Parkcrest History
In the early 1950s, as East Long Beach and Lakewood were newly developing, a small group from the established Long Beach First Christian Church planted a new community that would eventually be known as Parkcrest Christian Church.
On Sunday, August 19, 1951, fifty-seven people gathered at the corner of Arbor Road and Charlemagne to enjoy the first church service of what was then called Lakewood Christian Church. Within a year, the new church purchased just over 2 acres of land, east of the American Legion Hall on Parkcrest Street, for the amount of $25,000. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on February 8, 1952, and upon completion of the church’s first building, the congregation changed its name to Parkcrest Church of Christ. The name last changed, to Parkcrest Christian Church, around 1980.
Over the years, many men and women have stepped up to do kingdom work through Parkcrest. In 1978, Roger Beard became the senior pastor of Parkcrest and led the church through many important seasons before Mike Goldsworthy was named lead pastor in 2008. Parkcrest enjoyed over ten years under Mike’s leadership before Jared Wilkins assumed the role in 2019.