|
The Episcopal Church of St. Peter's and St. Mary's
Address:
126 West 2nd Avenue
Denver, CO 80223
Phone:
303-722-8781
Address:
1600 Grant Street
Denver, CO 80203
Phone:
303-839-1432
Miners who came to Colorado for the silver boom from Cornwall, England
settled their families in the Baker neighborhood, just south of
downtown, west of Broadway. They established a neighborhood church
in 1891 of Castle Rock stone. They built the church in the style
of English country churches naming it St. Peter's church after their
home parish in Cornwall. The church was originally built as a parish
hall but due to the Silver Panic in 1893, this was all that was
completed. The small church managed to maintain itself in spite
of never ending financial troubles. At times, the church was heated
by coal gathered from along the railroad tracks that had fallen
from the coaltenders of the passing steam locomotives. The cross
that surmounts the church is from St. Mark's that stood at 11th
and Broadway. When that congregation moved and the church became
a fuel and feed store, the owners threw the cross aside and a member
of St. Peter's salvaged it. The current parish hall to the east
of the building was finally finished in 1949. As the character of
the Baker neighborhood began to change, and families moved from
the city to the suburbs, church membership fell to only 184 in 1979.
In 1980 the congregation of St. Mary's joined St. Peter's, adding
80 people and considerable income to the congregation. During the
1980s, the congregation successfully struggled to restore and maintain
the fabric of the church.
The
church responds to the needs of its Baker neighbors in many ways.
The church offers a hot Tuesday night dinner to 80-100 homeless
and low-income people. Hot lunches are served through the Volunteers
of America "Meals on Wheels" program. The church offers
tutoring to neighborhood children through the Wizz kids program
on Mondays. They also host Wednesday night women's group and a non-denominational
program in conjunction with "Third Story" to neighborhood
children offering a meal, bible study and crafts. Plans are in the
works for continued and expanded outreach services to the members
of the Baker neighborhood.
|
