The answer to Kimball's struggle came in the
unlikely form of a death. "Sister (Katherine) Hoover,"
a woman who lived in the community, but had seldom attended Kimball,
grew very ill. Rev. Marshall, who had just been assigned to the
work, visited her. On May 19, 1906, Miss Hoover died, and in
her will, stipulated at $409 be given to the Kimball Avenue Church.
The money allowed the church to complete the basement of the
building. This unexpected gift had such an impact on the church
that it officially banned sales as a means of raising funds.
Kimball became a "faith work."
The church was assessed by the city of Chicago
in 1907 for street improvements making it virtually impossible
to reduce their substantial debt on the property. The need for
a parsonage still faced them. Again, the church—with plans
in hand—turned to the Illinois Conference for assistance.
The 1908 Annual Conference appointed a committee to secure a
loan for Kimball Avenue's parsonage. The loan was not to exceed
$3,000.
The Conference committee met with the church
trustees on June 1, 1908. The plans and site were examined and
approved with the stipulation that not more than $3,000 would
be secured for the work. It was discovered that a frame building
would have to be given a special permit by the City Council because
it was being built so close to the church, also a frame structure.
Codes for frame structures were quite strict due to the city's
experience in 1871's Chicago fire. Again, Mr. C. R. Hansen, who
had built the church, proposed building the parsonage of brick
at a cost of $3,100. The trustees of the church agreed to raise
$100 cash so as not to exceed the limits of the Conference loan.
In the Summer of 1908, a seven room home, complete with cement
basement, sidewalk, sewer, fence and all the "modern conveniences"
was built. (Link to see a picture of
the parsonage in 1909)
Rev. C. G. Unangst was appointed to the church
in 1910 and 
served
through 1914. Though the work continued to have an impact on
the community, the work of the Sunday School decreased for the
first time in its history. By the end of Rev. Unangst's term,
membership had increased to 150, but the attendance in the Sunday
had decreased to an average of 187 people.
Speculation would suggest that the decline
was in part due to the capacity of the building. Classes were
meeting in halls and stairways. Also, the church was again assessed
by the city for street improvements ($1,003.35 in 1911 when Fullerton
Avenue was paved for the first time). Finally, supervision of
a Moody student pastor at the Adams Street church was assigned
to Rev. Unangst, forcing him to divide his time and energy.
During Rev. Unangst's stay, the K. L. C. E.
continued its outreach in the community through street meetings.
Several of the church's young men were licensed to preach, most
notably F. W. Deutsche and Frank Brandfellner. It was also noted
in the Annual Conference report that Kimball—along with
numerous other churches—introduced individual communion
cups in 1912.
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Rev. and Mrs.C. G. Unangst,
Pastor 1900, 1910-1914, 1923-1928
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