Monroe Covenant Church rejoices 120 years
Published 1:30 am Friday, November 14, 2025
EVERETT — Monroe Covenant Church will celebrate 120 years of service in the same building.
The celebration will take place 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at 202 South Sams St. in Monroe. Saturday’s celebration will include a journey through the church’s history with Hauna Ondrey, Monroe Covenant historian and North Park Seminary dean of faculty, according to a social media post.
The church was founded on Nov. 14, 1905 and remains in the same location. The land was donated by Morris Johnson and his wife, who also oversaw construction, the church’s website says. Hjalmar Borlin and Hans Anderson were also founding members of what was then called the Swedish Evangelical Mission Church.
Services were conducted in Swedish until the 1930s. A growing number of young church attendees wanted to “fit in” by speaking English, and new members were not always Swedish. Also, after World War I, English speakers often confused spoken Swedish with German.
The name changed to Monroe Covenant Church as “The Swedish Church” — as Monroe residents called it — began to “Americanize.”
Over the years, the building has been remodeled and expanded as the number of churchgoers has increased.
“We’ve been planning for several weeks now. We are looking forward to celebrating a long history in our community,” Co-pastor Rachel Gough said in an interview. “I personally believe that it is important to stay put and build community and peace in the place that you live.”
She is particularly proud of the work the church’s nonprofit, Take the Next Step, has done in the community. It provides family resources, housing services and works to feed the homeless.
Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay
