St. Andrew's Episcopal Church sits at 111 NE 80th Street in Seattle's Green Lake neighborhood, a few blocks east of the park and a short walk from the energy of 1st Avenue NE. From that address the parish runs a full liturgical life: two Sunday morning Eucharists, a monthly candlelit contemplative service in the spirit of Taizé, Centering Prayer across two congregations, a vocal choir, and a long list of formation, social-justice and creation-care ministries that reach well beyond the church walls.
Sunday Worship in the Sanctuary
The main Sunday rhythm is straightforward and Anglican in shape. Holy Eucharist is celebrated at 8:00 a.m. in the sanctuary, and again at 10:00 a.m., with the later service livestreamed on the parish YouTube channel. Each liturgy follows the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer, with music drawn from the Episcopal Hymnal 1982, a St. Andrew's Hymnal Supplement, and a wide variety of other collections. Director of Music Tim Drewes leads a vocal choir that rehearses Thursday evenings at 7:30; in any given Sunday service the music might range from an African American spiritual to a 17th-century German hymn to a modern liturgical piece.
Children are part of the 10:00 a.m. liturgy from the start. After the Song of Praise, the children follow the Children's Banner to Children's Chapel and return to the sanctuary at The Peace so that everyone can join in Communion together. Activity bags are available in the narthex for younger ones. The nursery, staffed by Director of Formation Megan McInnis's team, is open during both the 8:00 and 10:00 services for babies and young children.
A Monthly Taizé-Style Contemplative Service
On the first Sunday of each month at 5:00 p.m., the sanctuary takes on a different character. Gentle candlelight, simple repeated song, a single scripture reading, extended silence, and Holy Communion fill an hour that draws on the ecumenical Taizé community in France. Healing Ministers are also present at this service for those who want prayers for healing with anointing.
The contemplative tradition at St. Andrew's deepened during the pandemic. Beginning in March 2020, the parish produced a full cycle of weekly virtual Contemplative Services for its YouTube channel, with musicians Kester Limner and Andy Myers recording new music and Carrie Grace Littauer leading worship. That video archive remains available on the parish YouTube channel as a complete lectionary's worth of services.
Centering Prayer Across Two Congregations
Centering Prayer at St. Andrew's is a shared ecumenical ministry. The parish gathers on the first, third and fifth Mondays of each month at 7:00 p.m., meeting at the parking-lot entrance at 6:45 p.m. A second weekly gathering is hosted by St. Joseph Parish on Saturday mornings at 8:00 a.m. in the Brebeuf Room, in partnership with Contemplative Outreach Northwest. Each session includes a brief reading, a period of silent prayer, a meditative walk, a second silence, and time for quiet fellowship.
Music, Healing and Healing Prayer
Music is central to the parish's identity. Tim Drewes directs the vocal choir (Thursday evenings, with a summer break) and a separate Contemplative Service Music Team that rehearses an hour before each 5:00 p.m. Taizé service. Tim, a Pacific Lutheran University-trained organist and former apprentice organ builder who also served in Portland for 23 years before returning to the Puget Sound area, draws on the Episcopal Hymnal 1982 and the St. Andrew's Hymnal Supplement, alongside dozens of other collections.
Healing ministers are available at every 8:00 and 10:00 Sunday Eucharist, stationed next to the altar ramp to offer special healing prayers, the laying on of hands and anointing. The prayer of healing follows James 5:14 and continues a tradition of lay healers in the early church.
Children, Youth and Young Adults
Children's Church meets at the 10:00 a.m. service, and the nursery is open during both morning services. The Children's School (TCS), a play-based half-day preschool serving ages 2 to 6, leases the lower educational wing of the church building from September through June, with a summer camp for ages 3 to 9. TCS also welcomes classroom volunteers.
Middle School and Senior High youth groups alternate Sunday evenings during the school year, meeting from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the youth room. Each summer includes a capstone trip; recent examples include a 2025 Seattle-based focus on homelessness and a 2026 high school pilgrimage to Honolulu to study indigenous history and immigration. A separate 20s/30s group gathers for coffee and conversation, outreach projects, city hikes, compline and seasonal events; Director of Formation Megan McInnis connects newcomers.
Adult Faith Formation and the Labyrinth
St. Andrew's runs a four-year Education for Ministry (EfM) course from the University of the South, meeting Monday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the parish library, with Zoom available. The curriculum works through the Old Testament in year one, the New Testament in year two, Church history in year three, and theology and spirituality in year four. A one-year Wide Angle cohort reads authors such as Joan Chittister, Rowan Williams, Steven Charleston, Rachel Held Evans and Winnie Varghese.
