What is today called Old Donation Church is the third building of the Lynnhaven Parish, which was established in 1637.  The first services were held in the home of Adam Thoroughgood.  The earliest location is under the waters of the Lynnhaven River in what is now the Church Point neighborhood.  Due to the changing patterns of the river, the church was moved and a new building was completed in 1694.  The current sanctuary, constructed in 1736, was heavily damaged by an 1882 fire.  The present structure is a restoration of that building, using the original walls.  It was completed in 1916.  There have been additional renovations and modernizations since that time.  Old Donation is the oldest church in Virginia Beach, an active and thriving congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia.  Its location is 4449 Witchduck Road, just east of Independence Boulevard.

A walk through the burial plots surrounding the historic structure transports one from the frenetic pace of the 21st century.  The visitor, instead, is enveloped by the strength and fortitude of those who shaped our course.  Their hands reach out to lead us to the future.

 

 

The ringing of the bell, housed in the 1923 brick structure, is an ageless and elegant call to worship.  It is the perfect separation of the outside world from the worship that lies within.

 

Buried under the center aisle is a father of the modern church.  The Reverend Richard J. Alfriend was instrumental in the resurrection of Old Donation and served as the first rector after its 1916 restoration.  The baptismal font, rescued from the waters of the Lynnhaven River, stands as the sole survivor of the first Lynnhaven Parish Church.

 

 

05/19/2008 10:29:55 PM