In the Fort Hill Neighborhood of Lynchburg
Grace Memorial Episcopal Church stands on New Hampshire Avenue in the Fort Hill neighborhood of Lynchburg, Virginia, a traditional residential area on the city's west side. The green stone bell tower that rises over the building was cut from the walls of the congregation's first home, and the church has been part of Lynchburg life since 1859. Its mission statement reads: "The mission of Grace Memorial Episcopal Church is to worship God joyfully; to be open and inclusive in our words and actions; to trust and support each other; and to serve our community with our time and resources." The parish is a diverse community that is friendly, caring, and active in outreach to its neighborhood and city.
Grace Memorial belongs to the Episcopal Church and to the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia. Its worship is gospel-centered and Christ-centered, and visitors are welcomed warmly and invited to stay as part of the parish family.
Two Sunday Services, One Welcoming Table
Grace Memorial holds two Sunday services in the church at 1021 New Hampshire Avenue. The principal service is Holy Eucharist at 10:00 am, with music from the Chancel Choir, and is offered both in person and online through a livestream on YouTube. A shorter Rite 1 service, using the historic language of the Book of Common Prayer, is held at 8:00 am on the first Sunday of each month and is in person only.
After the main service, the congregation gathers for Coffee Hour Fellowship, locally nicknamed Cuppa Grace, where different individuals and families provide a light snack. Hospitality is a stated part of the parish's mission, and the gathering gives everyone a chance to visit, catch up, and graciously welcome newcomers. Communion is taken to shut-ins by lay eucharistic ministers, and the parish sends birthday cards to members each year.
The full text of each Sunday's bulletin is published online, along with directions for joining online worship through the parish's Facebook page or YouTube channel. The parish maintains a weekly email newsletter, "This Week at Grace," that keeps members informed of upcoming services and events.
A Music Ministry Built on Volunteers
Music is a central piece of worship at Grace Memorial. The thirteen-member Chancel Choir leads congregational singing at the 10:00 am service and presents an offertory anthem chosen to complement the lectionary readings and the season of the church year. A Bell Choir of seven members rings three octaves of hand bells, two octaves normally played, and other instrumentalists join for the introit, choral benediction, and music during communion. Elizabeth Wilkinson serves as the parish's organist and choir director and is the only paid musician on staff; the rest of the singers, ringers, and instrumentalists are volunteers.
The music department includes a pipe organ, three pianos, a keyboard, and a variety of rhythm instruments. Beyond the organ, soloists and ensembles have brought violin, harp, saxophone, dulcimer, psaltery, flute, piano, trumpet, and trombone into the liturgy. The choir performs at funerals, weddings, and community events when requested, and sings at a special Evensong service and on Christmas Eve. Music for each Sunday is drawn from the scripture readings of the Lectionary and the season of the church year, and the organist prepares the congregation for worship with preludes and sends them out with postludes.
Rehearsal and robing rooms for the Chancel Choir and Bell Choir were originally intended for Sunday school classrooms, and the choirs are prepared to move elsewhere if more space is required for Christian education. The parish maintains a working library of choral music and has offered classes in music theory and guitar when requested. The music ministry welcomes new members to join.
A Bell Tower of Recycled Stone
The congregation's story begins in 1859, when a small group from the Diamond Hill area of Lynchburg acquired property on the Campbell County Courthouse Turnpike, a road later renamed Grace Street. Construction of the first building was completed just before the Civil War, and during the conflict the structure served as barracks and a storage facility. After the war, the building was restored by the first rector, the Reverend William Kinckle, and founded as a mission of St. Paul's under Bishop Richard Channing Moore. The first service was held on Easter Sunday in 1866, and the parish separated from St. Paul's on May 29, 1870, taking the name Grace Memorial in honor of Kinckle, who had died.
A second church was built on Diamond Hill and used for about twenty-five years, but in 1928 the congregation determined it would be better served by relocating to the suburb of Fort Hill. The current building on New Hampshire Avenue was constructed there, with architect S. Preston Craighill overseeing the project. The green stone for the bell tower was recycled from the old Grace Street church, and the old bell, pews, clergy furniture, and stained glass were incorporated into the new building, as were items from Epiphany Episcopal Church.
