St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church Hosts Weekend Carnival

My next door neighbor is a church. Technically, my next door neighbors are the nuns and priest who live in the little house next door to the massive

Usually it’s pretty quiet along our street. Sunday parking is limited due to service and weekday afternoons we overhear the children at the church elementary school during their morning and afternoon breaks. 

This past weekend the church held it’s annual carnival. Kids of all ages enjoyed the giant fair rides, games, live music and food. The carnival began in 1985 as a church fundraiser. I heard loud music, children’s screams, and constant speaker announcements and decided to check it out. The event was basically your standard small weekend carnival. After walking through the rides and food booths, I strolled over to explore the giant church. I’ve walked past the building over a hundred times but this was the first day I entered St. Charles Church since I moved to Toluca Lake over a decade ago.

St. Charles is one of the oldest parishes in the Valley. Founded in 1921, the original church was located at Weddington Street and Bakman Avenue. By 1936, the parish had outgrown the original structure and the current church was built on Moorpark Street in 1937. The elementary school opened in 1939 and expanded to include 14 classrooms, a music room, a cafeteria, library and auditorium in 1947.

Through the years the parish continued to grow and in 1959 a bigger church was built alongside the existing one which became the parish hall. 

St. Charles also has Hollywood connections. Bob Hope,, regularly attended services. His daughter’s wedding was held at the church and when Hope died at age 100 his funeral was held there. Funerals for stars Dorothy Lamour and Bob Urich were also held at the church. 

The Spanish Colonial style architecture includes a carved stone exterior and a large bell tower. I found it worthwhile to visit the church, even though I am not religious, simply to take in its architectural beauty.