In the middle of the night, it came roaring through like a locomotive at approximately 100 miles per hour. The next morning the Monrovia, California, town square was filled with grand evergreen trees lying flat on the ground, roots completely upended. The big decorated Christmas tree, with its lights and ornaments, was down for the count. Palm trees and conifers lay across sidewalks, and the evening holiday parade was cancelled until further notice. All city power was out. The Santa Ana windstorm of December 2011 had done its thing.
Our branch church in Monrovia had offered an early Christmas gift to the community and nearby towns in the San Gabriel Valley: an upcoming Christian Science lecture. We thought at the same time, we could let people know about our newly purchased building—in the process of being remodeled as our new church home.
We had rented a space at the community center for the lecture, and banners and posters were put up around town; we also distributed e-vites, newspaper and online notices—and had even given out “Save the date” refrigerator magnets months before.
