St. Andrew Lutheran Church is a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. At the core of the Evangelical Lutheran tradition is the good news of the abundant grace of God in Jesus Christ. St. Andrew seeks to embody that grace in our ministry and mission.
+ Here you will discover a place where you can come to give thanks, to pray, and to celebrate together in word and music.
+ Here you will encounter fellowship, care, and love provided by people committed to each other, to their community, and to God.
+ Here you will find a place of comfort and a place to find your way again when you may have lost the path. St. Andrew offers the opportunity to minister to others and to respond together to the challenges of our times, be it hunger, homelessness, joblessness, environmental degradation, natural disaster, war, or racism.
+ Here you will discover and nurture your talents in service to God.
+ Here you will find a place for spiritual growth, education, and renewal. You will find a journey of discovery that begins with our community at baptism and extends to the community beyond our walls and often beyond our borders.
+ Here you will find a place of grace.
The people of St. Andrew Lutheran Church first worshiped together on September 7, 1952 in the auditorium of the old Sunset Valley Elementary School in nearby Cedar Mill. Gathered that day were 38 adults and seven children.
Organizational Meeting
March 22, 1953
With donations of $500, coupled with a $5,500 loan, the charter members of St. Andrew purchased land on Joy Street, near Murray Boulevard, upon which two houses would be built, one to be used as a chapel, the other as a school. Within six months, the church was chartered. The members of St. Andrew declared their intention to pray, to study, and to share in the worldwide work of the Church of Christ.
Five years later, the present ten-acre site in Cedar Hills, then a rural and undeveloped area nearly seven miles from Portland’s city center, was purchased. Upon groundbreaking for the first building on the site, the Valley News declared “Faith, Shovel Move Earth.” Construction of a Fellowship Hall was completed and a “Day of Joyful Entry” was declared for November 5, 1961. A secretary’s office, classrooms, and an expanded Narthex soon followed.
10-Acre Cedar Hills Site on Butner Road
Winter 1971
Twenty-five years after the dedication of the first building, ground was broken for a new Sanctuary. In 1987, the current Sanctuary was completed. It is an expansive space with soaring windows overlooking the seven-acre wetlands. Prominent in the Sanctuary is a locally made tapestry, handcrafted by Eleanor Van de Water, installed in 1990, and a Northwest-made Fritts Organ with its hand-carved pipe shades, installed in 1994.
On Sunday, March 6, 2011, ground was broken for a new Fellowship and Education Wing, to replace the old Fellowship Hall. The people of St. Andrew celebrated the completion of the building and renovation of the grounds with a housewarming for the community on Saturday, May 5, 2012, and the dedication of the new space on Sunday, May 6, 2012. The building and grounds reflect the church’s Core Values of God Care, Earth Care, Community Care, Neighbor Care, and Self Care.
Burning the Mortgage!
On June 1, 2025, St. Andrew people celebrated burning the $2.58 million mortgage that funded major church expansion in 2011-2012. Amazingly, the mortgage was paid off 12 years early!