St Andrew

Our community needs our St. Andrew's church and the services and opportunities it provides to countless of adults, children and families. There is a time in life to let go and yield. Our people who are opposed to the expansion need to do this and let St. Andrew's proceed with their plans. The church is a good place for people. Some people are not looking at the big picture. We are here to be of service to others and not just look that our needs be met. DON AYRES III Newport Beach Scaling back the St. Andrew's building project to a level supported by an updated assessment of needs should be approved.

St. Andrew's could use a little political charity Much has been said and written in the current debate over the expansion of the St. Andrew's facility in the Cliffhaven community. Our council members deliberate over process and form. Proponents of the rezoning and expansion elect to characterize the building of a sports arena and massive parking structure within the enclave of the surrounding residential neighborhood as a revetment to preserve the wandering morals of youth from the corruption of idleness.

Church has worked with its neighbors before I began attending St. Andrew's in 1950, when the church met in the library of Newport Harbor High School with a congregation of a little more than 100 members. There were mostly empty fields surrounding the area when construction began on the original church buildings about that same time. St. Andrew's has met the spiritual needs of so many people in the area and has now grown to slightly more than 4,000 members.

Those who organized and executed the picket lines at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church on Sunday have done themselves and their position a severe injustice. Few things I have seen were as offensive as seeing that group of demonstrators surrounding St. Andrew's as parishioners awkwardly tried to make their way into the building to exercise one of the basic rights that we, as Americans, hold near and dear -- the right to worship. Let's be perfectly clear.

Forgive us the expression, but it seems that every time St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church officials make a move these days, the devil is seen in more than just the details. And that's unfortunate. The latest case of St. Andrew's bashing comes after church leaders announced they were pursuing a $3.5-million agreement with the Newport-Mesa Unified School District to increase parking at Newport Harbor High School's 15th Street lot from 250 to 330 spaces.

Suzie Harrison It was fate that brought her to where she is today, or so it seems for Denise Raine, the newly appointed communications director at St. Andrew's Church in Newport Beach. Raine had moved to Orange County. As luck would have it, while she was stranded at the Atlanta airport during a snowstorm, she had a conversation with a person from Newport Beach. She was looking to join a church in the area, and St. Andrew's was suggested. It was a perfect fit, and eight years later, she loves being a part of the St. Andrew's team.

A verdict is in on Gardner's 'Verdict' I read Judge Robert Gardner's "The Verdict" articles very week, and I used to attend those parties at the Aerodrome back in the late 1950s. I knew those guys and had a wonderful time. It was a much different town 44 years ago, Newport Beach was, and I really miss it. I wish you'd write a book and put all those "Verdict" stories together. FRED BOCKMILLER Costa Mesa Church should grow for children's sake I encourage support for the proposed modernization of St. Andrew's Church.

Approved youth center means less congestion It would be wonderful if everyone had hindsight and could know what we are finding out today because all of our residential areas are becoming burdened. There isn't enough parking for the schools. There's not enough parking for anything. Traffic in the Newport Heights area has always been there and will continue to grow with or without St. Andrew's. In fact, St. Andrew's, I think, will make the situation a little bit less congested as far as street parking.

Lynda Adams From the outset of its latest effort to expand, St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church has followed a two-pronged strategy to neutralize the objections of the adjacent neighborhoods. One element has been to continue to call itself a neighborhood church, and the other is to characterize any resistance as NIMBYism in its most parochial form. Never mind that this is a numbers-driven land-use issue that goes beyond the specific neighborhoods, indeed beyond the entire city.

Stanley Dean Fuhr A memorial service for Mr. Stanley Dean Fuhr, a 30-year Costa Mesa resident, is scheduled for 11 a.m. Nov. 15 at his home, at 235 23rd St. in Costa Mesa. Mr. Fuhr died on Nov. 1 of natural causes. He was 56. Mr. Fuhr is survived by his wife, Doreen Davis Fuhr; sisters Shirley Jo Broughton and Carol Ann Fuhr; brother Don Fuhr; and his parents. Valerie Colenbaugh A service for Ms. Valerie Colenbaugh, a 12-year resident of Corona del Mar, is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Monday at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach.

