How it all started...
The work of God through this local church includes the uniting of three separate congregations established out of a variety of circumstances in the late 1970s and continues through today with emphases on solid Bible-teaching, grace-oriented life and ministry, a Biblical world-view, and a commitment to disciple anyone who desires to grow a vibrant relationship with God through Jesus Christ
Key Developments
1975: Klamath Evangelical Free Church was founded by a small group of families who desired a distinctive Bible-teaching ministry for this community
1976: Robin Maxson was called to be the first pastor of Klamath EFC
1979: Peoples Community Church, an independent congregation with Baptist roots, was begun and developed a successful ministry to youth
1980: New Covenant Fellowship, a group with connections to the Nazarene movement, established a church just down the street from Peoples
Mid-1984: Klamath EFC was meeting in New Covenant’s building so that three small but growing churches were carrying out ministries in 2 facilities separated by 2 short blocks
Sept. 1985: God arranged circumstances so that Klamath EFC and Peoples Community Church merged to become United Evangelical Free Church
Oct. 1985: Pastor Rick Sonerholm came from LaCenter, WA to become Associate Pastor
Apr. 1990: United EFC moved into its new 20,000 square foot building on 13½ acres at 3333 Beverly Drive
Thanksgiving 1990: New Covenant Fellowship merged with United Evangelical Free Church
Feb. 2007: Pastor John Kupitz moved from Tualatin, OR to become Youth Pastor
Feb. 2013: Pastor Troy Rife moved from South Bend, IN to become the Sr. Pastor upon Pastor Robin Maxson’s retirement and who was given the status of Pastor Emeritus
Jul. 2015: Pastor Rick retires from staff but remains active in the ministry of the church
2019: Casa De Oracion begins meeting in our building under Pastor Gabriel Hernandez
Feb. 2022: God provides Pastor Troy Rife with a new opportunity in Iowa, causing him to resign as senior pastor at UEFC
Nov. 2022: The church launches their 50-50-50 Vision plan, a 3-year initiative to grow our church in the areas of evangelism and discipleship
1976: Robin Maxson was called to be the first pastor of Klamath EFC
1979: Peoples Community Church, an independent congregation with Baptist roots, was begun and developed a successful ministry to youth
1980: New Covenant Fellowship, a group with connections to the Nazarene movement, established a church just down the street from Peoples
Mid-1984: Klamath EFC was meeting in New Covenant’s building so that three small but growing churches were carrying out ministries in 2 facilities separated by 2 short blocks
Sept. 1985: God arranged circumstances so that Klamath EFC and Peoples Community Church merged to become United Evangelical Free Church
Oct. 1985: Pastor Rick Sonerholm came from LaCenter, WA to become Associate Pastor
Apr. 1990: United EFC moved into its new 20,000 square foot building on 13½ acres at 3333 Beverly Drive
Thanksgiving 1990: New Covenant Fellowship merged with United Evangelical Free Church
Feb. 2007: Pastor John Kupitz moved from Tualatin, OR to become Youth Pastor
Feb. 2013: Pastor Troy Rife moved from South Bend, IN to become the Sr. Pastor upon Pastor Robin Maxson’s retirement and who was given the status of Pastor Emeritus
Jul. 2015: Pastor Rick retires from staff but remains active in the ministry of the church
2019: Casa De Oracion begins meeting in our building under Pastor Gabriel Hernandez
Feb. 2022: God provides Pastor Troy Rife with a new opportunity in Iowa, causing him to resign as senior pastor at UEFC
Nov. 2022: The church launches their 50-50-50 Vision plan, a 3-year initiative to grow our church in the areas of evangelism and discipleship
Be a part of our story...
Join us every Sunday as we gather to worship together at 10:30am
Our Denomination and name
We belongs to an association of over 1,300 congregations called the Evangelical Free Church of America. Though not as well-known in Oregon, the “Free Church” is a significant movement that is both historically established and rapidly growing throughout the country. To learn more, go to our denomination’s website at www.efca.org.
We typically need to explain three words in the church’s name. “Evangelical”describes our beliefs and refers to our emphasis on the “good news” (“evangel”) declared and explained in the Bible. What is this good news? That we can return to personal relationship with God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. For more details on this good news or our beliefs, see “Jesus” or “Statement of Faith” under the “About Us” menu.
The word “Free” indicates that each church in our denomination is free to govern its own affairs. Ministry decisions are made by the local congregation, not the national denomination.
What about “United”? That’s the distinctive name of this Evangelical Free Church. It represents our unique history where separate congregations joined together to form a new, united church (See “History” under the “About Us” menu for more information). It also reflects our commitment to preserve a unity of belief, mission, and devotion to our Lord Jesus Christ as a community of faith.
We typically need to explain three words in the church’s name. “Evangelical”describes our beliefs and refers to our emphasis on the “good news” (“evangel”) declared and explained in the Bible. What is this good news? That we can return to personal relationship with God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. For more details on this good news or our beliefs, see “Jesus” or “Statement of Faith” under the “About Us” menu.
The word “Free” indicates that each church in our denomination is free to govern its own affairs. Ministry decisions are made by the local congregation, not the national denomination.
What about “United”? That’s the distinctive name of this Evangelical Free Church. It represents our unique history where separate congregations joined together to form a new, united church (See “History” under the “About Us” menu for more information). It also reflects our commitment to preserve a unity of belief, mission, and devotion to our Lord Jesus Christ as a community of faith.