Reward offered for stolen historic church documents,
“The history of The Journey Church is part of the history of Sonora.”
— Randy Ehle, Journey Church pastor
A reward of up to $1,000 was offered Friday for the return of irreplaceable historical documents that were in a safe stolen from The Journey Church in East Sonora sometime late Sunday or early Monday this week.
The missing charter and membership record books for the church’s predecessor, the First Baptist Church of Sonora, date back to the 1850s. The burglary was reported at 10:15 a.m. Monday at The Journey Church on Mono Way, Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office incident logs state.
Charles B. Smith, a criminal defense attorney based in Jamestown with more than 30 years of legal experience in California, has offered a $500 reward, and Journey Church leaders are matching that offer thanks to a grant from the Sonora Area Foundation intended to offset the impact of the theft.
Pastor Randy Ehle told The Union Democrat earlier this week the stolen handwritten documents have “incredibly rich and irreplaceable historical value” for his congregation and anyone who cares about Sonora and Tuolumne County history.
“The history of The Journey Church is part of the history of Sonora,” Randy Ehle, Journey Church pastor, said Friday. “The church was formed in November 1857 as the First Baptist Church of Sonora, and the hand-written history of its first half century is contained in two hardback, ledger-style books that were stored in the safe.”
The reward will be paid upon return of the documents and verification by Journey Church officials.
“When we heard about this loss,” said Mary Smith, Charles Smith’s wife and legal assistant, “our hearts were sick, and we knew we had to help however we could.”
Journey Church staff have seen an outpouring of support from the community since the theft of the safe containing the historical records, Ehle said. They are grateful to the Smiths for offering help to secure the return of the irreplaceable documents.
Charles Smith is certified as a legal specialist in criminal law by the California State Bar.
The First Baptist Church of Sonora, California, doing business as The Journey, A church pursuing Jesus, was founded in 1857 and is believed to be one of the oldest churches in Tuolumne County and the Mother Lode.
The church moved to its present location at 14425 Mono Way in East Sonora in 1968 and began operating under the name The Journey in 2011. It’s affiliated with Growing Healthy Churches and American Baptist Churches—usa.
Services are held in-person and streamed live on Facebook @TheJourneychurchsonora at 10:30 a.m. Sundays.
Charles Smith is also offering a confidential consultation for whoever returns the documents, under protection of attorney-client privilege.
For more information about the reward, call Charles or Mary Smith at (650) 401-3661, or email at cbsattorney67@gmail.com.
Earlier this week, Ehle urged anyone with information about the break-in and the church’s priceless handwritten ledgers to call the Sheriff’s Office at (209) 533-5815 or Sonora Police Department at (209) 532-8143. Journey Church of Sonora can be reached at (209) 532-4681.