DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — the story of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in the Houston Heights. Now, some churches just appear — one day there's nothing, next day there's a steeple.
But St. Andrew's? This one has a longer thread to pull.
You've got to go back to 1896, when St. Stephen's Episcopal Mission first set up to serve the Houston Heights community. St.
Stephen's ran until 1903, and when it closed its doors, the people didn't scatter. They carried the flame with them. Fast-forward to 1911.
Fifty-three Episcopalian Heights residents — fifty-three, somebody was countin' — gathered in the home of the Reverend and Mrs. Henry Justus Brown to organize a brand new mission. The Reverend Brown became its first rector.
And the name they chose? St. Andrew's — named for the rector of that earlier mission, Benjamin Andrew Rogers.
Now, in those early days, the congregation made do. They met in a hardware store. Not a chapel, not a fellowship hall — a hardware store.
There's something admirable about that. Pews or no pews, the mission was the mission. Eventually, they erected a proper building on Allston Street, on lots that were donated — generously, quietly — by the Reverend Rogers' widow and her daughter.
Then came 1921, and the congregation was ready to grow again. Construction began on a new two-story building, this time on property donated by O.M. Carter, at 19th and Yale streets.
Another generous soul, another chapter opened. But the story wasn't finished moving yet. In 1948, a new church building was completed on Heights Boulevard — and that became the home St.
Andrew's has carried into the present day. Along the way, a particular rector shaped a whole era of the church's life. The Reverend Haskin V.
Little served as rector from 1952 to 1977, and under his leadership the congregation grew and reached deeper into the community around it. He didn't stop there — he went on to serve as rector emeritus until his death in 2000. Nearly half a century bound up in one man's commitment to one congregation.
And that congregation kept reaching. From 1962 to 1965, St. Andrew's participated in the Diocesan Cuban Refugee Resettlement Program, providing for a Cuban family during years when that kind of welcome meant something considerable.
In 1975, the church co-sponsored Heights Towers — a high-rise apartment building providing housing for low-income elderly individuals. Then came Heights House in 1980, another high-rise built for the same purpose. Two buildings.
Real shelter. Real neighbors housed. Church members have reached out to those in need across the Heights community and have supported local and international missions besides.
From a hardware store in 1911 to a cornerstone on Heights Boulevard — St. Andrew's Episcopal Church has been doing the quiet, steady, necessary work for well over a century now. Some stories don't need exaggeration.
The facts are sturdy enough to stand on their own.
What the marker says
Organized in 1911 as a mission, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church has roots in St. Stephen’s Episcopal Mission, which served the Houston Heights community from 1896 to 1903. Many of the communicants of St. Stephen’s became charter members of St. Andrew’s, which was named for the earlier mission’s rector, Benjamin Andrew Rogers. Fifty-three Episcopalian Heights residents gathered in the home of the Rev. and Mrs. Henry Justus Brown to organize the mission; the Rev. Brown became its first rector. Members met in a hardware store before erecting a building on Allston Street on lots donated by the Rev. Rogers’ widow and her daughter. In 1921, construction began on a new, two-story building on property donated by O.M. Carter at 19th and Yale streets. A final move occurred in 1948, when a new church building was completed on Heights Boulevard. Under the leadership of the Rev. Haskin V. Little, St. Andrew’s experienced congregational growth and expanded its outreach programs. The Rev. Little served as rector from 1952 to 1977, and as rector emeritus until his death in 2000. From 1962-1965, the church participated in the Diocesan Cuban Refugee Resettlement Program, providing for a Cuban family. Other notable programs include St. Andrew’s co-sponsorship and support of Heights Towers (1975) and Heights House (1980), two high-rise apartment buildings providing housing for low-income elderly individuals. Church members have reached out extensively to those in need in the Heights community, and have supported local and international missions. Today, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church continues to have a positive impact on the Heights neighborhood and the city of Houston at large.