OUR
HISTORY
St.
Andrew’s is a vibrant growing community set in
a progressive suburb east of Columbus, Ohio. Many
of the original founders are still active at St. Andrew’s,
and the contributions of those who have passed on
live long after them.
The
idea for a mission church in Pickerington blossomed
in the mind of Tim Carberry,
Rector
of St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Bexley, Ohio,
as he was driving through Violet Township on a pleasant
spring day in April, 1985. The rural beauty of the
area, its potential for growth, and the paucity of
Episcopal churches in the area inspired him to bring
his idea back to St. Alban’s to his men’s
group, the “Brotherhood of St. Andrew.”
St. Andrew’s was born in 1985 with Conrad Selnick,
St. Alban’s Assistant Rector, as our first priest,
later followed by Stephen Williamson and Karen Burnard.
In
our early years, the St. Andrew’s congregation
met in borrowed space in Epiphany Lutheran Church.
When the congregation purchased a small house in the
neighborhood, we worshipped in the family room, other
rooms became offices, and church school was held in
the basement. A few years later, an open, sunlit,
spacious worship space and narthex were built. A dedicated
parishioner contributed the organ. Another devoted
parishioner and retired Episcopal priest, Jack Bowers,
constructed the altar, baptismal font and ambo from
warm, golden oak, purchased or supplied from other
Episcopal churches in the Southern Diocese.
Father
Jack’s plan for the new pieces was to recycle
several beautifully carved plaques from a huge walk-up
pulpit (given to us by the Church of the Redeemer
in Cincinnati) to fit the fairly simple style of our
worship space. Because he was interested in ancient
Celtic history and its influence on the modern church,
he also used those traditions to design our new furniture.
Fr. Jack explains that our altar mimics big stone
tombs found in the British Isles: two huge stones
standing on edge topped with a larger flat stone on
top sloping from front to back. This tomb design formed
a portal into the spiritual realm, a “thin space”
between two worlds, just as our altar is an entrance
into the spiritual world of the Eucharist.
He
used two of the carved panels from the old pulpit,
refinished to an oak color that matches the rest of
our furniture, on the portal entrance on our altar.
At
the center of the altar, Fr. Jack set a finished stone
inscribed with five crosses symbolizing the five wounds
of Christ. The stone is removable so we can carry
the altar outside or to another part of the church
as needed – just as ancient Bishops carried their
altars in leather satchels through the countryside.
The
second piece, the ambo, built in the same style as
the altar and decorated with two more of the Redeemer
panels, is used for both a lectern (for reading the
scripture) and a pulpit (for the delivery of the homily).
Our
baptismal font matches the other pieces. The beautiful
glass bowl was made in Venice, Italy, specifically
for our font. The font stands at the rear of the central
aisle, except during baptismal services, when it is
moved into the chancel.
The
new building and our outreach activities increased
our visibility and attracted members from Pickerington,
the surrounding communities, and Columbus. Over the
years, church education for adults and children has
been enthusiastically pursued in various formats.
St.
Andrew’s intends to expand its horizons for the
congregation and the community. We remain a mission
church but look forward to soon becoming an independent
member of the Episcopal community.
OUR
DIOCESE
The
Diocese of Southern Ohio consists of 82 congregations
ranging in size from five to over 1300 members. The
Diocese covers roughly the southern half of the state
of Ohio: from just north of Columbus to the Ohio River
and from West Virginia to the Indiana border.
The
Diocese of Southern Ohio has a long history of ministry
focusing particularly on congregational development,
education, social action, and community outreach.
The Rt. Rev. Thomas Breidenthal was consecrated the
ninth Bishop of Southern Ohio on April 28, 2007. The
Rt. Rev. Kenneth Price, Jr. is the Bishop Suffragan.
Bishop Price has been Bishop Suffragan for twelve
years.
The
primary diocesan offices are located in downtown Cincinnati
next to Christ Church Cathedral. Bishop Price and
some staff have offices at the Bishop’s Center
located in Trinity Church, Columbus.
The
Diocese owns and operates the 1250-acre Procter Camp
and Conference Center located outside of London, Ohio.
For the Center’s facilities and programs, see
hhtp://www.proctercenter.org/
Diocese: www.episcopal-dso.org
Offices: Diocesan House Bishop’s Center
412 Sycamore St. 125 E. Broad St.
Cincinnati, OH 45202-4179 Columbus, OH 43215-3649
513-421-0311 or 614-461-8429 or 800-582-1712
St.
Andrew’s Reflects America
We’re
about equally men and women. About half of us are
under fifty years old, the other half are over,
which makes our congregation a bit younger than
average for Episcopalians nationally. Among us,
we have more than fifty children living at home.
About half are younger than twelve and half are
older. More than a third of us live in single-adult
households – including five with children.
We’re
suburban. Our church is in Pickerington, but only
ten of our fifty-four households are actually within
the Pickerington city limits. The largest group
lives in surrounding Violet Township, twenty-two
are scattered throughout the southeastern part of
the Columbus area, some are in other Fairfield County
communities or in Licking County.
We’re
solidly middle-class. If we’re not retired,
most of us work full-time, including those with
small children at home. Half of us have household
incomes close to the national average ($50,000 to
$100,000) and one quarter are below that range,
and one-quarter are above.
We’re
a diverse group. When asked to describe their ethnic
or national background in their own word, only 70%
of those who responded said they were of European
origin. Others reported a variety of backgrounds,
cultures, and countries.
