06/04/2026
George’s journey to Redeemer Episcopal Church began about twelve years ago, though in many ways, the story started much earlier.
As a child growing up near Boston, George attended Sunday School at an Episcopal church also called Redeemer. He jokes that his time there was cut short because he simply “couldn’t sit still,” something he now laughs about and credits with sending him toward tennis at the age of five. There was never any resentment toward the church, only a sense that the right moment had not yet come.
That moment arrived in his mid-60s.
Living nearby, George passed Redeemer here in Jacksonville on his way to work for years. One day, something shifted. “My need to connect with what church means had become a passionate need,” he says. “The more important thing was that I finally got there 100% ready.”
For George, faith had already been quietly unfolding beneath the surface for decades. He remembers his first real prayer as a young Marine in Vietnam, during a rocket attack, huddled in fear and crying out to God for safety. Years later, through meditation and spiritual searching, he experienced what he describes as a profound sense of God’s presence. That awakening eventually led him back to church and finally, to Redeemer.
Once he arrived, similar to his first experiences in church, George simply couldn’t sit still.
“I don’t join anything to be passive,” he says. “I join to do something… contribute in some way clearly important.”
That spirit quickly became part of Redeemer’s life. He supported the church’s connection with Cuba, helping raise funds and gather needed supplies. Later, when the idea of starting a food pantry surfaced in conversation, George helped move that vision forward. “We had a meeting,” he recalls, “and the rest is history.”
What George found at Redeemer was not only a church home, but a place where faith, learning, and service came together. He speaks warmly of the clergy who have guided the congregation and especially values the teaching and formation that continue to deepen his spiritual life.
For George, Redeemer became the answer to a longing that took many years to name, and a place where faith could become action.
“Sometimes it takes a long time,” he reflects. “But when you get there ready, it changes everything.”
