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| jo, ink. watercolor & collage postcard |
Located just 45 miles from me in Rancho Palos Verde,
is a beautiful gem of history, architecture & a dream.
To my mind, more beautiful than any cathedral.
I looked up the history here & am borrowing.
It started as a dream of Elizabeth Schellenberg,
a member of the Swedenborgian Church who lived
on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in the late 1920's.
Mrs. Schellenberg dreamed of a little chapel on a hillside
above the Pacific where wayfarers could stop to rest, meditate
and give thanks to God for the wonder and beauty of creation.
The Peninsula was largely open farmland at that time.
A two-lane gravel road was skirting the shoreline
from San Pedro to Palos Verdes Estates.
Narcissa Cox Vanderlip, also a member of the
Swedenborgian Church, responded to the dream
and agreed to contribute land for the chapel site.
The 3.5 acres site and Wayfarers Chapel’s cornerstone
was dedicated on July 16, 1949.
When the Chapel was completed in 1951 it stood alone
like a precious jewel on a deserted dusty knoll
overlooking the blue Pacific.
Today what you are looking at is a “tree chapel.”
Chapel architect Lloyd Wright had been inspired
by the cathedral-like majesty of redwood trees
in northern California.
The redwood trees that surround Wayfarers Chapel
are forming living walls and roof to a natural sanctuary
encased in glass with view of the surrounding
forest and nearby Pacific Ocean.
Lloyd Wright’s design of Wayfarers Chapel
is the perfect combination of nature and architectural
genius and is one of the foremost examples
of organic architecture and is listed
in the National Register of Historic Places.
. . .
I had been here as a young girl & remember
being awestruck by the ethereal beauty & peacefulness.
So when Megan & Mike asked me to join them & their family
for a chamber music concert there, it took
only half of a nano-second to respond, yes please!
Clear blue skies & Catalina Island looked so close.
Pacific check for Lynn in Colorado.
The Chapel grounds are open daily to the public - 9am to 5pm.
The sanctuary is closed to the public when there are events
in progress, but the grounds will remain open.
Visitors Center is open daily from 10am – 5pm.
5755 Palos Verdes Drive South
Rancho Palos Verdes, California 90275, USA
1 (310) 377-1650
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| Being with the Nomura Family is special. photo by Craig Nomura |
A great day & evening.
Thank you Nomura Family.
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| Palos Verde Peninsula, January 29, 2017 |
Seeing this today reminded me ...
when I was very young and saw this ...
I thought it was God writing from heaven.
