It was no doubt with a sense of civic pride and perhaps even reverence that a brave photographer, his camera aimed to the southeast, once snapped a memorable picture from atop what would later be referred to as the "Red Brick Courthouse, of Cherished Memory" in downtown Olathe.

Perched high above "the city beautiful," this adventurous shutterbug saw an impressive collection of stately homes, grand schools, and sturdy buildings occupied by a variety of locally owned businesses as he looked off to the south, the east, and everywhere in between.

He had to be pleased, if not amazed, by the progress the town had made in the years since Dr. John T. Barton had founded it, and as he slowly surveyed the scene he couldn't help but notice all the lovely churches strategically arranged before him.

At one time or another during the 60-year reign of Johnson County's second courthouse, no fewer than seven mainline denominations—Baptist, Catholic, Christian, Congregational, Episcopal, Methodist, and Presbyterian—had a presence within what I'll call the "southeast quadrant," the social and economic hub of "old Olathe." But if by divine intervention that same photographer were given the opportunity to take a similar picture from atop the current courthouse, the only church that would show up in his viewfinder is the First Christian Church at 200 E. Loula St.

Long gone are the First Methodist Church, which stood on the northeast corner of Cherry and Loula streets, and the First Presbyterian Church, which stood on the southeast corner of Kansas Avenue and Loula. Both buildings were razed in the late 1950s—the Methodists reappearing at 520 S. Harrison St., the Presbyterians at 621 S. Lee St. By then the United Presbyterian Church, which had adorned the southeast corner of Water and Loula streets, and the Methodist Episcopal Church (Wesleyan Methodist Church), which had graced the northwest corner of Chestnut and Cedar streets, were already history.

The faithful occasionally spotted a couple of movie stars, native Olatheans Charles "Buddy" Rogers and his wife Mary Pickford, at the Methodists' red-brick church. As the story goes, worshipers quickly became whisperers whenever "America's Sweetheart" was observed in one of the pews with the local hero of "Wings" fame, and soon the entire sanctuary reverberated with the cacophony of many voices spontaneously uttering a single name: "Mary Pickford!"

St. Paul Catholic Church, which sat on the southwest corner of Chestnut and Santa Fe streets, succumbed to the wrecking ball in the mid-1960s. The Catholic faithful reemerged at 900 S. Honeysuckle Drive. The Congregational Church, in the 100 block of S. Chestnut Street, eventually met its match in a fire, leading the Congregationalists to join forces with the Presbyterians. The First Community Church, later known as the Legion Memorial Building, rose from the ashes in 1926 but was demolished in 1970 with the implementation of urban renewal.

I remember going to the Community Church a few times in the early- to mid-1960s, but by then this enchanting Gothic structure was no longer being used as a church. Instead, it housed the Johnson County chapter of the American Red Cross while doubling as a popular venue for political meetings, recitals, banquets, and the like.

The First Baptist Church, where Boy Scouts like me gathered to honor God and country, finally bit the dust in the 1990s, having been abandoned by the congregation for more than a decade in favor of a new building at 2024 E. 151st St. The ground at the southwest corner of Water and Loula was subsequently converted into a community garden, but that, too, has vanished.

Emmanuel Episcopal Church and the Reformed Presbyterian Church, frame buildings, are still with us, but neither has seen any serious preaching for some time. The former can be found at 221 S. Chestnut and is currently the home of the Olathe Club for the Deaf. The latter is at 500 E. Loula and is now the Buddy Rogers Playhouse.

Comfortably situated on the northeast corner of Chestnut and Loula, the present First Christian Church has occupied that spot since 1926 and "is recognized as one of the most beautiful and perfectly appointed church edifices in Olathe." The structure replaced a striking frame building that was destroyed by fire on Christmas Eve 1924, temporarily depriving the congregation of a place to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

When the brown brick building could no longer meet the demands placed on it for classroom space, a two-story education wing extending to the east was proposed and completed in 1968. An elevator addition was finished in 2002.

So what keeps the church in the southeast quadrant when everyone else has left and downtown Olathe is hardly thriving? Tradition probably has a lot to do with it, as the city's first church, a 16-by-24 structure in the 100 block of S. Kansas Street, was a Christian church, erected shortly after the local congregation was organized in April 1860. This flock of believers later assembled in a larger building at the northeast corner of Willie and Park streets for roughly 12 years, then purchased the lot at Chestnut and Loula when the Santa Fe railroad company wanted to bring a line through Olathe along Willie.

But a golden opportunity to represent the Disciples of Christ in serving others is probably the best reason for the church to stay put.

"We made a decision as a congregation in the late 1990s to remain in this location because we believed downtown Olathe needed a church presence," the Rev. David Merrick, senior minister, said recently. "We feel that the neighborhood has been strengthened and that we are seeing signs of new vitality. I think this community is going to look very different in 20 years."

For the past six years, the church has conducted Operation Inasmuch, a ministry inspired by this famous verse from the Bible (Matthew 25:40): "Truly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it to me."

On the day set aside for the event, volunteers tackle various tasks to help people throughout the community. These include making lap robes, turning mattresses, cleaning refrigerator coils, checking vehicle fluid and tire pressure levels, visiting nursing home residents and people who are homebound, delivering care baskets to seniors, doing yard work, and collecting canned goods and other items for the Stockwell Food Closet.

In May 2004 the church became part of the Interfaith Hospitality Network and today it functions as a host congregation; homeless families can live in the facility temporarily with the support of other churches. The church also sponsors pancake breakfasts to benefit the Olathe Public Library, Central Elementary School, and other entities, and has entertained neighborhood children at Halloween parties and the like in striving to maintain its close ties to the community.