Outside the parish hall door sits the church's outdoor labyrinth, named Fàilte, Gaelic for "Welcome." Veriditas Certified Advanced Labyrinth Facilitator Donna Hawkins guides weekly Finger Labyrinth Walks on Zoom every Thursday at 1:30 p.m., and the parish library lends finger labyrinths in Celtic Triple, Medieval and Chakra Vyuha patterns. A Book Group meets on selected Thursday evenings, and a parish library maintains an online catalog of devotional resources.
Fellowship and Small Groups
Fellowship at St. Andrew's runs through several smaller gatherings. The Friendship Circle meets on Zoom every Thursday morning at 11:00 a.m. for conversation and crafts. The Knitting Circle, also on Zoom, meets the second Monday of each month from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. House Church small groups, formed during the pandemic and still active, meet either in homes or online, with each group deciding its own rhythm for shared meals, prayer and conversation.
Pastoral Care
A pastoral care team tends to the mind-body-heart-and-soul needs of the parish. Eucharistic Visitors bring consecrated bread and wine to those unable to attend in person; the Two By Two Ministry arranges periodic social calls; the Prayer Chain prays confidentially for any need shared with it; the Prayer Shawl Ministry knits or collects shawls for those in surgery, in difficulty, or welcoming a new baby; and the Card Ministry sends notes for birthdays, graduations and condolences. Healing with oil is available at every Sunday service.
The Community Health Ministry extends that care into education and advocacy. Affiliated with the Faith Community Health Network of Puget Sound and Wesley Theological Seminary's Health Ministry Program, the team can be reached through health@saintandrewsseattle.org.
Social Justice and the Holy Land
Social-justice work at the parish focuses on immigration, living wage, hunger, globalization, anti-racism, racial equity and homelessness. The Holy Land Justice Committee, which meets monthly, has hosted speakers such as the Rev. Dr. Alex Awad for evenings devoted to Palestinian Christian perspectives and concrete opportunities for action. Sacred Ground, an 11-class race-dialogue series, is offered periodically on Sunday evenings.
Creation Keepers and Sacred Grounds
Environmental justice is woven into the parish identity. Creation Keepers has been active at St. Andrew's since 2002, making the church a recognized leader in the Episcopal community, the interfaith Earth Ministry organization and Interfaith Power and Light. The team has supported Earth Day celebrations, the installation of solar panels, recycling and composting, real dishes at coffee hour, and energy-efficiency upgrades. Through a covenant partnership between the Diocese of Olympia and the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Philippines, more than 94,000 tons of CO2 have been sequestered.
Sacred Grounds Stewards maintain an Encounter Master Landscape Plan that is considered a model for Episcopal parishes, integrating RainWise cisterns and rain gardens (Phase I completed in January 2020) with native plantings and a basalt sculptural piscina commissioned from a Native American sculptor to return consecrated wine safely to the earth. The Organic Vegetable Garden, in place since 2007, composts the church's yard waste on site and supplies produce to the Teen Feed program; eleven prepared plots are also offered to wait-listed P-Patch gardeners from the neighborhood.
Outreach in Seattle
Three main outreach efforts connect the parish to the wider city. Teen Feed: every 3rd Wednesday of the month, a team cooks at 2:30 p.m. to prepare a hot meal for 55 to 65 at-risk teens in the University District. FamilyWorks Food Bank: donations of food, clothing and other items are collected in the narthex and through special collection events. Refugee Resettlement: the parish partners with the Diocese of Olympia's Refugee Resettlement Office on special projects for refugee families in greater Puget Sound.
Clergy, Staff and Music Leadership
The Rev. Kendall Haynes became Rector of St. Andrew's in 2025. A lifelong Episcopalian, he has served as a priest for nineteen years in congregations in the Dioceses of Chicago and Olympia and focuses on neighborhood congregational development with a priority on environmental and social justice. He lives in Green Lake with his wife Beth and their three sons.
Megan McInnis, Director of Formation, holds a B.A. in Christian Ministry from Warner Pacific University and an M.Div. from Seattle Pacific Seminary (2019), and served her internship at St. Andrew's. Tim Drewes directs music from offices by appointment Wednesdays and Thursdays. Leslie McMichael is the Parish Administrator (Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) and a working harpist in the Puget Sound region. Gretchen Hayslip, a thirty-year member of the parish and former aquatic biologist at the EPA, leads outreach and has served on the vestry as junior and senior warden.
Facilities, Parking and Visits
The church celebrates weddings, funerals and memorials, and rents its facilities for meetings, concerts and celebrations. Mobility-friendly parking is at the northeast corner of the grounds; general parking is along the east alley and on 1st Avenue NE and surrounding streets. Office hours are Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Visitors are warmly invited to any liturgy or event, in person on Sundays or online any time, and a community health protocol asks anyone who is sick to participate online and stay home until fever-free for at least 24 hours, with masks available in the narthex.