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Historical Profile: West Leonard CRC

Grand Rapids, Michigan

West Leonard CRC was organized in 1889 by members of Alpine Ave. West Leonard (then Crosby Street) was the seventh CRC congregation in Grand Rapids. Twelfth Street CRC merged with West Leonard in 1994.

Looking at membership data since the union, it is disappointing to find that West Leonard now has less families, less total members, and a significantly lower youth ratio than it did before the merger in 1994.

As of October 2008, West Leonard CRC has no website.

Names

Crosby Street
West Leonard

Locations

north side of Crosby Street near Garfield Ave. NW, 1889-1908
1053 Leonard NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504 (built 1912, addition 19__)

Interactive Google map showing both locations.

Pastors

Geert Broene, 1889-1904
Frank Doezema, 1905-14
R. B. Kuiper, 1914-17
S. P. Eldersveld, 1918-20
J. P. De Vries, 1921-26
Richard Veldman, 1927-48
C. Vanden Heuvel, 1949-58
R. Leetsma, 1958-64
A. A. Mulder, 1965-70
E. J. Knott, 1971-78
D. J. Deters, 1979-84
H. J. Weidenaar, 1984-88
Arlan W. Koppendrayer, 1989-93
John L. Hoekwater, 1994-
Neil Jasperse

Twelfth Street, 1917-1995, cosponsored with Alpine Ave.
Bristolwood, 1961-66

Merger

Twelfth Street, 1994

Membership

Green (lower) line shows membership in families; blue (middle), professing members; red (top), total members; and magenta (thin), non-professing members. Note effect of merger with Twelfth Street CRC in 1994.

Source: Yearbooks of the Christian Reformed Church. Dates are year prior to publication date since data is gathered at the end of one year and published in the next.

For more membership data, click here. View maps showing Crosby Street and Leonard Street locations, or page showing both maps.

Go to Grand Rapids geographic index or chronological index.

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