A Parish Rooted in Holden Since 1946
St. Francis Episcopal Church has stood at 70 Highland Street in Holden, Massachusetts, for more than seventy years. The parish traces its origins to September 1946, when a group of Episcopalians in the Holden community met to discuss the feasibility of starting a local church. For the next five years, services and meetings were held periodically, and the congregation was organized as a Parochial Mission under the supervision of St. John's Episcopal Church in Worcester. Its first regular services were held in the Holden Town Hall.
On October 1, 1952, the mission was formally organized under the Diocese of Western Massachusetts and adopted the name "St. Francis." Land and a parish house were purchased in April 1953, and the Reverend Harold B. Boughey was called as the first full-time vicar that November. On March 25, 1956, Bishop W. A. Lawrence dedicated the completed church. Six years later, in May 1962, St. Francis was accepted into union by the Diocesan Convention as a Parish Church. Father Boughey remained as rector until 1964.
Five rectors have followed him: the Rev. Thomas Sullivan, the Rev. Earl Whepley, the Rev. Gordon Scruton, the Rev. Rich Simpson, and the Rev. Patrick Perkins. The Rev. Mark Hatch became the first Associate Rector in 1999, followed by the Rev. Darrell Huddleston in 2004, the Rev. Jill Williams (the first ordained woman on staff) in 2007, and the Rev. Karen Safstrom, an ordained Lutheran minister, who served from 2012 to 2018. Today the parish is a growing, multi-generational congregation that lives out its Baptismal Covenant in the town of Holden and beyond.
Two Sunday Liturgies, One Eucharistic Center
Worship at St. Francis is rooted in the ancient traditions of the Christian encounter with God and shaped by historic Anglican practices, engaged within a contemporary context. Two Sunday liturgies are offered each week, both sharing the Holy Eucharist and reflecting on the day's appointed Scripture. The services follow Rite II from the Book of Common Prayer.
The 8:00 a.m. service is quiet and contemplative, with no music and a sermon identical to the one preached later in the morning. Usually 25 to 30 people worship at this liturgy, which rarely goes beyond 45 minutes. The 10:00 a.m. service is a more structured liturgy led primarily by the organ, with most hymns drawn from The Hymnal 1982 and a choral anthem often included. The clergy, choir, acolytes, and Eucharistic ministers are vested and process in and out at the beginning and end of the service. Attendance at this multi-generational gathering averages about 100, and the service generally runs between sixty and seventy-five minutes. Coffee and treats are served in the Fellowship Hall afterward.
The 10:00 a.m. service is livestreamed on Facebook. Those who would rather remain in their cars can listen on 97.3 FM in the parking lot, and worshipers who wish to spread out can also tune in from the Memorial Garden with a folding chair. Weekly bulletins are posted online, and a sermon archive is available for those who wish to revisit recent homilies.
Worship Servers and Liturgical Roles
The 10:00 a.m. service is supported by a wide range of lay ministers. Acolytes, including pre-teens, teens, and adults, carry the cross and torches and assist clergy and other liturgical ministers at Sunday services and on holidays. Members of the Altar Guild prepare the altar for Sunday and weekday Eucharists, weddings, funerals, and other special services, caring for vessels, linens, candles, and clergy vestments. Lay Eucharistic Ministers (LEMs) assist with the distribution of communion and must be licensed by the Diocese. Lay Readers read the lessons at services and welcome all who wish to serve in this way. Ushers greet worshipers at the door of the sanctuary, distribute bulletins, present the elements for communion, and help direct newcomers around the building.
Music Ministry: Organ, Choir, and Handbells
Music is a vital part of the worship experience at St. Francis. Elizabeth (Beth) Keusch, the Minister of Music, directs the Adult Choir and brings a wide range of musical gifts to the parish. A daughter of music teachers and church musicians from rural southwestern Indiana, Beth plays piano, organ, and guitar. As a classical soprano she has performed as a soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, and the Paris and Stuttgart operas, among others. She holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of North Texas and both a Master of Music and an Artist Diploma from the New England Conservatory of Music. In addition to her work at St. Francis, she serves as a cantor at St. Leonard's Catholic Church in Boston and as vocal soloist and choral conductor at Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley.
