In 1999, our elders challenged the next generation to ensure that the torch of our Family Prayer would never go out. They set a vision to see the 100th Anniversary of this tradition. Today, we stand as the fulfillment of that prayer.
Our Journey Through the Decades
The Foundation (1925)
Started by James Evans (Papa Johnny) in Kewanee, IL, beginning a legacy of prayer that would span ten decades.
The Expansion (1930s)
The tradition moved to Chicago and evolved into the Combined Family Prayer in 1932.
The Song
We continue to sing "Don't Forget the Family Prayer," the anthem Papa Johnny gave us to keep our hearts and homes bonded together.
The Unbroken Chain
Since 1932, through world changes, personal trials, and seasons of joy, we have only missed one combined family prayer.
Gone But Not Forgotten
Remembering Our Loved Ones
The Centennial Milestone
As of 2025, we celebrate 100 years of individual family prayers and 93 years minus one of gathering together as one body. What began with Papa Johnny has now touched at least eight or nine generations of the Evans family.
The Vision for the Next Century
We have reached the milestone our ancestors dreamed of. As we look toward the future, we recommit ourselves to this sacred tradition. We carry the torch forward so that our children and our children's children will always know the power of a family that prays together.
"It will keep us blessed if we will keep it alive."
FAMILY PRAYER, RED HOUSE
