Founding Pastor of Rancho Community Church Honored

The founding pastor of was set to be honored for his volunteer work.

The Boy Scouts of America, Tahquitz District will honor Steve Struikmans with the Distinguished Citizen "Good Scout of the Year Award during a meeting on Sept. 29 at Pechanga Resort and Casino.

Struikmans was also a founding member of the Rancho Rotary Club and the Temecula Volunteer Fire Department, said Melody Brunsting, a spokesperson for the event.

Struikmans started summer programs for kids at the church in 1971 and the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast in 1989. He served on Linfield Christian Church's board for eight years and now serves as a board member of the Temecula Public Cemetery District.

He also started the local hospital chaplaincy program in 1975 and the local Pastor's Fellowship in 1980.

The pastor oversaw the growth of the church, including its relocation to Temecula Parkway. "Pastor Steve turned church leadership over to a new regime in 2005," Brunsting said.

Struikmans moved to Temecula from Artesia in 1969. In his home town, he attended Cerritos Jr. College, then graduated from the Central University of Iowa with a BA. He then got his Master's of Divinity from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan.

He got his doctoral degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in 1979.
He is married to Rae Ann and has two children, Rhoda Morgan and Neil Struikmans. They also have five grandchildren.