Ensign Intermediate School's gym fell silent Friday as classmates, friends and family gathered to commemorate Madison "Maddy" Boutelle. The 13-year-old Newport Beach resident suffered a brain aneurysm at a friend's birthday party June 8 and died Tuesday at Children's Hospital of Orange County. Dozens of Maddy's friends jumped at the opportunity to speak, many saying she will always be remembered for her smile and positive attitude. "I think the biggest thing was that she was always happy," said Kira Ellis, 14, Maddy's best friend.

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church is holding its 49th annual rummage sale next week at 600 St. Andrews Road, Newport Beach. As this giant sale approaches the completion of its first half century, it has grown to about 45,000 square feet of merchandise. Clothing, furniture, sporting equipment, electronics, books, home goods of all types, and much, much more will be for sale! Last year the sale grossed almost $60,000. All profits are passed on outside of St. Andrew’s to organizations and projects that serve those in need locally, like Teen Challenge, Hoag Women's Center, OC Interfaith Shelter, SPIN (Serving People in Need)

Stacking racks of homemade sugar cookies decorated with colorful frosting flowers and hearts, St. Andrews Presbyterian Church member Don Farmer said he was happy to give up his Saturday morning to do something good for others. “You need to give back to the community,” Farmer said. “God has been good to us, and we’ve been blessed. It’s good to give back.” About 2,000 people turned out at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach on Saturday to volunteer for tasks ranging from decorating cookies to cleaning up local beaches.

As Sunday wound to a close, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach found itself charting a new course. The church congregation has spent nearly two months getting to know their vibrant new pastor, but Sunday’s service was bittersweet. The St. Andrew’s flock had to say goodbye to the senior pastor who has led them for more than three decades. Seek ye first “It’s been the great joy of my life to pastor St. Andrews,” the Rev. John Huffman said.

NEWPORT BEACH — After years of planning, revisions, and soured relationships with surrounding residents, St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach is underway in a redevelopment plan of two buildings. And everyone involved agreed it's time to let the healing begin. A ground breaking ceremony held after Sunday services in the church's courtyard including a cooperative effort between the church, the city and the community. Mayor Steve Rosansky, councilmembers Leslie Daigle and Keith Curry and former mayor Don Webb were among those who grabbed a shovel and gave the ceremonial movement of dirt.

Costa Mesa City Council members voted to waive almost $240,000 in traffic impact fees that may have been imposed on St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church for a temporary space they plan to use for a preschool and after-school program in Costa Mesa. The church is starting construction in July on its Newport Beach facility and would need the Costa Mesa space for the next 12 to 18 months, church officials said. If the construction takes longer than the church's two-year permit, then they will have to pay some sort of fee, but that hasn't been worked out yet. The area in question does not generate much traffic with its current use, according to the city's estimations.

NEWPORT BEACH — The reconstruction of two buildings at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church is expected to start in June, closing a contentious chapter in the history of the church and the surrounding community. It's been nearly two years since the Newport Beach City Council voted to let the church add 15,000 square feet to its facilities, which are across 15th Street from Newport Harbor High School. The church wanted to expand more than that to add a youth and family center and a parking structure, but neighbors in Cliffhaven and Newport Heights said most any expansion would worsen parking and noise problems the church was already generating.

A $30 foosball table is poised to greet shoppers at this year's rummage sale at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, followed by rows of golf clubs, a variety of luggage and a long line of bicycles — even a tricycle or two — in all colors and sizes. That's all before guests enter the 6,000-square-foot room behind the church that is chock full of clothing, furniture, electronics and other goods in preparation of Wednesday's preview sale, kicking off the annual event that has been delighting local bargain hunters for 42 years.