Church closing out milestone anniversary year on a high note

GROSSE POINTE WOODS — Christmas is always a sacred time for churches, but for one church in Grosse Pointe Woods, this year is extra special.

St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, at 20475 Sunningdale Park, is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. It began as a mission — or branch — of Christ Church Grosse Pointe in Grosse Pointe Farms, when that parish reached capacity, and held its first service Oct. 26, 1947, in what was once the old caddy house of the Renmore Golf Club, located in the area of Renaud and Oxford roads in Grosse Pointe Woods.

Just three years later, as the congregation continued to expand, Christ Church Grosse Pointe parishioners Mervyn Gaskin and John Sweeney, along with the Christ Church Grosse Pointe Women’s Auxiliary, gifted a 5-acre parcel of land on Sunningdale Park to St. Michael’s for construction of a new church. Ground was broken in October 1950, and on Sept. 9, 1951, the new church was dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Russell S. Hubbard, the suffragan bishop of Michigan.

The Grosse Pointe Woods City Council recognized the church’s milestone anniversary by issuing a proclamation in the church’s honor at a Dec. 5 council meeting.

“I have had a bit of an attachment to St. Michael’s from the time I was 3 years old,” Mayor Arthur Bryant said, noting that he had cousins who attended preschool there and lived on Roslyn Road. Bryant is now a member of the congregation.

“It’s a nice place,” Bryant said. “I’ve loved it.”

The council gave a standing ovation to St. Michael’s leaders and parishioners, several of whom were on hand to accept the framed proclamation.

The proclamation praises the church for its service to the community, observing that St. Michael’s “has reached out to the community through its support of Crossroads East and Crossroads of Detroit, Mariners Inn and Shelter, refugee resettlement efforts, and The Little Thrift Shop, which at 65 years of business is one of the oldest, continuously operating church-sponsored thrift shops in the United States,” and the church also “continues to love and serve its neighbors at Parcells Middle School, those who come to the Lunch, Laugh and Learn program, by its hosting the ARC of Harper Woods/Grosse Pointe, and its sponsorship of four 12-Step recovery meetings.”

St. Michael’s continued to grow and expand early in its history. In June 1954, construction started on the kitchen, parish hall and lounge. The new wing was dedicated in 1956. Around this time, the church also acquired its stained-glass windows, which were made and installed by Willet Studios of Philadelphia.

In 1961, additional classrooms were built, along with a new narthex, cloister and bell tower, and the thrift shop moved from the attic to its own space. A memorial garden for the internment of ashes was added in 1975, when the ground was consecrated.

On April 1, 2008, the Rev. Marianna Gronek became only the fourth rector in St. Michael’s history, and she was also the first woman to serve as a senior pastor of a major congregation in the Grosse Pointes.

The church acquired a significant musical addition in 2008: one of the few organs still in existence from the Skinner Organ Co. Ernest Skinner originally built this organ for St. Columba Episcopal Church on Detroit’s east side, which later closed. In 2008, the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan gave the organ to St. Michael’s on the condition that the church raise the money needed to restore it — a project that topped $400,000.

The church’s current leader is the Rev. Michael Bradley, who arrived in Michigan from New Hampshire on Dec. 1, 2019 — only a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I did have at least three months to get to know people and committees” before the pandemic caused statewide shutdowns in Michigan in mid-March 2020, Bradley said. “All went well until about March … and then, like everyone else, we had to shut down.”

Bradley said the church shifted to having services and meetings online, but they were able to have in-person outdoor services in the summer of 2020.

“We all had to kind of adapt,” Bradley said.

In fall 2022, he said the church finally feels like it’s back to its pre-pandemic form. Still, Bradley said they continue to have many committee meetings via Zoom because it’s easier and more convenient for participants.

And, for those who can’t attend services in person, Bradley said they record each Sunday service and download it onto the church’s website by midweek. In addition, he said a weekly Thursday evening prayer service is conducted entirely by Zoom.

“The technology has a lot of benefits,” Bradley said, noting that snowbirds appreciate being able to connect with their church even when they’re not in town. He said they’re also reaching people who have never been to a service at St. Michael’s.

“We know that we do get some hits and that they are not (all) parishioners,” Bradley said. “Every once in a while, we get an email thanking us for the worship service. So we are reaching more people that way.”

The number of parishioners is down from its peak in the first few decades of the church’s history — a trend that churches nationwide are seeing. So Bradley said St. Michael’s is exploring new ways to open up the church campus to the community.

“Like with many churches, we’re trying to think of new ways of worship and community engagement,” Bradley said.

They’re already hosting 12-step meetings and The Arc of Grosse Pointe and Harper Woods, which offers education and resources to young adults with special needs.

“We also have a growing relationship with Parcells Middle School and Grosse Pointe North High School,” Bradley said.

Parcells is next door to the church, while North is just down the road. Bradley said the church has an adopt-a-family program and works with North’s transition program for students with special needs.

The church’s thrift shop — which sells items on consignment — continues to be a draw for both volunteers and shoppers, Bradley said.

At press time, Bradley said they were working on a five-year plan to make improvements to the aging church facilities. They hope to one day operate a greener campus, he said.

“We’re very grateful for the community support and interest in our 75th anniversary year, and we’re looking forward to many more years of service and ministry to the community,” Bradley said.