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Stained glass windows ready to shine

Posted on: October 10, 2024

By KATIE V. JONES

Parishioners learn about the restoration process at Epiphany Studios, in Middletown, Va
Courtesy of St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church

Colorful images of candles, the planets and the sun hang in the windows of St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church on Main Street. Created by children attending the church’s summer camp, these images are temporary substitutes for the church’s beloved stained glass windows, which are undergoing some much-needed repair. The 10 windows date back to 1886.

“One … was bowing. It was scary for the longest time,” said Jim Martin, a member of the church’s property core team. “[With] others, you could see the deterioration in the window itself.”

A church committee researched several restoration companies to do the work before selecting Epiphany Studios, in Middletown, Va..

“They were really thorough,” Martin said. “They showed what was wrong with each window.”

While some windows could be repaired in place, most were trucked to the studio in July. Church staff and a number of parishioners were able to visit the studio on two occasions to see the restoration process.

“I was really impressed.,” Martin said. “You see how they take it all apart and show the deficiencies in each one. A lady mixes paint and duplicates the color.”

St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church’s stained glass windows were removed to be repaired.
Courtesy of St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church

Restoring the windows cost approximately $51,000, according to Betsy Welsh, the church’s historian. The project was funded  by parishioners and through two gifts bequeathed by deceased members.

“We were very, very fortunate,” Welsh said, referring to the gifts. “We had no idea they were leaving us money.”

She is quick to point out that not all the gifted money was used for the restoration; some funding was directed to the church’s food distribution program.

“We are in tune with the needs of the community,” Welsh said. “Our food pantry serves 100 folks a month.”

Three separate windows did not need any repairs. One intact window was moved years ago to the church hall after a door was installed where the window  once hung  That window’s stained glass includes an alpha symbol, and staff assumed there was once an Omega window, too. Welsh said they haven’t found evidence, though, of a companion window.

Another large stained glass window behind the altar can’t be seen from inside the church.

“In the 1970s, we got a new organ and had to put the pipes some place,” Welsh said. “We blocked this window.”

Fortunately, one can see the window from the church’s cemetery. The window is fully protected and didn’t need any repairs, but Welsh hopes the church will install backlighting to illuminate it. 

The windows will be dedicated on All Saint’s Day, the first Sunday in November though Martin doesn’t anticipate that

A stained glass window being repaired.
Courtesy of St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church

all of the windows will be in place as the restoration company needs more time.

“We will have half of them,” he said. “The other half will be in the new year. That’s the plan I’m getting right now.”

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