Cross-Country Journey Unites Episcopal Community
A team of Episcopalians across the United States recently completed a 1,560-mile relay to deliver sacred items to Riverside Episcopal Church, the Diocese of Alabama’s newest church plant. Over two weeks, 14 volunteers and one baby transported a baptismal font, a processional cross, and an altar cross from Fryeburg, Maine, to McCalla, Alabama.
Melissa Headrick Bailey, a member of Riverside’s bishop’s committee, organized the effort after posting in the “Episcopalians on Facebook” group seeking sacramental items. The Rev. Sinclair “Skippy” Ender of Christ Episcopal Church in North Conway, New Hampshire, responded, offering the items for free. “I just want it used for the glory of God,” Ender said.
A Sacred History Behind the Items
Ender acquired the baptismal font, which dates to 1888, from the Episcopal Church of Saints Matthew and Barnabas in Hallowell, Maine, when it closed in 2021. He intended to use it at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, where he served as a command chaplain, but a donated ship bell was ultimately used for baptisms instead.
The altar cross was initially used at St. Katherine’s Episcopal School for Girls in Bettendorf, Iowa, and was salvaged by Ender after nearly being discarded. The processional cross was also gifted to Ender while serving as a priest at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Davenport, Iowa.
Carefully Coordinated Relay Across 10 States
When shipping costs proved too high, Bailey turned to Facebook for help organizing a relay. Eleven volunteers from 10 states stepped up, driving the items in segments over two weeks.
The relay began on February 3, with Ender driving from Fryeburg to Springfield, Massachusetts. Drivers passed the items through Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, and Alabama. Volunteers documented the journey in a notebook provided by Ender.
The items reached their final destination on February 15. Riverside held its first worship service using the font and crosses on February 23, with Alabama Bishop Glenda Curry preaching and blessing the grounds.
A New Chapter for Riverside Episcopal Church
Bailey reflected on how the relay created lasting bonds among strangers. “We’ve really become friends through all this,” she said. Ender hopes to visit Riverside one day to see the items in use. “Everyone who participated in this relay answered the call to ministry,” he said.
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‘Font relay’ brings antique sacramental items to their new church home
Image: Pamela Reynoso
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