In the 19th century,

churches were all begun either under a brush arbor or in

a school. In the 20th century, they began in someone's

living room.

Saint Andrew's-in-the-Pines

Episcopal Church in Peachtree City falls into the latter

category. Because of the rich Scottish heritage in

Fayette County, it was named for Saint Andrew, the patron

saint of Scotland.

It was April 1976 when 28

people met in the living room of Skip and Cynthia

McMorries. Two months later they conducted their first

service at the Peachtree City Elementary School and that

August they began meeting in the gazebo at the McIntosh

Amphitheater (now the Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater).

In November 1976, five

acres were purchased at the church's current site on

North Peachtree Parkway. In January 1978 the congregation

was accepted into union with the Diocese of Atlanta.

Currently, the congregation

has 300 families enrolled as members.

The first building was

constructed in June 1981 and the present structure was

added in 1994.

The Rev. Dan Brigham has

been with the church since June 1983. At the age of 12,

he knew for a fact that he wished to enter the ministry.

He was born and reared in Kansas City, Mo., is a graduate

of the University of Missouri with a master's in

classical history. His degree in divinity came from the

Episcopal Theological School and he was ordained in 1969.

He served several churches

in Missouri before coming to Peachtree City.

Brigham and his wife, the

former Viki Preston, are the parents of three children:

Sara Elizabeth, who is married and lives in Wisconsin;

Phillip Aaron, who is doing graduate work at the

University of Chicago in anthropology, and Peter Forrest,

who is finishing his master's in philosophy at the

University of Chicago. There are three grandchildren and

one on the way.

The church conducts a Mass

Saturday evenings at 6 p.m., at which time it observes

Rite II, and Sunday morning, Mass is at 7:30 a.m., 9:15

a.m. and 11 a.m., at which time Rite I is observed.

The church supports a

number of local organizations: there are five Alcoholics

Anonymous groups that use the facility, several Boy Scout

and Girl Scout troops, and the church supports Fayette

Samaritans and the Fayette County Council on Battered

Women.

It has a preschool through

kindergarten program, which can be reached at

770-486-8203.

It is at 316 North

Peachtree Parkway and can be reached at 770-487-8415.

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