April 23 Today in OPC History

On April 23, 1958, the Presbytery of California received Bayview OPC, Chula Vista, as a particular congregation with the Rev. Jack Peterson installed as the organizing pastor. Two years earlier, Mr. Peterson had begun laboring in Chula Vista with a core group of families that had left the United Presbyterian Church. The average attendance in the first year was twenty-six.

In 1961, the Rev. Robert Graham became pastor of Bayview OPC and served there for the next decade. A building was erected and the congregation grew under Graham's leadership. In particular, an emphasis was placed on children's work and the vacation Bible school eventually grew to 275.

The Rev. Roger Wagner served as pastor of Bayview OPC from 1983 until 2023. Members of Bayview OPC served as active participants in the missions of the Presbytery of Southern California over the years, first supporting the ministry of the Rev. David Crum in Baja, Mexico, and supporting the Rev. Jerome Farnick in the Czech Republic. On February 11, 2023, Jason Vartanian was ordained to the gospel ministry and installed as pastor of Bayview OPC in Chula Vista, California.

Picture: Ground breaking in Chula Vista in the early 1960s. Left to right, Gus Weston, Ruth Graham, Robert Graham, Herman Peterson, Bertha Peterson, Robert Roskamp, Ralph Spring, Connie Bawcum, and Eddie Spring.