We
Are Also Distinctive
We’re
well-educated. More than three-quarters of us hold
a college degree, far above the national average
of 27%, and apparently well above the national average
for Episcopalians.
Members
of St. Andrew’s often speak of St. Andrew’s
as disproportionately made up of new members, recently
arrived in the Columbus area, and often new Episcopalians.
In fact, sixty-five of our members have been at
the church for more than five years. More than half
of our adult members have lived in the Columbus
area for more than twenty-five years, and seventy
three report they have been Episcopalians “a
long time,” apparently a greater proportion
than Episcopalians nationally.
For
those who report a past religious affiliation, the
most were Roman Catholics. The rest are primarily
from a range of other mainline Protestant churches.
Why
We Love St. Andrew’s
We
value St. Andrew’s because of our welcoming
community and openness to all kinds of diversity.
We
feel a part of St. Andrew’s because we are
committed to our future. St. Andrew’s needs
us. In an unsettled time, we learned that the stability
and future of the church depends on the laity as
well as on a priest.
Many
of us are committed to St. Andrew’s as art
of our Episcopal heritage. Others are delighted
to have found a church where they can feel at home.
We all feel connected by the liturgy and worship.
OUR
GOALS
The
lay leadership is working to connect with our members
– we are relatively young, mainly professional,
educated and interested in the world, and a mixture
of old and new Episcopalians.
Our
challenge is to increase membership and pledge income
in order to prosper. We need to become more energetic
and to become actively involved in our community and
in outreach to meet our goal of growth.
We
want to broaden involvement in the church, enlarge
the circle of leadership, and encourage a sense of
ownership among members so none will feel left out
or excluded.
Improvements
in education for adults and children are vital. More
and better training for church school teachers will
make our children’s programs more substantive.
Teenage members would like to be involved in enhanced
programming, a band, or other events especially for
them.
We
have some differences about our services and music.
Some want more traditional or “higher” services
and music, others wish for more contemporary approached
in our liturgy. We are working to embrace those different
tastes.
Our
members are have pledged to increase their volunteering,
ramp up participation in lay ministries, commit to
education programs, and do “whatever it takes”
for St. Andrew’s to prosper.
OUR
OUTREACH AND MINISTRIES
Outreach
ministries include serving meals to the hungry at
an urban Episcopal church, providing food to the local
food pantries, supporting Ronald McDonald house, a
knitting ministry for spiritual comfort and warmth,
and a program to provide food, transportation and
emergency help to our own members, among others. We
also support missions in the Dominican Republic and
the Samaritan’s Fund for third-world children.
We are currently sending homemade cookies to our service
men and women in Iraq.
Ministries
include participating in services in various roles,
a choir, altar guild, adult education, bread baking,
and church school. St. Andrew’s is known across
the Diocese for the quality of our Christmas cookie
sale and our frequent potlucks. We have an annual
“mitten tree: and a drive to collect clean used
coats which are distributed in Fairfield county.
Several
of our members are actively involved with Diocesan
commission or committees and in Columbus Deanery work.
Diocesan youth programs are becoming popular with
some of our teenagers, who are encouraging their peers
to join them in these activities.
Our
church building is used for a variety of community
activities. Fairfield Academy used one room for an
“alternative school” during the school year.
Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and Brownie groups and an
AA group meet weekly.
OUR
COMMUNITY
St.
Andrew’s is located in Pickerington, Ohio, a
suburb of the capital city, Columbus, www.standrewspickerington.org.
The total population of Pickerington is 13,066 with
an estimated median housing value of $164,700. Pickerington
is a relatively young community with an age distribution
by population: 1 to 24: 36%, 24-45: 33%, 46-63: 22%,
and 64 and older: 8%. Pickerington is one of the fastest
growing communities in the State of Ohio and maintains
high standards for development and a desirable quality
of life for residents. Contact the Pickerington Area
Chamber of Commerce at 614-837-1958 or www.pickeringtonchamber.com.
Education
The
City of Pickerington is served by the Pickerington
Local School District. This past school year, Pickerington
Schools achieved an “Excellent” rating
by the Ohio Department of Education which the State
of Ohio labels an “A” grade. Administrative
offices can be reached at 614-833-2110 or http://Pickerington.k12.oh.us/schoolsList.
Higher
Education
Ohio
University’s Pickerington Center is proud to
be a permanent member of this community. The mission
of Ohio University’s Regional Higher Education
is outreach and access. To that end, Ohio University
selected Pickerington as the site to facilitate
the increasing needs for convenient higher education.
At Ohio University’s Pickerington Center you
can earn an Associate’s, Bachelor’s, or
Master’s Degree.
Recreation
Pickerington
Ponds is part of Metro Parks, which operates 14
parks in seven central Ohio counties. There are
always programs for the public at the Pickerington
Ponds metro park. For more information, visit www.metroparks.net.
The
Pickerington Youth Athletic Association (PYAA) operates
several sporting activities for Pickerington-area
children. For more information call 614-834-1669
or visit www.pyaa.org or www.pickeringtonkids.com.
Surrounding
Area
Pickerington
is less than 20 miles from downtown Columbus and
the Columbus International Airport. Columbus has
a population of 711,470, making it the largest city
in Ohio and the 15th largest in the United States.
Visit http://home.Columbus.gov.