Growth during the 1980s led to a substantial 1993 addition that included a parish hall and kitchen on the lower level and classrooms, a nursery room, and a parlor on the upper level, along with a new cloister entrance and accessible restrooms. Later improvements added a new entrance and atrium, modernized the parish hall, and included a columbarium and scatter garden. In 2014 a lift was installed to make both floors easier to reach for those with physical challenges.
Kinckle's words about Grace from 1866 remain true today: "The field around it is wide. It needs only to be faithfully worked to yield an abundant harvest."
Serving the Community Beyond the Doors
Outreach at Grace Memorial is organized by an Outreach Commission made up of vestry members and parish volunteers, and it is woven into the parish's identity. The congregation supports a wide list of partner organizations with time and money, including Inter-Faith Outreach, the Commission on Aging, Daily Bread, Meals on Wheels, the Blue Ridge Regional Food Bank, Boys Home of Covington, the Free Clinic of Lynchburg, Gleaning for the World, and the Salvation Army, where members ring bells at Christmas and respond to natural disasters. A regular donation is made to the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia, and the parish is proud of that relationship.
Members are involved in Bridges Out of Poverty, a citywide initiative, and gather and pack Blessing Buckets of supplies that are distributed through God's Pit Crew from Danville, Virginia, after natural disasters. Financial contributions support Centra Medical's Dawson Inn, which houses family members of patients at Lynchburg General Hospital. Inside the church building, a supply of backpacks with socks, canned food, gloves, hats, and personal hygiene products is kept on hand for people who come to the parish for help, with referrals made to other agencies when appropriate, and emergency financial assistance is offered to congregation members facing hardship.
The centerpiece of the parish's outreach is its partnership with the neighboring Fort Hill Community School, which serves students with emotional, medical, and behavioral needs from Lynchburg and surrounding counties. The relationship began when the school needed a place for emergency evacuations and approached Grace Memorial. Since then the parish has offered cooking classes, painting classes, and sewing classes, the last in keeping with the example of the first rector and his wife. Students receive Angel Tree presents at Christmas, and Grace Memorial cooks and serves Thanksgiving dinner for the students and their families. The students have painted two pianos for the church, and cooking classes invite parish members to lunch. At the start of each school year the parish hosts a workday lunch for teachers and staff, and students and faculty have worshipped with the congregation at Sunday services.
Ministries Inside the Parish
Grace Memorial's ministries give worshippers a way to participate in the liturgy. Children ages nine and older serve as acolytes at the 10:00 am service and at special holiday services, while adults serve as acolytes at the 8:00 am service. Ushers hand out bulletins, assist with communion, collect the offering, and greet visitors with a welcome bag. The Altar Guild handles setup and cleanup of the altar vessels and linens, with a rotating monthly schedule.
Lay Eucharistic Ministers include Chalice Bearers, who serve wine during communion, and intercessors who lead the Prayers of the People. Lectors read the Old and New Testament lessons, and a lay minister takes communion to those unable to attend in person. Communion is shared from a common chalice, with safe handling practices; intinction (dipping into the chalice) is not currently offered.
Outside the sanctuary, parish life includes potluck dinners, occasional brunches, and outings such as baseball games, movie nights, and work days. Parish members take meals to people in need, serve as drivers for Meals on Wheels, host receptions after funerals, and provide food for the families of those who have died. Members also visit parishioners living in assisted living facilities and nursing homes. The building is used by an Alcoholics Anonymous group and by the Queen Bees quilting club.
Accessibility, Parking, and the Building Itself
Parking is available to the side and behind the church, as well as in the grass lot near Fort Avenue. Accessible entrances are located under the bell tower and in the courtyard, and a lift provides access between floors for those with physical challenges. Accessible restrooms are part of the building.
Masks are currently optional at all events, with updates shared through the parish's Facebook page and email newsletter. The nursery is currently closed. Visitors can join online activities through the parish's Facebook page or YouTube channel, and a step-by-step guide is provided for those new to the livestream. Communion is shared from a common metal chalice, with safe handling practices, and intinction is not currently offered.
Giving is handled online through tithe.ly, and gifts can also be sent by check, set up through bank billpay, or arranged through the vestry for long-term endowment gifts. Members can register Grace Memorial as a charity partner through Kroger Community Rewards. The parish livestreams its 10:00 am service on YouTube, with video sermons archived on the same channel, and it publishes an annual report each year detailing the life and finances of the congregation.