It seems doubtful the 145 people who attended St. George’s first worship service in March of 1954 could have imagined the home we have today—its vaulting ceilings, beautifully appointed altar, vibrant stained glass windows, magnificent pipe organ, or perfectly pitched steeple bell. They were worshipping, after all, in the basement of a bank building at the present-day site of the Town & Country Mall.   

Still, those first worshipers were anything but visionless. In early 1954 they recognized that their fast-growing community needed a new spiritual home. Within two months they attracted their first congregants, identified a meeting place, and held their first service. By year-end, they welcomed their first vicar, gained official status as a Diocesan mission, and selected a site for a new church building on a beautiful country hilltop.

While the church site rose heavenward, the path to building construction proved decidedly mortal; it was strewn with hard work and fundraising. The first of several campaigns to raise money began in the spring of 1955. By August of that same year, enough capital had been generated to break ground on a new parish house. The building, located on the same property we own today (a former farm and apple orchard), was designed to have a first-floor nave and a basement church school.

 As construction progressed, so did the congregation. Straining capacity of the old bank building, members worshipped at a local school gymnasium while they waited for their new home—and built a financial foundation for their church community. By the time the first congregant took a seat in the new parish house in March of 1957, St. George’s was self-supporting. As a result, it was designated a full parish at the May 1957 Diocesan Convention. 

By 1961 the St. George congregation counted 500 communicants—too many to be comfortably accommodated in the parish house that once seemed spacious. And so, another building fund was started. The goal: to build a church (incorporating the parish house) with seating capacity for 480 and a full undercroft for parish and community activities. Two years and $325,000 later, that goal was met; in September of 1963, parishioners entered our present church for the first time to worship and celebrate. Their old “parish home” was renamed the Frederick A. Pope Parish Hall (in honor of St. George’s first vicar/rector); recently remodeled, the hall now serves as the home of our Saturday Service.

History milestones 

March 1954	First service held in the basement of Merchant’s Bank in Kettering; 28 families comprise the entire congregation
September 1954	Frederick A. Pope arrives from New Hampshire to serve as first vicar; St. George’s mission is officially established
August 1955	Ground is broken for the present parish hall on land provided by the Diocese of Southern Ohio
June 1956	Cornerstone is laid
January 1957	St. George’s becomes a self-supporting parish
March 1957	Church is incorporated under Ohio corporation law; St. George’s new parish home formally opens
May 1957	St. George’s accepted as a full parish at Diocesan Convention; Vicar Frederick A. Pope becomes Rector Frederick A. Pope
April 1961	Congregation votes overwhelmingly to build a new church and expand facilities
June 1962	Ground broken for the new church
November 1962	Second cornerstone laid
September 1963	New church building is dedicated
1966	The Reverend H.R. Wiechert succeeds Frederick A. Pope as rector
1977	The Reverend James S. Paget succeeds H.R. Wiechert as rector
September 1978	Mortgage for the new church paid in full; mortgage document is burned in celebration
1991	The Reverend Carol W. Hull succeeds James S. Paget as rector
1993	The Reverend Paul St. Germain is called as Associate Rector
1994	St. George's completes its accessibility project, giving parishioners easier access to building facilities
2000	The church installs beautiful new stained glass windows
2001	A new bell is hung in the church steeple
June 2002	Cornerstone service is launched
2006	Additional property is purchased on Manor Lane.  St. Mary's Church in Waynesville arranges contract with St. George's for sacramental services
August 2007	The Reverend Paul St Germain is called to be rector of St. Mark's in Upper Arlington, Ohio
November 2007	The Reverend Deacon Phillip Webster is appointed as Assistant Rector as part of the diocesan intern program.  The Reverend Kiah Webster is appointed as a part-time Assistant Rector.
May 2008	The Reverend Carol W. Hull retires after 17 years with St. George's.
June 2008	The Reverend R. James Larsen appointed Interim Rector.  The Reverend Phillip Webster is transferred to St. Francis, Springboro to complete is internship.
September 2008	The Cornerstone service and the 5pm service are combined into a new, 5:30 pm Saturday service.  A new mission statement is approved.

This summary of St. George's history was created from a variety of archival documents. Take a more complete tour through history by looking at these original sources from our Online Archives.