OUR CLERGY
The Rev. Elizabeth A. (Betsy) Walker is now the Rector of St. Thomas as Greenbrier Episcopal Ministries is inactive. Betsy feels that she needs to focus on her home parish as she inches closer to retirement. She misses serving the people at the Church of the Incarnation (COI) in Ronceverte, and hopes that there will be times of shared ministries with COI and our other Episcopal congreg
ation in Greenbrier County: St. James, Lewisburg. Mother Betsy served Greenbrier Episcopal Ministries as the Priest Associate beginning in 2011. She was named as the Priest-in-Charge effective July 1, 2016 and Missioner on July 1, 2018. in January, 2023, St. Thomas' Vestry called her to become the second rector. The service celebrating her new ministry was held in November of that year. Betsy was raised at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. She earned her B.S. in Education Art K-12 from Concord College (now University) and taught at Liberty High School in Raleigh County for five years before entering seminary. Mother Betsy graduated from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 1987 and served a year as a transitional deacon at Christ Church, Bluefield. She was ordained as a priest in 1988 and called as rector of St. John's, Ripley that year. She was also named vicar of Grace Church, Ravenswood in 1993. Betsy became a Supervisory Chaplain with the Federal Bureau of Prisons in March 1996. She served at the Federal Prison Camp in Alderson, retiring in March 2016 with 20 years of service. From 1989 to 2010, Betsy was the editor of "The Dayspring," the newspaper for the Diocese of West Virginia. She has supplied in the Episcopal Churches in Bluefield, Charleston, Union, Lewisburg, Ronceverte, and White Sulphur Springs. HISTORY OF ST. THOMAS
St. Thomas' Organized Mission, White Sulphur Springs
Services of the Episcopal Church have been held at the White Sulphur Springs by visiting clergy from time immemorial. When the place was first put in charge of a particular minister is unknown, but it is believed the Rev. Richard H. Mason was the first regular priest. Rev George W. Peterkin was consecrated Bishop of the new Diocese of West Virginia - 1878. Up to this point West Virginia had been under the pastoral care of the Bishops of Virginia. A large lot was purchased for a church building on June 5, 1879. This lot was purchased from the White Sulphur Springs for $1000 and the sale was confirmed by decree of the United States District Court. Old St. Thomas' Church was erected in 1886. During the days of the Old White resort, services were held in St Thomas' Church only during the summer. Upon the completion of the successor hotel building, the Greenbrier, in 1913, and the opening of The White Sulphur Springs as a year-round resort, services were held throughout the year. In 1913 a tower was added to the church. Thomas' was razed - June 1, 1931
When The Greenbrier wanted to build the West Virginia wing, the church building needed to be razed and a new one constructed. Built on C & O railroad property in White Sulphur Springs, the new St. Thomas was consecrated in October of 1931. All of the old memorials, hallowed by the memory of those who worshiped in and loved the old building, were carefully taken down and adorned in the new building, giving a beauty and completeness it could not have otherwise had, and preserving for many years the memory of those days. St. Thomas' Church was completed - October 11, 1931
The Consecration of St. Thomas' Episcopal Church - October 11, 1931
Consecrated by the Rt. Rev. L. Gravatt, D. D., Bishop of West Virginia, assisted by the Rt. Robert E. Strider, D. D., Bishop Coadjutor, and the Rt. F. D. Goodwin, D. D., Bishop Coadjutor of Virginia, officially opened the new chestnut interior/wood shingle exterior church building. Vicarage for Clergy built in the mid-1950s
Next door to the church, a vicarage was built to house the priests and their families when they were called to serve as vicars of St. Thomas. Prior to that time, unmarried clergy lived in a room over the vestry room in the church - with a bath across the hall, but no kitchen! It is not known where married clergy and their families lived! Thomas sustains damage from a structure fire. In December 1980, a fire damaged part of the church; melting down one of the stained glass windows which adorned the first St. Thomas building. During a 10-month reconstruction period, the damage was repaired, the Roosevelt organ was rebuilt by William (Bill) Fearnley and Eric Crane, and a new addition was built. Tuke Fellowship Hall is built - 1980. The first fellowship hall of St. Thomas was named in appreciation of Eleanor Gladys Tuke, a lifelong member and benefactor of St. Thomas Church, and is still a much-used part of the parish. Butler Hall is constructed - 2012. Butler Hall is given to the glory of God and in loving memory of the Rev. Keith Butler, who served as the Missioner of the Greenbrier Episcopal Ministries until his death in August, 2010. This large hall was designed to incorporate the vicarage next door to the church as the new commercially-rated kitchen. New offices, and a library named Starkey Library to memorialize a much-beloved priest of St. Thomas, were also fashioned within the former vicarage. In June 2016, a devastating flood damaged much property, destroyed homes, and tragically killed eight people in White Sulphur Springs. The town gave land for what would become Hope Village; with new houses being built for those who had lost their homes. During that 18-month period, St. Thomas parishioners, with the help of other WSS congregations, fed the many volunteers who came to build Hope Village from all over the country. Butler Hall's kitchen and the hall itself were a godsend during that time. From Day One of the flood recovery, St. Thomas was feeding people, organizing clean-up with volunteers, and serving as the major hub for water, cleaning supplies, food, clothing, generators, and all the items needed after such a disaster. Now, Butler Hall is used for programs, rented for parties, showers, and luncheons. With no community building in White Sulphur anymore, Butler Hall and Tuke Hall are used more and more by the town in addition to St. Thomas programs and activities.