The Adult Choir rehearses on Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. in the worship space and leads the 10:00 a.m. service from September through June, as well as special services on Thanksgiving Eve, Christmas Eve, and during Holy Week. The New Episcopeals Handbell Choir, directed by Erik Gladwin, rehearses on Wednesday evenings starting at 6:30 p.m. The handbells arrived at St. Francis in January 2009 as a gift from the former St. John's Episcopal Church in Worcester, and the choir plays two to three times a year, often at the holidays.
Church School and Youth Formation
St. Francis takes Christian formation seriously for every generation, beginning with its youngest members. The Church School program uses the Workshop Rotation Model to teach children about the love of God through kid-friendly workshops incorporating art, drama, music, games, puppetry, storytelling, cooking, and mission or outreach projects. Lessons are lectionary-based, drawn from the Revised Common Lectionary used in Sunday worship.
Church School is offered Sunday mornings for children who are in preschool (age 3 by September 1) through grade 5. Classes begin at 9:45 a.m. At 10:45, children return to the sanctuary to participate in the Eucharist alongside their families. Nursery care is available for children under three during the 10:00 a.m. service. Amy Mellors, who has attended St. Francis since 2016 and serves as an occupational therapist with Early Intervention, coordinates the program.
The Youth Ministry is coordinated by the Rev. Kelsey Stillwell, an ordained minister in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship who holds a Master of Divinity from the McAfee School of Theology with a focus on Global Christianity. She lives in Worcester with her husband, Brent, who pastors First Baptist Church. The Youth Group currently meets on Sunday mornings after the 10:00 service.
For adults, the parish offers an Adult Catechumenal program each year, typically running from February to April, preparing those who wish to be confirmed or received by the Bishop into the Episcopal Church, or to re-affirm their faith publicly.
Sacred Space: Memorial Garden, St. Clare House, and Labyrinth
The grounds at St. Francis offer several spaces for prayer and reflection beyond the sanctuary. The Memorial Garden is a contemplative burial space adjacent to the church, with a wide, curving walkway that provides universal access from the parking lot and leads into a serene area of evergreen ground cover symbolizing life eternal. A circular walkway around the burial area represents the hope of resurrection and is wide enough to accommodate groups for services or other gatherings. Celtic motifs in the church sanctuary on the baptismal font and lectern echo the design of the garden.
St. Clare House, a separate building on the property, is a sanctuary for prayer, reflection, quietude, and Christian formation. It hosts small-group learning, Church School classes, Bible study, and discussion groups for all ages. The building is also home to twelve-step meetings such as Al-Anon and Alateen on Wednesday evenings and serves as a meeting site for a Girl Scout troop. Episcopal and ecumenical governing boards also use it as an off-site retreat setting for planning and other work in a prayerful environment.
In the backyard of St. Clare House stands a Chartres-style labyrinth, the most popular labyrinth design, built during the summer of 2011 by the youth of St. Francis and Immanuel Lutheran Church. The builders used stones from the Bement Camp Labyrinth as a reminder of tradition and fellowship. Walking the labyrinth is an ancient prayer practice; for those on a Christian path it represents the journey with God, with seasons of closeness and distance along the way.
A Mission of Feeding and Helping
Like its patron saint, St. Francis of Assisi, the parish responds to the needs of the world with compassion and love. The Mission Committee uses its resources to support a balance of local, national, and worldwide charities, with priorities focused on eliminating hunger and homelessness, improving education, and supporting social justice. Regular mission partners include the Wachusett Food Pantry, the Rutland Food Pantry, Dismas House, Dismas Farm, the Welcome Aldrich Fund, United Thank Offering, CROP Walk, Worcester County Food Bank, Abby's House, Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance, Centro Las Americas, Heifer International, Episcopal Relief and Development, and the Diocese of Jerusalem.
The Feeding Ministries are the heart of this outreach. St. Francis has participated in the Mustard Seed Soup Kitchen in Worcester for more than ten years. Each day of each month, parishes from the Worcester County area prepare and serve a hot meal to nearly 200 homeless and needy people of all ages. On the second Wednesday of each month, teams from St. Francis shop, prepare, cook, and serve the dinner; bakers and servers are needed throughout the year.
