Edmonds Church of God celebrates 100 years of community

EDMONDS — They are celebrating the past, but they also welcome the future.

The Edmonds Church of God just marked 100 years.

Worship leader Joel Tallman, 53, of Edmonds, was raised in the church. He’s been running the music program for nearly three decades.

His five grown children and two grandchildren attend. His wife, Janine, plays drums and sings. One son works as a sound technician. Another daughter sings.

“Churches go through seasons,” Tallman said. “We’ve lost so many of our senior citizens in the past year or two. We’re starting to see it re-blossom again, and a lot of young families coming in.”

The church draws more than 100 people for Sunday services.

On Wednesday nights, the church hosts free public dinners. Additional volunteers are needed.

They also participate in Operation Night Watch, a program that feeds the homeless in Seattle. The church has weekly youth groups and “FaithSpot” teaching and games for children on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings. GriefShare classes start again in September.

The church moved to the current location at 8224 220th St. SW in the mid-1970s, senior pastor Bob McGuire said. Their unofficial historian, Richard Swank, died earlier this year at 94.

When McGuire looks backs at the church’s writings and history, he sees a common theme of being a community center and a gathering place, he said. When people who have moved away came back to visit for the centennial events, it was like a big family reunion.

“It’s an interesting flow of people over the years who feel attracted to a certain church,” McGuire said. “I think a local church has an interesting place in the community — who’s in the community and what they’re looking for. There’s no way to measure what’s in their minds and their hearts, but it changes with the season and the culture of a city.”

Board chairman Mike Shouse, 70, attends the same church his grandparents did.

He likes that the church is known for its friendliness and for helping others.

The emphasis now, Shouse said, is on the next 100 years.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

The newly rebuilt section of Index-Galena Road is pictured on Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023, near Index, Washington. (Jordan Hansen / The Herald)
Index-Galena Road to open Monday — earlier than expected

Residents and recreation enthusiasts can rejoice as Snohomish County will open the road following a mild winter.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
A brief timeline of Ariel Garcia’s disappearance

The Everett boy, 4, went missing early Wednesday. The following evening, police announced they found the remains of a small child.

Everett
Everett man accused of supplying drugs in Whatcom County Jail overdoses

Angel Lewis Leffingwell, 38, pleaded not guilty to controlled substance homicide Friday in the Whatcom County Jail death.

Eleazar Cabrera (Washington State Department of Corrections)
Marysville man gets 29 years for Snohomish home invasion, shooting

A jury convicted Eleazar Cabrera of first-degree assault and first-degree robbery for shooting a resident in the back multiple times.

People wander around and photograph fields of tulips, daffodils and other flowers during the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival at RoozenGaarde in Mount Vernon, Washington, on Friday April 14, 2023. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Color your day at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

The farms are in bloom this weekend. The festival, in its 41st year, runs through the month of April.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
UPDATE: Mother arrested in death of Everett boy, 4

After a massive search, Ariel Garcia’s body was discovered somewhere outside Everett on Thursday. His mother was arrested in Clark County.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.