A Limestone Sanctuary in the Concho Valley
At the corner of Randolph and Harris streets in downtown San Angelo, Emmanuel Episcopal Church has been the Episcopal witness in the Concho Valley since 1884. The parish traces its worship back to a service held at Fort Concho on April 30, 1871, and it belongs to the Diocese of Northwest Texas, one of the regional bodies of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
The stone building the parish worships in was constructed in 1929 with limestone blocks salvaged from the former Tom Green County Courthouse and topped with the old courthouse bell, a gift from the county commissioners. The architect John G. Becker drew the new building, and the first service was held on Christmas Eve of that year. The state of Texas designated the complex a state historical site in 1967.
Around the church, the campus includes the stone Sunday School Annex of 1958 (now housing parish offices, the parlor, the church bookstore, and the library), the Parish Hall added in 1976, the Memorial Garden, the Hunter Garden dedicated in 1980, the Kreps Education Building, and a Scout Hut at 312 W. Ave A. The 22-rank Reuter Duwain E. Hughes Memorial Pipe Organ anchors the music ministry under Choirmaster Landon Gilmore, with Denise Howey at the organ.
Sunday Mornings at Emmanuel
The central Sunday gathering is the Holy Eucharist. At 8 a.m. the service is spoken, with traditional language, scripture readings, a sermon, and Holy Communion, and generally without music. At 10:30 a.m. the same liturgy is sung with choir, hymns, and a fuller ceremonial shape.
Coffee and fellowship follow the 8 a.m. service in the Parish Hall at 8:45 a.m. On the second Sunday of each month a parish breakfast is served at 9:15 a.m. From 9:30 a.m., Sunday School meets for all ages: children in the Undercroft, the Roundtable Fellowship for younger adults in the Library, and an Adult Book Study in the Great Room. On the second Sunday a FED Talk (Faith Education Development) takes the place of the regular adult class.
The Sunday Nursery opens at 9 a.m. and stays open after the 10:30 service for children five and younger. It is staffed by Gloria Guevara and is located in the Administration Building across the hall from the church office.
For those who cannot attend in person, services are livestreamed through the Emmanuel Broadcasting Network (EBN), and a deep archive of past services, sermons, and bulletins is available on the church's YouTube channel.
The Daily Office and Friday Vespers
The Daily Office is prayed publicly throughout the week. The Rev. Matt Rowe leads Morning Prayer on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and Evening Prayer on Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. On Fridays at 5:30 p.m. the parish gathers for Taize Vespers, a contemplative service shaped by the music and silence of the Taize community. Choral Evensong is offered as announced.
Those who cannot make it in person are pointed to dailyoffice.app, where the offices can be prayed individually.
From Fort Concho to a Limestone Sanctuary
The roots of Emmanuel reach back to April 30, 1871, when the Rev. Norman Badger, the Fort Concho post chaplain, prayed the first service from the Book of Common Prayer in the Concho Valley in a public hall on Concho Avenue. The Rev. George W. Dunbar, who arrived in 1876, oversaw the construction of a chapel at the fort.
In 1878, Bishop Robert Barnwell Elliott of the Missionary District of Western Texas raised a thousand dollars from the Parish of Emmanuel in Baltimore to plant a chapel in West Texas. He chose the town then known as Santa Angela, and the new congregation took the name of its Baltimore sponsor. The Ladies' Guild raised the five hundred dollars to purchase the first building site at Harris Avenue and Chadbourne Street. The Rev. Dr. Thomas Coke Stanley became the first Rector, the parish was organized in 1884, and the architect Oscar Ruffini designed a church that was built between 1887 and 1888.
By the early 1900s the parish had outgrown its first site. The Hon. William Anson, son of the Earl of Litchfield, who had purchased the Head-of-the-River Ranch near Christoval and become a generous lay leader, organized a boys' choir and a baseball team open only to members of that choir. In 1906 the original lot was sold and a new lot was purchased at West College and Randolph. By 1909 the parish had acquired its present site at Randolph and Harris. The construction of the new Tom Green County Courthouse in the 1920s offered the parish an unexpected gift: its discarded limestone and its bell.
