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DID YOU KNOW?
Early History of the
Church of the Annunciation
The history of the Church of the Annunciation was written by Terry Hussey. She and Chris Collins, who also played an important part in its publication, handling all the photos and serving as technical advisor, have done an incredible job in the preserving the history of our beautiful church!
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Rev. Dr. Benton Woods, Rector
In January, 1976, the vestry called the Rev. Benton Woods to succeed Father Lowe. There are some missing years in the church’s vestry minutes, but we know that the Eileen Watson Memorial Garden and George Tuttle Memorial altar were blessed by Bishop Haynes on January 21, 1978.
Father Wood declared that 1978 would be “the Year of Beautification” for the church and grounds. The addition of three stained glass windows to the church greatly enhanced its looks. Wes Pritchard chaired a committee charged with coming up with master plan for the Memorial Garden.
When the abutting pink house came on the market again, the Vestry offered the Harrisons $45,000, with life occupancy in the house upon payment of taxes, insurance, and maintenance, but the offer was turned down.
Prayer Book revision
After 8 years of trial liturgies, the green book, the zebra book, and other experimental liturgies, the General Convention of the national church in 1979 adopted the prayer book of 1979 as the only Book of Common Prayer. But change is hard. In a pastoral letter written by Dr. Wood to the congregation, he said, he would purchase the 1979 Books of Common Prayer and put them in the pews. The 1928 prayer books would be retained in the pews for use at weddings, funerals, and other special services, as authorized by the bishop. “All services at Annunciation will be Rite I. I will omit the abhorrent ‘kiss of peace.’ We will not disrupt the beauty and dignity of our services playing ‘huggy bear.’ Let us continue to stand tall in retaining the magnificent tradition of our Anglican heritage. With God’s help, we shall prevail.”
Plans for the Memorial Garden were the focus of the next few years. The original plan was to have a columbarium with 80 niches, which could be sold for $250 each, to pay for the columbarium. All were shocked when the architect estimated the cost of the garden at $31,000. One vestryman noted that the current trend is to bury the ashes in the ground, rather than putting them in a columbarium. In October of 1977, the parish approved Wes Pritchard’s plan for the Memorial Garden.
In 1977, a Needlepoint committee was initiated by Evelyn Jones and Elizabeth Bouterse. Church member Wes Pritchard drew the designs, and the ECW allocated $350 to purchase canvass and wool to make cushions for the altar rail.
At the Annual Meeting in January of 1978 “Dr. Wood talked about the state of the Episcopal Church in the U.S.A. today. He said he is greatly distressed by the actions of the National Church up North, including permitting desecration of the Book of Common Prayer, the ordination of homosexuals, and marriages of the same sex. He said that Annunciation “has pulled up the moat and is sticking to the Prayer Book and having dignified services.” He called on parishioners to “stick to the morals and faith we have been taught and to fight the good fight.” Dr. Wood praised Bishop Haynes who stood up for the Orthodox faith. He does not recommend that we leave the National Church, but suggests that we keep the faith. He is “proud of the way Annunciation has stood up for our beliefs.”
The vestry authorized extension of the parish hall to tie in to the south end of the memorial garden arbor at a cost of $3,158. The vestry also approved Taylor Collins’ Eagle Scout project of moving rocks from the church wall to the sign on Gulf Drive, where he will build a rock garden.
The annual report in January, 1980 said that this year they have purchased a new central air conditioning system for Lowe Hall, a new refrigerator, a ceiling fan for the church, and major landscaping of the Gulf Drive frontage area. There are 285 baptized members, 275 communicants, not counting the snow birds. Total attendance for the year was over 13,000, up 5,000 from four years ago. There are three Sunday School classes: a nursery, one for pre-schoolers through first grade, and a grade school class.
to be continued...
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