Comments on: The Shingle Sisters of Lake Elsinore, California

By: Jami

Jami — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 14:03:18 +0000

What strong women! I am always amazed with the things that volunteers can accomplish.

By: Mary and Stan Crippen

Mary and Stan Crippen — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 05:34:00 +0000

Stan and I were two of those who moved to Lake Elsinore from Orange County, arriving in 1975. Mike and Marie Phillips and Don and Lynn Pierce, John and Marie Moore and their three daughters Mary Alice, Caroline and Donna all arrived about the same time. We all have great memories of that wonderful chapel and the people we met there. We too are thankful for the shingle sisters we were able to meet thirty years later in the ward!

By: Ruth Munoa Odekirk

Ruth Munoa Odekirk — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 20:43:09 +0000

I have many great memories of growing up in this small branch with the strong ‘pioneers’ of the area as my teachers and guides! My grandmother, Wanda Stokes, was one of the shingle sisters. I was baptised in the font, hidden under the stage, July, 1955, by Herb Hales. Emma Hales taught early morning seminary in the 1960′s in the little addition building in the back.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:28:04 +0000

It’s wonderful to read the memories of you who know that building! Thanks for taking the time to comment.

By: Laurie Merrifield Snider

Laurie Merrifield Snider — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 14:57:03 +0000

I was baptized there at the age of 8 in 1961. The branch finally became a ward in late 1973, just after my husband and I were married. Ward boundaries stretched from beyond Temecula to Alberhill, a distance of over 20 miles. Now there are fives stakes. We moved out of that building in 1977 and sold it to another church. The building is still in use. They have installed pews, where we had folding chairs, which was convenient for us because we also had dances there, and branch dinners, and Christmas parties, and all the other activities that go on in an LDS cultural hall these days. Well, except basketball!

By: Beth Merrifield Vance

Beth Merrifield Vance — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 05:50:52 +0000

Emma and Herb Hales were the stake missionaries that taught and baptized my parents in the 1950′s. I grew up attending that building and was baptized in the font under the stage in 1969. I have very fond memories of our tiny branch and watching it grow over the years.

By: Mike Waterworth

Mike Waterworth — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 01:58:15 +0000

My mom and I were baptized in this building in July of 1970. The baptismal font was under the stage where the leaders sat during church. We moved all of the chairs and the podium, then pulled up the wooden floor that covered the font. (Lake) Elsinore was still a small branch in 1970, maybe 35 members attending. Tillman Turley was our Branch President. Within several years though, many members moved out to Elsinore from Orange County. I remember the hot summers with over 100 people attending. If you came late to church, you had to sit out at the front lawn on metal folding chairs with the sun beating down. We had good memories in the Elsinore Branch. A heartfelt thanks to all of the members that built the chapel and welcomed us. Emma Hales will always have a special place in my heart.

By: Bookslinger

Bookslinger — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:36:10 +0000

They were the women, recently forged and tempered by the Great Depression (which was pretty much still in effect in 1940, if I understand history) who would soon go on to be “Rosie the Riveter” during WWII.

By: kevinf

kevinf — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 22:51:48 +0000

I’m impressed not only by the “mud on their shoes” but by the fact that they plastered the interior walls. For those of us used to drywall with just a little taping and sanding, a complete plastered wall is a huge effort to get it flat, straight, and smooth. These sisters indeed rocked!

By: Miri

Miri — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 15:48:46 +0000

Loooove. That story is fantastic–including the mud.