Thirty-one men of the parish, including Captain Billy Anson, served in the First World War. In the depths of the Depression, the women of the Ladies' Guild and Mayor Jose L. Tweedy organized relief work, and Mrs. Hazel Beesley led local efforts for the Texas Relief Commission. In 1944 the Depression-era debt was paid off. The young women's guild took the name St. Catherine's in 1947, a name it still bears.
The Rev. Morris F. Elliott was called as Rector in 1949 and served until 1974, presiding over the parish's Diamond Anniversary in 1959 and beginning the archives that volunteers still curate. The Reuter pipe organ, the Memorial Garden, and air conditioning were added in the 1960s. A 1973 bequest from William E. Kreps established the Kreps Memorial Trust, which continues to fund youth ministry in the area.
Since 1984 Emmanuel has been served by four Rectors: the Rev. James T. Horton (1985 to 1989), the Rev. John H. Loving (1990 to 2004), the Rev. Allan A. Conkling (2005 to 2011), and the Rev. Matthew R. "Matt" Rowe, who was called in 2012. In that time the parish has added the Parish Hall (1976), the Hunter Garden (1980), the playground in memory of Derrell Dorrance (1983), and the Mother's Day Out program begun in the early 1980s, which remains one of its signature community offerings.
Learning at Every Age
The parish sees formation as a lifelong journey and offers classes for every season of life. On Sundays at 9:30 a.m. the children gather in the Undercroft with Fr. Matt Rowe and Ms. Kim, the Roundtable Fellowship gathers younger adults in the Library, and an Adult Book Study meets in the Great Room. On the second Sunday of the month, a FED Talk brings the whole parish together around a single theme.
Midweek, a Wednesday Night Bible Study meets at 7 p.m. on Zoom with the Rev. Bill Wright, and a Thursday Morning Bible Study follows at 9:30. A midweek book study pairs with the Wednesday Bible Study at the same hour.
For those wishing to make a mature adult commitment of faith, the parish runs a Confirmation class that walks through theology, church history, the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer, scripture, tradition, reason, the church year, music, vestments, and the spiritual gifts. The Bishop of Northwest Texas, the Rt. Rev. J. Scott Mayer, makes an episcopal visitation each year to confirm the class, laying hands on each candidate and praying that the Holy Spirit will fill and empower them. Christians from Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and some Lutheran traditions are received into the Episcopal Church by the bishop, recognizing the apostolic succession preserved in their own bishops.
A library of short videos and handouts on the Episcopal tradition, from church history to the Catechism, is offered alongside an online Book of Common Prayer resource.
Children, Youth, and Families
Haley Halfmann serves as Director of Student and Family Ministry, overseeing Sunday School, the Roundtable Fellowship for parents, Vacation Bible School, and family retreats. The Kreps Memorial Trust, the legacy of the 1973 bequest, underwrites much of this work.
Sunday School gathers in the Undercroft each week. Fr. Matt works with the older children and Ms. Kim with the younger ones, and parents and other adults are welcome at the Roundtable Fellowship in the Library. Parish families are invited periodically to retreats, with recent gatherings at Spring Lakes Ranch near Aquilla, Texas. Vacation Bible School is offered over three mornings each summer with crafts, snack time, and outdoor play. The Sunday Nursery, located in the Administration Building, cares for children five and younger throughout Sunday morning and at other special services during the year.
Mothers Day Out
The Mothers Day Out program at Emmanuel has run since the early 1980s. Held Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., the program welcomes children twelve months through five years of age for a half day of play, learning, and socialization in a Christian setting. Teachers are certified in first aid and child protection and trained in age-appropriate enrichment. Art and music classes through the Emmanuel School of Fine Arts are integrated into the curriculum.
