In October 1942, a well-used Ford coupe came rattling down East 20th Street bringing Dan Genung, fresh out of divinity school in Chicago, and his wife, Frances, to Los Angeles. Their main goal was to establish a church. And they did. The original House of Prayer for All Peoples was chartered in May of 1946. Until 1964, the church and center worked as a single entity, as one of seven mission centers in the US sponsored by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), which is headquartered in Indianapolis. In 1964, the Community Center and Church became separate entities.
Started well before the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-60s, ours was a revolutionary concept. As our 2008 Strategic Plan says, “At a time when de facto and de jure segregation were still an everyday reality in Los Angeles, the establishment of All Peoples, a multi-ethnic and multi-racial community center, was not just path-breaking, it was revolutionary.”
Over 80 years, we have gone through World War II, major earthquakes, the Watts Riot and the 1992 Civil unrest. Our neighborhood has changed from Japanese-American, to African-American, to Latinx. But we continue to serve people of all ages and races. Even through COVID 19, our doors remained open, providing hunger relief for families and older adults, emergency rental relief, and preventing learning loss for school-age youth.
All Peoples Community Center seeks to:
Help children succeed at each stage of development
Strengthen and support individuals and families; and build community
Provide job training and create job opportunities
Help seniors stay active and engaged.
For more information or to contact them go to: https://allpeoplescc.org/
