(St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Stittsville has been home to the Stittsville Tae Kwon Do School since 2007. Watercolour by Perpetua Quigley)
At this time of year before COVID, the Stittsville Tae Kwon Do School hosted incredible holiday pot luck buffets for its members. The Presbytery is a gracious landlord who often gifted the school with a cake for the celebrations. The hall holds wonderful memories for three generations in our family.
Main’s Sanctuary
indomitable spirit
community hall
Alexander Grove bordered by Poole Creek, Main St and Andrew Alexander Circle, Stittsville is named to commemorate farmer Andrew Alexander who sold a parcel of his land to establish St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church which celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2021 dating back to 1821. Over two centuries the sanctuary’s ministers and carpenters supervised transformations to keep pace with its growing congregation and community.
The community hall which holds a well-appointed kitchen and stage hosts community socials and Stittsville Tae Kwon Do School since 2007 where its students learn martial arts and tenants of courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit. The values of accessibility and inclusion are shared by the congregation of communities in the sanctuary and the hall.
St Andrew’s is a beautiful Church . I believe it was built in the 1950’s with Orville Parks in charge a well known carpenter from Stittsville. Can anyone confirm this?
Hi Jane – here is an excerpt from an article written on my Grandfather – As the population of Stittsville was increasing after the Second World War and the congregation was growing, it was felt that a larger church was needed. The church elders decided to build this new church on Church Street (now Mulkins Crescent). The elders knew there was only one man with the skills to take on a project of this magnitude – Orville Parks.
Orville was not only a dedicated congregation member, but one of the best carpenters in the former Goulbourn Township. From my Grandfather’s log books, I learned much about the build of the new church and the old. I share the history with you, concentrating on his legacy project – the conversion of the old church.
The work on the new church building began in 1955, with Orville as the lead carpenter. He was paid $2.00 per hour for his work. He recruited other good local men, like Sterling Graham as his carpenter assistant, and the group completed the job in 1956. The church was dedicated and began serving its congregation in 1956. It continues to have an active congregation.