Tuition is $115 a month for the general public; through the Kreps Memorial Trust, Emmanuel church families can participate tuition-free. There is a $50 activity fee per semester. Inquiries and visits during program hours are arranged through the church office.
The Emmanuel School of Fine Arts
The Emmanuel School of Fine Arts (ESoFA) is the parish's enrichment program in the visual and performing arts. Directed by Karyn Kuniyuki, with Samantha Schlather as ESoFA clerk, ESoFA provides art and music classes that are integrated into Mothers Day Out and are open to children and youth throughout the wider San Angelo community.
Pastoral Care Across the Stages of Life
Fr. Matt and Fr. Bill Wright together carry the sacramental and pastoral life of the parish. Baptisms of infants, small children, youth, and adults are arranged with the Rector. Weddings, the blessing of pregnancies, thanksgivings for births and adoptions, the renewal of marriage vows, and house blessings are all offered. Reconciliation (Confession), ministry to the sick, and ministry at the hour of death are part of the regular pastoral rhythm, and a complete Funeral Planning customary is available to help families arrange a service with the parish.
Reaching Out from San Angelo
Outreach at Emmanuel is a parish-wide effort, summarized by the parish as four commitments: We Worship the Lord, We Serve the Lord, We Learn of the Lord, and We Love the Lord. The CASA Quilters gather on Monday mornings to craft quilts for children in foster care. On the first Monday of each month, parishioners host 1st Monday Friends, an evening of food and fellowship for residents of area group homes. Members volunteer at Laundry Love events, washing the clothes and bedding of low- and no-income neighbors, and on Thursday mornings they deliver meals to seniors through Meals for the Elderly. On the fifth Mondays of the month, parishioners cook and serve lunch at the Our Daily Bread Soup Lunch Program at Wesley-Trinity United Methodist Church. Each week the parish contributes designated items to the pantry of Project Dignidad, an ecumenical emergency food ministry in operation since 1976, and members serve in various roles with United Campus Ministries at Angelo State University.
Fellowship and Parish Life
The life of the parish is shaped by regular fellowship. St. Catherine's Guild, the women's fellowship that has kept the parish together since the early days of the Ladies' Guild, gathers on the first Tuesday afternoon of each month at 4 p.m. in the Church Parlor. The Men of Emmanuel Lunch Bunch meets on Wednesdays at noon at Miss Hattie's Restaurant & Cathouse Lounge on East Concho Avenue. Agape Group Suppers are parish small groups that meet in homes and around tables for conversation and sharing.
The parish is also a home for Scouting in San Angelo. Boy Scout Troop 42 meets on Monday evenings in the Undercroft, Boy Scout Troop 1 and Cub Scout activities gather on Tuesdays at the Scout Hut, 312 W. Ave A. A playground in memory of Derrell Dorrance was added to the grounds in 1983 for use by parish families and the wider community.
The Wider Church
The Episcopal Church USA was established in 1789, in the years after the American Revolution made continued membership in the Church of England impossible for the new nation. The name Episcopal means "having bishops," and in this church the bishop is the chief pastor of a geographical territory called a diocese.
Emmanuel is in the Diocese of Northwest Texas, which stretches from San Angelo in the south into the Texas Panhandle. The diocesan center is in Lubbock, and the diocesan bishop is the Rt. Rev. J. Scott Mayer. Episcopal congregations worldwide are bound together in the Anglican Communion, sharing a common heritage in, and continuing fellowship with, the Church of England.
Worship at Emmanuel is characterized by reverence for the Lord and love for the people of the Lord. The congregation gathers in his name to sing praise, hear Holy Scripture, offer prayers, share the Lord's Peace, and receive Holy Communion, and is then sent back out into daily life to bear witness in thought, word, and deed. Giving supports the parish's ministries, and the sermon archive stretches back through years of Sunday sermons.