While inspecting the timbers being used to restore the front of Grace Anglican Church in Wildwood, the Rev. R. Wayne Ogg reminded himself that it all began with a steeple.
“A church in Virginia donated a steeple to us, and we wanted to place it on our roof,” the Grace Anglican pastor remarked. “We asked Sumter County about making it a reality, and we were told that before that could be done, we had to do a lot of renovating and updating of our building.”
Ogg is at Grace Anglican’s modest cottage two or three times a week, doing anything he can to end up making the restorations a reality. On some days, he’s alone, but on others, he’s accompanied by congregants, friends and others involved with the effort.
“Right now, we are working on the porch area, to make the front look more like a church from the outside,” he said. “I’ve learned a great deal about carpentry and construction on this project.”
“We plan to enclose the front porch of the building, but not its sides,” added George Meidhof, a Village of Liberty Park resident and Grace Anglican member. “We’ll put in faux stained glass windows in the front, as well as place the steeple on the roof. We also want to put in supports to hold up both the porch and main portico, as well as add a new roof to our storage unit.”
All of these renovations are costly, but according to Ogg, the community has stood up to assist.
“We had a GoFundMe page to cover some of the costs that went well, plus we had congregants open up their wallets to help,” the pastor said. “We also have a Puerto Rican Pentecostal congregation that is renting our sanctuary out for worship.”
Grace Anglican began in 2014, when Ogg identified a need in Wildwood for traditional Anglican service.
The church eventually obtained a century-old cottage at 4971 E. County Road 462, after originally conducting worship in Ogg’s home. Grace Anglican members and others totally refurbished and restored the interior of the house into a church, and the inaugural Grace Anglican service was held at its permanent home on Nov. 15, 2015.
When you walk into Grace Anglican, Ogg can give you a history lesson on the building.
“The church lobby used to be a bedroom, and our sanctuary previously served as a living room and two additional bedrooms,” he said. “Most of the wooden flooring in our sanctuary is over 100 years old, and there was a working chimney in the middle of the sanctuary. We had to completely remove it during renovations.”
Grace Anglican Church has a lot of old signs, but it also has a lot of modern ones. Meidhof, who works behind the sanctuary on a computer, is constantly updating the church’s website. Grace Anglican services are also aired online thanks to a three-camera setup provided by the church.
“You can say this is the Grace Anglican Command Center,” Meidhof said with a laugh. “It’s wonderful to offer video worship to those unable to step foot in the church.”
The modifications are expected to be completed soon, according to 0gg. The steeple will be installed on the roof as one of the final elements in the repair. The steeple is currently in front of the house, along with a banner saying “See the Church. See the Steeple. Come Inside. Join the People.”
“We like to call ourselves ‘The Little Church with the Big Heart’,” Ogg said. “We have an enthusiastic group that wants to support Grace Anglican however they can, and welcome others to our community.”
Visit villagesanglican.church for more information on the church and how you can help with the renovation process.