Would love to hear more details on that story...
It is Sierra Madre Congregational Church, founded in the 1880s. When the atheist pastor presided, the congregation left and successfully formed Bethany Church. The atheist left, so the remnant approached Pasadena's thriving Lake Avenue Congregational Church and hired its Youth Pastor, Richard J. Anderson. On his first Sunday in 1972, he preached to 16 people, including his wife and three young sons.
Since then, Pastor Dick has led personally well over 1,000 people to the Lord. SMCC has 1,500 worshippers typically each Sunday (the physical plant, being an old urban church, is not readily capable of expansion). SMCC has planted daughter churches, which also thrive.
Pastor Dick's first pastoral hire was not a Christian Education director or an administrator, as is usual. Rather, in 1976 he and the Board hired a Minister of Evangelism to do outreach: Dr. Hugh Ross. Hugh was a postdoctoral astronomer at CalTech in nearby Pasadena (the proximity of CalTech and Jet Propulsion Laboratory have enabled several renowned scientists to worship at SMCC). Later, SMCC birthed a unique worldwide apologetics ministry. In 1986 Dr. Ross started Reasons to Believe, which reconciles science and the Bible. Hugh is the leading proponent of the old-earth creationist view. Through this ministry, many thousands have become Christians. See www.reasons.org.
We worshipped at SMCC until 1988 when we moved away. Pastor Dick is in his seventies now and it will be very interesting to see who God raises up to replace him. One trusts we will avoid another atheist, but you never know: God allowed one before and look what resulted!
Apparently, you two are FRaternal twins, both having been born on 2000-12-09.