St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Weirton facing closure
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WEIRTON -- The nearly 80-year history of St. Thomas Episcopal Church could be coming to an end.
Members of the church, located at 300 Three Springs Drive in Weirton, were recently notified of plans by the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia to close the congregation, which has served the Weirton community for decades.
"Diocesan leadership exercised the authority to close the congregation of St. Thomas' in Weirton, pursuant to the Canons of The Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia," a diocesan spokesperson said. "The congregation’s leadership has appealed the decision, and that canonical process is pending. Operations at St. Thomas’ are paused pending the appeal, which will be answered in August."
Members of the church spent Thursday and Friday clearing various materials from much of the building, saying they would no longer be permitted inside after this weekend.
Wendy Speer, a longtime member of the church, said the Diocese had declared St. Thomas an "imperiled congregation." She said the church has approximately 10 active members.
"That's the only canon we’ve broken," Speer said, explaining that St. Thomas has not had a permanent priest in four years and has often relied on lay leaders to conduct services.
The diocesan spokesperson cited Canon III.5.3 as part of the process used in the decision. The section of the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia addresses congregations whose continued viability is considered in jeopardy and allows them to be designated as an "Imperiled Congregation."
The canon states that such a designation is intended to provide a means of restoring the health of a congregation or maintaining the well-being of the Diocese and requires the parties involved to work toward addressing the conditions that led to the designation.
Speer confirmed an appeal of the closure has been filed, with a hearing before the Diocese's Standing Committee scheduled for Aug. 12.
In the meantime, even without access to the church building, members are hoping to find ways to continue serving area residents.
"We’ve touched so many lives in this community," Speer said. "Our hearts are broken."
Those efforts include the Peach Festival, a more-than-60-year-old community event that traditionally has served as a fundraiser for the church's mission and other community organizations. Although members can no longer use the church's name for the event, they hope to hold the festival Aug. 15 at the Masonic Hall in Weirton.
Over the years, the church hall has been rented for family events, including baby showers, as well as blood drives and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. It also has served as a polling location for Brooke County.
Speer said several events had been scheduled at the church in the coming months but had to be canceled, leaving organizers to find new locations.
St. Thomas Episcopal began serving the Weirton community in 1947, with members initially meeting in the offices of Monongahela Power Co. on Main Street. The congregation moved into a former auto garage at the corner of Elm Street and Mildren Avenue in 1948.
The current church building opened in 1969 and was among the first structures built along Three Springs Drive, before the area developed into a retail district.
If the decision to close St. Thomas is finalized, the closest church in the West Virginia Diocese will be Olde St. John Episcopal Church in Colliers, according to information on the Diocese's website. Four congregations are located in the Wheeling area and one is in Moundsville.