A Coal-Mine Bell on River Road
St. Mary's Episcopal Church sits along River Road in Goochland County, just west of Richmond, Virginia. Consecrated in 1878, the parish grew out of monthly worship led by visiting clergy serving local farming and coal-mining communities. The original sanctuary, named Little St. Mary's in memory of infant Mary Allen of nearby Tuckahoe Plantation, was built to gather those scattered homesteads into one body of worship, and the bell from the steam engine that hauled coal from the nearby mines still calls the community to worship today. The churchyard holds 100 original gravestones, poured by Frank Alley and numbered by his daughter Ida, marking the resting places of the earliest members.
As the congregation grew, a larger sanctuary, New St. Mary's, was added in 1992, set behind the original building to preserve its historic character. The two sanctuaries now anchor the rhythm of parish life together, and St. Mary's contributes more than $70,000 annually to support local outreach across the greater Goochland and Richmond community and beyond.
Worship Through the Week
From September through May, St. Mary's offers two Sunday services. At 9 a.m., a Holy Eucharist Rite I is celebrated in Little St. Mary's, and at 11 a.m., New St. Mary's hosts a service that features Holy Eucharist on the first, third, and fifth Sundays and Morning Prayer on the second and fourth Sundays (except during Advent, Lent, and Easter). On Morning Prayer Sundays, an optional brief Holy Eucharist is offered afterward. Both services usually run about an hour. From Memorial Day through Labor Day, the parish shifts to a single Sunday service at 10 a.m. in New St. Mary's, alternating between Holy Eucharist and Morning Prayer on the same weekly rhythm.
On Wednesdays at noon, a Holy Eucharist with Prayers for Healing is celebrated in Little St. Mary's. This 30-minute service uses an abbreviated liturgy, includes a short homily, and offers prayers for healing after the people's communion. On Thursdays at 2 p.m., the parish gathers for Centering Prayer in the narthex of New St. Mary's, an ancient practice of directing one's heart to God in silence for 20 to 30 minutes.
Holy Eucharist is celebrated at every Sunday service, and all are welcome. Gluten-free communion wafers are available. Anyone who prefers to receive a blessing rather than communion may approach the altar rail with arms crossed on the chest and be offered a quiet blessing. During the program year, a monthly informal Family Worship and Potluck Supper is held at 5 p.m. in the parish hall.
A Warm Welcome for Visitors
St. Mary's is located at 12291 River Road, west of Gaskins Road and east of Blair Road. From Interstate 64, visitors take Exit 180A for Gaskins Road south, travel four miles to the traffic light at River Road, turn right, and continue 1.4 miles to the church on the left. From south of the James River, Chippenham Parkway north to the River Road exit leads to a 3.5-mile stretch of River Road to the church.
There are two marked entrances along River Road leading to gravel parking lots, and parking is ample. There is no dress code; suits are not required. Visitors typically find men in bowties and coat jackets or simple button-downs with khakis, and women in dresses or pants. Worship bags with a coloring page based on the Gospel reading sit in wooden bins near the entrances to New St. Mary's for younger children.
Anyone may participate in the ministries and events at St. Mary's. In the Episcopal Church, members of record are those baptized or confirmed at the parish, those who transfer membership from another Episcopal parish with assistance from the Director of Parish Life, and those who come from another Christian tradition, for whom the parish sends a courtesy letter to the former church requesting baptism and confirmation information.
Music in the Anglican Tradition
Music is woven into every Sunday at St. Mary's. The parish choir includes singers from high school through senior adults, upholding a tradition of anthems and service music in the Anglican style. Repertoire spans Byrd to Bach to Bairstow and beyond, prepared for the 11 a.m. services each week. Highlights of the fall season include the Advent Service of Lessons and Carols, following the traditions set by the King's College Choir in Cambridge, England, and A Choral Eucharist on All Saints' Sunday. The choir rehearses on Thursday evenings from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. and on Sunday mornings at 10 a.m., and sings at the 11 a.m. service from September through late May or early June, as well as at the Christmas Eve, Ash Wednesday, and Holy Week services. Several services of Choral Evensong are offered throughout the year, and new volunteer singers with prior choral or instrumental experience are always invited to join.
Children's Handbells rehearse on Sundays at 4:15 p.m. in the Block Room, and the Adult Handbell Choir rehearses on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. in New St. Mary's. Both groups welcome new ringers across the program year.
Children and Youth
Through its nursery, Sunday School, and worship programs, St. Mary's is committed to creating a community for children where they are known, loved, and belong.
Nursery care is available for children from newborn through age four. The nursery opens at 8:45 a.m. on Sunday mornings during the programming year and runs through the end of the 11 a.m. service; in summer it opens at 9:45 a.m. and runs through the end of the 10 a.m. service. Sunday School for four-year-olds through fifth graders meets at 10 a.m. during the programming year. When the weather is 55 degrees or warmer and dry, classes meet outdoors on the nature trail at the back of the campus near the Youth Education Building; in chilly or rainy weather, they gather in the Block Room.
Children's Chapel takes place during the service in New St. Mary's at 11 a.m. during the programming year and at 10 a.m. in summer. Children come forward during the Gospel hymn and go to the Block Room together, where they hear the Gospel story, talk about it, pray, and sing before returning to the service during the passing of the peace. Vacation Bible School serves ages 4 through rising 3rd graders, and On-the-Go Camp serves rising 4th and 5th graders, both held over a four-day stretch each June.
