Hundreds of Chicoans from dozens of local churches from all Christian denominations showed up Thursday at the city plaza to pray together for unity, and for the community.

The congregation was Chico’s take on the National Day of Prayer, which has taken place the first Thursday of May since 1952 when Congress designated it as a day of observance.

Local pastors first met for a prayer breakfast at Grace Community Church, before the main event started a little past noon in the downtown plaza.

Gaylord Enns, who has been a pastor in the local community for over three decades, helped to coordinate the gathering, and decided on the theme for the year, unity.

“I chose a couple paragraphs from the Ephesians letters that talked about unity, gentleness, patience and love,” Enns said. Each of the points became a “prayer point,” he said, and he invited local pastors to speak on each.

The event lasted about an hour, and Enns said he was pleased with the number of people who attended this year.

Ed Krzyzek, a pastor at Grace Community Church, prayed in front of the group on the topic of gentleness, and said he was very excited for the event overall.

“It was a great time for people to come together and pray together,” he said, “I saw people praying for people, and praying for the city as a whole.”

Josh Cozine can be reached at newseditor@theorion or @joshcozine on Twitter.