Virginia Adams, the original Saint of John?

I don’t remember exactly when it was that we began referring to ourselves as the Saints of John, but it was long after Virginia Adams had died.

When I arrived here in 1973, we had been accustomed to having three clergy on staff as well as three office workers. Tom Morris, who had been rector, had died, and his associate rector, Bill Kirkland, had already left to teach at Morris Harvey (now University of Charleston). The only priest left when I transferred from Christ Church, Fairmont, was Dick Schmidt, assistant rector, who said he was not ready to become rector but would remain on staff as long as needed.

The office crew included Joann Waggy, Harriett Beury and Virginia Adams. Virginia occupied the corner office and oversaw parish operations. She was also a lay leader, eucharistic minister, community activist, innovator, and friend to all. She was known and esteemed throughout the diocese and was a friend to our bishops.

I don’t know when she began her work with us, but I know she worked with Tom Morris and continued with Jim Lewis and then Mac and Mary Adelia McLeod before retiring. She had been a trusted confidant and advisor to each or those rectors.

In the early ‘70s, whenever someone came to the parish house door asking for money for food, they were given a chit to take to Quarrier Diner, and the parish reimbursed the diner. It was Virginia Adams who suggested to Jim Lewis that St. John’s should open its kitchen to feed people rather than giving them a chit. That was the beginning of Manna Meal with Jim and Virginia as its founders.

Parishioners who arrived at St. John’s subsequent to those years have no idea what an enormous impact Virginia had on our parish. Those few of us who remember her know that she deserves special recognition. Janet Morris and Harriett Beury, both now deceased, each contacted me in writing, endorsing the naming of the Virginia Adams Room, so I prepared a resolution.

Some ten years ago, our vestry unanimously approved that resolution, naming room 209 in Virginia’s honor. A sign designating the Virginia Adams Room was placed on the wall in the hallway, but the sign disappeared during the recent redecorating. A brass plaque to be placed on the door is in the works, so that Virginia’s memory is not lost.

A copy of a Charleston Gazette story about Virginia hangs on the wall just inside. The news article lists many of her accomplishments. Although the story is centered around her receiving the Susan B. Anthony Award, the highest honor given anyone by the state chapter of the National Organization for Women, Virginia said that the accomplishment she was most proud of was serving as president of the Women’s Health Center’s board of directors.

I suggest that you visit the Virginia Adams Room, also known as room 209, and read the rest of the story!