Youth ministry welcomes students in grades 6 through 12. Monthly Youth Group gatherings are built around fellowship, faith, food, and fun, and a monthly Youth Bible Study explores Scripture with a new theme each year. Confirmation is offered for 8th graders and older, with one overnight retreat and five sessions between October and April, the Confirmation service held in May. Seasonal social events, hands-on service days, and mission trips round out the program, and youth are invited to serve in worship as acolytes, readers, or musicians.
Adult Formation and Small Groups
Adult Christian Formation at St. Mary's is described as the lifelong process of growing in relationship with God, self, others, and all creation.
Adult Forum meets on Sundays at 10:15 a.m. during the programming year, led by clergy, staff, and other speakers. Held in the parish hall between services, the forum provides education, spiritual formation, and fellowship that enrich the faith and the community. Lectionary Bible Study meets on Wednesdays at 10 a.m. during the programming year in the library, with an option to join via Zoom. The study focuses on the lectionary readings assigned for the coming Sunday and welcomes anyone who would like to learn, dive deeper, or ask questions.
Men's Spiritual Practice Group gathers on Tuesdays at 8 a.m. via Zoom and is open to men of all ages. Book studies are offered throughout the programming year, with several different groups meeting in rotation.
Pastoral Care, Outreach, and Fellowship
Pastoral Care centers on the parish as one family. Four pastoral care teams meet once a month to pray and plan for the congregation's needs, sending cards to parishioners, visiting the homebound and sick, arranging meals for those who need a break from cooking, and marking the milestones of marriage and new births. The teams welcome new members throughout the year.
Outreach at St. Mary's partners with organizations across Goochland and Richmond, including Caritas, Crossover Healthcare Ministry, Education = Hope, GoochlandCares, Gateway Homes, LVS Richmond, Peter Paul, and St. Andrew's School. These partnerships ensure access to shelter, food, education, healthcare, medicine, supplies, and care for neighbors near and far. Parishioners regularly serve at GoochlandCares' Clothes Closet on sorting days, and short-term mission trips have carried parishioners abroad. The parish hosts New Beginnings AA at 9 a.m. on Saturdays in the Education Building.
Fellowship feeds the parish by providing monthly parish breakfasts on the second Sunday from October through May (10 to 11 a.m.) and parish suppers on the third Wednesday from October through May (5:30 to 7 p.m.), along with weekly Lenten and Advent suppers that include 15 minutes of guided formation - one session for adults led by clergy and another for children in the Block Room.
St. Mary's Churchyard
St. Mary's Churchyard is a sacred resting place where active parishioners and their immediate families may be buried. A four-by-ten-foot burial plot, mostly located in the northwest corner of the churchyard, currently costs $3,000 and may hold one casket burial plus one cremation burial, or up to three cremation burials. Cremation interment in the Memorial Garden costs $300 plus $245 for a bronze plaque. Upright monuments are limited to 4.5 feet in height and 3.5 feet in width, with no walls, fences, mausoleums, or above-ground tombs allowed. The church maintains the grass on each burial site but assumes no obligation to repair or maintain monuments, plantings, or décor placed by families.
St. Mary's Episcopal School
St. Mary's Episcopal School treasures children and childhood, fostering development through play and exploration and preparing them for success in all aspects of their education. The co-educational program welcomes children age two through kindergarten, including children of diverse abilities and backgrounds.
Life Events
The church marks life's passages with sacramental rites. Holy Baptism is celebrated for people of all ages on major feast days or designated parish Baptism Sundays, usually the second Sunday of the month. Confirmation is open to 8th graders and older and includes one overnight retreat and five sessions between October and April, with the Confirmation service held in May. Weddings at St. Mary's are for members only, and all couples participate in premarital counseling with a member of the clergy. Funerals and memorial services are arranged through the Director of Parish Life, and burial in St. Mary's Churchyard is offered to active parishioners and their immediate families.
The Clergy and the Team
The Reverend Daniel Reeves, the fifth rector of St. Mary's, joined the parish in March 2025. He holds a Master of Theological Studies from Duke Divinity School and a post-graduate diploma in Anglican Studies from Virginia Theological Seminary, and he completed clinical pastoral education at the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He previously served as associate rector of Christ Church in Raleigh, N.C., as interim associate rector of Holy Comforter Episcopal in Burlington, N.C., and as curate at St. Luke's Episcopal in Durham, N.C.
The Reverend Paul Evans serves as Associate Rector for Worship and Formation, working closely with liturgical volunteers, formation staff, and committees. He previously served as Upper School Chaplain at St. Christopher's School and as associate rector at Grace and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.
The Reverend Allison Pace serves as Associate Rector for Pastoral Care. A graduate of Randolph-Macon College, Virginia Theological Seminary, and the School of Theology at Sewanee, she most recently served as Deacon at St. John's Episcopal Church in Chester and anticipates ordination to the priesthood.
The Reverend Robin Teasley serves as Assistant Priest for Pastoral Care. A Richmond native, she was raised as a Baptist and fell in love with liturgical worship while attending St. Gertrude High School. Since her ordination in 2011, she has served churches in Blackstone, Petersburg, and the Richmond area.
The ministry team is rounded out by Amelia McDaniel, Lay Associate for Christian Formation; Ed Sloane, Director of Youth Formation; Emily Killmon, Director of Parish Life; and Ryan Tibbetts, Director of Music, who leads the choir and handbell choirs.