'Historic' Bed-Stuy Church Celebrates 155 Years

BED-STUY, NY — A "flourishing, joyful" Bed-Stuy church once frequented by trailblazing politician Shirley Chisholm celebrated 155 years in the neighborhood over the weekend.

St Stephen & St Martin’s Episcopal Church, sat on the corner of Patchen and Jefferson Avenues, rang in the anniversary with a special mass and community coffee hour Sunday.

"What a glorious and joyful day," said Rev. Richard S. J. Pike at the anniversary mass. "As we live into our faith, one of the most essential things as we explore that journey is that we do it in community."

Pike said the church community has shown remarkable strength in recent years —especially during a lengthy remodel in 2015 — and attendance has only continued to grow since.

"We are more than on the way back," Pike said. "We are coming back, we are full of life, there is vitality in this place. ... We are and we tend to be a happy house of prayer."

Many community members also tuned in virtually to celebrate the anniversary.

"Today's 155th anniversary service was wonderful. Blessings and love to all," one person wrote on Facebook.

The church first opened in Bed-Stuy in 1868 and, since the end of the Second World War, grew to serve a largely Caribbean-American community. The church shared many notable moments, like a visit from the Archbishop of Canterbury Michael Ramsey, according to the church's website.

Ramsey prayed and visited with a mother who had lost her children in a fire across the street on Jefferson Avenue, church representatives said.

"We have stood at the corner of our neighborhood for 155 years — and our footprint stands at the entrance to our block," said Hallam Dyal, Senior Warden in a statement.

In the 1960's, Chisholm frequented the church around the same time she became the first Black woman in Congress.

A Black woman again made history on the corner of Jefferson and Patchen in 2015 when the church embarked on a remodel by Shaneekua Henry, the first Black woman to design a church for the Long Island Diocese, representatives said.

“It’s a small church with a big heart and that’s what held us together,” one long-time patron of the church told Bklyner in 2018.

The historic structure was crumbling, and the remodel totaled 10,000 square feet, fitting over 300 people, alongside apartments, Bklyner reported.

“We built this church with open doors and anyone that wants to join us, is welcome,” Audley Donaldson told Bklyner.