St. Francis has been part of the Dismas Family Farm in Oakham since 2009. The farm serves the former-prisoner population that Dismas House specializes in, providing vocational training and job-related skill development. On the fourth Wednesday of each month, volunteers shop for groceries and work with the residents to prepare, serve, and eat a meal together.
The Helping Hands Ministry provides practical support for those in the community who are unable to keep up with tasks around the house and lack the means to cope on their own. Projects have ranged from moving heavy furniture to a garage sale to other simple acts of service. The ministry's simple message: let us know if you or someone you know needs a hand.
Prayer Shawls, Senior Ministry, and Year-Round Service
The Prayer Shawl Ministry is one of the most quietly faithful gatherings at St. Francis. Members of the parish prayerfully knit or crochet shawls to be given to individuals experiencing illness, grief, challenge, need, or celebration. The ministry meets on the third Monday of each month from 10:00 a.m. to noon; all skill levels are welcome, and those who cannot attend may still participate by picking up yarn and directions from the table in the narthex. Finished shawls can be dropped off at the church at any time.
The Senior Ministry Team, composed of volunteer seniors from the congregation, plans activities and programming under the theme of Health, Wellness, and Spirituality. Presenters are drawn from within the congregation to encourage seniors to become acquainted with the many talented people in the community. The team's goals include increased collaboration with other ministries, more intergenerational programs, outreach to seniors in other congregations in Holden, and ongoing programs that draw on the gifts of this group.
The parish also collects items for its mission partners. Suggested donations include cereal, juice, olive oil, and coffee for Abby's House; canned foods, pasta, toiletries, and cleaning supplies for Dismas Farm; peanut butter, jelly, cereal, soup, and macaroni and cheese for the Mustard Seed; and baking items, cereal, personal care items, and snacks for the Wachusett Food Pantry. Financial contributions may be made directly to each organization.
Each year the parish participates in the Holden CROP Hunger Walk and joins other community efforts such as the DCF Wonderfund gift drive for local foster children. The parish hosts seasonal celebrations including a Shrove Tuesday dinner, a Parish Picnic, and an Oktoberfest in Fellowship Hall, along with a Children's Holy Week program, a Women's Retreat, and the Christmas Eve Pageant.
Clergy, Staff, and Lay Leadership
The parish is served by a team of clergy, staff, and lay leaders. The Rev. Patrick Perkins has been rector since September 2014, having previously served as Associate Rector at St. John's Church in West Hartford, Connecticut, for five years. He serves on the Standing Committee of the Diocese, is the Diocesan Disaster Coordinator, and is active with the Holden Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and other volunteer emergency communications groups. Before ordination, he worked in quality and operations management following more than ten years as a Nuclear Submarine Officer in the United States Navy.
Elizabeth (Beth) Keusch serves as Minister of Music, Amy Mellors as Church School Coordinator, the Rev. Kelsey Stillwell as Youth Ministry Coordinator, and Elena Poirier as Parish Administrator. Lay leadership includes Senior Warden Craig Stanovich, Junior Warden Laura Caswell, Clerk Dawn Rooke, and Treasurer Joel Wesson, along with members of the Vestry.
The parish maintains a Safe Church Policy that includes background checks and Safe Church training for clergy, staff, and volunteers who work with at-risk persons, two-adult monitoring for children's and youth events, a social media policy for closed youth groups, and a harassment policy. Concerns or violations may be reported to the Safe Church Officer, the Rector, or the Senior Warden.
Becoming Part of St. Francis
Members of St. Francis come from Holden and surrounding communities in central Massachusetts. Newcomers may become Baptized Persons by being baptized at St. Francis or by requesting that an existing baptism be recorded there. To become a Communicant Member, one may be confirmed or received by a Bishop at St. Francis or transfer Communicant Member status from a previous Episcopal parish via a Letter of Transfer. Voting Members must be Communicant Members in good standing who actively attend services, participate in parish life, and regularly support the parish budget.
The church office is open Monday and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to noon, and Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The parish is located two blocks north of the intersection of Route 122A (Main Street) and Route 31 (Highland Street) in Holden; the parking lot and church entrance are off Phillips Road. Online giving and the Capital Campaign pledge form are available online.