Church of the

Master’ will assume new and vital meaning

as a symbol of the church in active mission

obeying the command of its Lord to ‘Go –

teach, preach and heal’.”

The dream that had stretched from

the endowment started at the 50th

anniversary had finally become a reality.

But even as the building was emerging,

obstacles like parking issues, lack of

heat and failure of churches to pledge

their support hindered progress.

Nevertheless, on June 9, 1968, the

cornerstone of the building at 1321 So.

11th Street was laid. The structure cost

approximately $500,000. A campaign

among the churches of the Missouri

East Annual Conference and many

hapter

hree

‘S

uffer

the

hildren

…’ (1956 – 1977)

hoto

Guest from Guardian

Angel at ground breaking

ceremony