A Brief History of Prince of Peace
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church began on March 3, 1957, when 40 people gathered for worship at Twinbrook School in Schaumburg, IL. This small Lutheran mission began to grow rapidly under the leadership of the church’s first pastor, the Rev. Rudy Kolberg. The congregation was officially chartered as a congregation on April 27, 1958. On July 27, 1958, 134 members of Prince of Peace worshiped for the first time in its new church building at the intersection of Roselle Road and Illinois Boulevard in Hoffman Estates.
Pastor Kolberg accepted a call to serve another church in 1959, and in that same year the Rev. W.C. Burmeister arrived to serve the congregation. The church continued to grow and an annex was completed in 1963 to alleviate the crowded conditions in the Sunday School. In that same year Pastor Burmeister accepted another call and the Rev. Edward Paape arrived with his family to minister to the congregation.
Expansion of the Facilities
In 1965 a parcel of land was purchased on Higgins Road, the site on which the church is now located. Construction began in September 1965, and a year later the building was completed and dedicated.
In 1979 the Fellowship Hall and basement classrooms were built. In the fall of 1988, construction began on a new 500-seat sanctuary, including additional facilities for education and fellowship (what is known today as “The Great Room”). That construction was completed in 1990. In 2005 a new nursery and Youth Room were created in the Great Room. The old nursery was converted into a meeting space and gathering place for brides and their bridal parties.
A Merger with Community of Christ
In the fall of 1996 the members of Community of Christ Lutheran Church in Schaumburg made the decision to close their doors and merge with Prince of Peace. The Rev. Jeffrey Fricke, who had been serving as pastor of Community of Christ, was called as Associate Pastor at Prince of Peace, a position he held until June 1999.
Becoming a Welcoming Congregation
In February 1997, the congregation voted to become a “Welcoming and Affirming Congregation,” becoming the first suburban congregation in the Metropolitan Chicago Synod to affirm a ministry to gay and lesbian persons. This action was taken in response to a request from the national church asking congregations to take the lead on this issue.