Adapted from The Episcopal News, Diocese of Los Angeles
Church of the Epiphany will collect $150,000 in preservation funding from Partners in Preservation: Main Streets. Epiphany won 74,272 of 1,072,316 votes, placing fourth in a competition involving 20 historic sites nationwide.
Sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the program set aside $1.6 million in preservation funding for historic sites receiving the most votes during a one-month competition, which ended Oct. 26. Each of the 11 winning sites is eligible for a maximum grant of $150,000.
The church will use the funding to repair a leaking roof, restore and add community rooms to its historic basement, and upgrade electrical, heating, and cooling systems.
Designed by English architect Ernest Coxhead and built in 1888, the original church was converted to a parish hall after a new sanctuary, designed by architect Arthur Benton, was completed in 1913. The parish’s mix of historic styles include Romanesque and Gothic Revival.
The renovated basement will, in addition to housing the People’s History Project, become home to legal and health care clinics held at the church. Every Sunday afternoon, Epiphany sponsors a pro bono attorney who helps individuals and families navigate the immigration system.
The church also works with Eviction Defense Network to provide legal advice to residents who face eviction as a result of the gentrification of East Los Angeles.
Epiphany will hold a celebratory bilingual Thanksgiving Eucharist at 10 a.m. Nov. 4.
Matthew Townsend is a Halifax-based freelance journalist and volunteer advocate for survivors of sexual misconduct in Anglican settings. He served as editor of the Anglican Journal from 2019 to 2021 and communications missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Quebec from 2019 to 2022. He and his wife recently entered catechism class in the Orthodox Church in America.
