Our Values & Vision
The mission of St. Anne’s is to restore all people to unity with God, creation, and each other in Christ.
We are open and progressive in our approach to matters of faith and social issues and we are rooted in the ancient Anglican tradition. We see our experience in the light of those who have gone before and with a vigilant eye toward those who are yet to come. We often say that we exist more for those who are not yet with us, or will never be with us, than we do for ourselves alone. This is a place where questioning is welcome, where you are not required to abandon your intellect or your doubts while you deepen your sense of faith. As we value the beauty and richness of our Anglican heritage of music, liturgy, poetry, and prayer, we seek fresh ways of bringing new life to that tradition.
St. Anne’s strives to welcome all who come to us—young and old, families and singles, couples, and people of all backgrounds and racial and ethnic groups. St. Anne’s is an inclusive spiritual home for ALL who seek God. We serve Christ through liturgy, community and outreach. We affirm and respect the dignity of all people regardless of race, language, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, political belief or economic status. St. Anne’s is an Episcopal Church on Main St. in Washougal, Washington. We are a part of the Diocese of Olympia in the Episcopal Church. Our Rules For Respect.
What We Believe
The sources of authority in the Episcopal Church are scripture, tradition, and reason. Sunday worship includes readings from the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament and Psalms) and the Christian Scriptures (the New Testament).As an Episcopal Church, St. Anne’s is part of the Anglican Communion. Our theology and worship have roots in the Catholic tradition and also the Protestant tradition. The Anglican tradition is often called “the middle way” because it incorporates the liturgy and Sacramental life of the Catholic tradition with the Protestant tradition’s recognition of the importance of an individual relationship with God through one’s own understanding from scripture, tradition, and reason. The Episcopal Church encourages exploration of the issues of faith and life, and seeks to be inclusive of all people.
Our Spaces
Library – Our donation based library has approximately 400 books on subjects including Theology, Bibles and bible study, Bereavement, Ethics, Spirituality, Poetry/Prayer, Saints, Church/Liturgy, Fiction, and Miscellaneous. Soon a list of all books and authors will be available as well as an honor system for checking out and returning books.
Playground – We have a playground for young children. Parents are responsible for supervising their children in the playground. Please especially note that children must cross the parking lot to reach the playground and take whatever steps are necessary to ensure everyone is safe.
Parking – There is parking behind the church building, and street parking.
Composting – We have composting bins at the back of the parking lot. Guidelines are posted and compost receptacles are provided in the kitchen.
Peace Garden – Our beautiful peace garden is located on the southeast corner of the parking lot. Come to sit and enjoy the view, the wildlife, or just the peaceful environment.
Meeting Rooms and Fellowship Hall
Our History
From its beginning, St. Anne’s has been centered in Camas-Washougal. It has been wherever her people have gathered together. Years were spent planning and creating a just-right building. Traditions have come and gone as parishioners and their interests change. But there has been one constant. The people of St. Anne’s celebrate the joy of God through fellowship and serving others, living out the slogan, “The Episcopal Church Welcomes You.”
The seeds that would grow into St. Anne’s were planted in the 1920s, when Episcopal women in Camas-Washougal formed a group, meeting in each other’s homes. At that time, the nearest Episcopal church was St. Luke’s, 15 miles to the west. The women’s long-time desire to have a congregation right here in their own community began to be fulfilled in 1951, when the rector of St. Luke’s and vestry members met with members living in Camas-Washougal to begin the process of organizing a local mission.
With no building of our own, St. Anne’s celebrated the first Eucharist in Camas at the First Christian Church in March of 1951. For almost 2 years the congregation met in various buildings in the Camas-Washougal area, saving funds to build a new church. The Washougal Christian Church was for sale in late 1952. St. Anne’s decided to buy it as a “temporary building” as we continued to look for the perfect place to build our church. In the 1970s, the congregation decided to accept the building as our permanent home. Mindful of our roots and what makes St.
Anne’s special, we have kept the fellowship of our community as the center goal of every remodel and addition.
Gathering together and including all have been cornerstones of St. Anne’s. Women’s groups have continued to meet over the years with various names. When all the women could not meet during the day, an evening group was added. When men felt excluded, a men’s group was formed. For many years Camas and Washougal were mill towns with management coming and going out of the area. Parishioners came and went with new people joining as others moved out of the area. With such a transient community the traditions have adapted to the community within and new traditions have sprung based on the expertise and interests of parishioners.
There have been picnics and outdoor eucharists celebrating St. Anne at the end of July, held in various places from parishioner’s farms to the Washougal River with river baptisms. Since the 1960s there has been a Shrove Tuesday Pancake dinner, with the wider community always welcome. Later, we added a dinner every year the Sunday before Thanksgiving that has also become a tradition. For about fifteen years there was a monthly Taizé service on Sunday
evenings. There have been talent shows, blessings of the animals, and blessings of the bikes, art classes and book groups. The gifts God brings are recognized, cherished, and fondly remembered as the next blessing becomes a new tradition.
Our congregation has been an incubator for ministry. Over the years several parishioners have found or honed their ministry in the safe inclusive environment of St. Anne’s. Some of those have gone forth to share their ministries with other missions and parishes. At the same time St. Anne’s has warmly welcomed candidates as they prepare for ordination.
Serving the community has been a priority. The building has been used by a variety of organizations over the years. Alcohol anonymous meetings were held. A co-op preschool operated for many years. Boy Scouts and Sea Scouts met. Parishioners refurbished an old pipe organ with the intent that the wider community would have access for musical events. The people of St. Anne’s have provided manna bags, backpack buddies for elementary students, teeny-tiny homes for the homeless, and currently a safe place for car campers.
Whether serving the community, making joyful music, gathering around the table, reconstructing an old pipe organ or remodeling the building, the people of St. Anne’s share the love of God and connect in fellowship and love.
Who is St. Anne?
Saint Anne is the traditional name of the mother of Mary, and Jesus’ grandmother. She is not mentioned in the canonical gospels, but is part of the Christian tradition. She is the patron saint of unmarried women, housewives, women in labor, grandmothers, childless people, equestrians, lacemakers, miners, the poor, and seamstresses.