Parish History

Origins of our name

According to tradition, St. Anne was the mother of the Virgin Mary (see Wikipedia Entry). She is honored as Jesus’ grandmother, a caretaker and member of the Holy Family. When St. Anne’s was founded in 1978, the name was chosen because no other church in the Diocese was named for female saints and because the grandmother figure was inspiring to the congregation.

Historical Highlights

St. Anne’s began in 1978 when Episcopalians from the Ankeny and north Polk County area met with Bishop Walter Righter of the Diocese of Iowa and the Diocesan Research and Development Committee. Our first worship service was held at Des Moines Area Community College in July of that year. By September 1978, we were meeting regularly in space rented from the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Ankeny. A guitar group provided music, as there wasn’t a regular organist available. Kristy Smith was raised up by the congregation to begin studies for the priesthood. Our first priest was the Rev. Douglas Bachmann from New Jersey. He left to pursue further education.

Worship was moved to the Odd Fellows Hall in 1983.  In 1985 Margaret Wilcox was called as our priest. Under her leadership we negotiated a graduated lease on the building on Ankeny Boulevard. The sanctuary was down a flight of steps, but we continued to grow.  At the end of our 5 year lease we made presentations to the Diocese of Iowa to enlist their help in building our own worship facility.  Land was purchased at West First St and Linden and construction begun. The ground breaking was in November 1990. The building was consecrated on Ascension Eve in 1991.  One of our members, Bruce White was raised up to prepare for ordination as a priest.  In 1993, Bill Magie was ordained to the vocational deaconate and assigned to St. Anne’s.

Pastor Wilcox departed for study in Israel in 1997. We called Tom Gehlsen as priest in 1998. During his tenure, Kathy Tripses began her studies in formation for the deaconate. She was ordained April 7, 2001. When Tom Gehlsen left for a post at St. Luke's, Des Moines, we called the Rev Robert A. Kem from Omaha. He arrived in March 2002 to be our full time priest.

Since Pastor Bob’s tenure began, we have again increased in numbers, including families with small children. We have begun planning our vision for the next year, which will include emphases on Youth, Education, Outreach, Music, and the Holy Spirit.

>> Learn more about our Youth Ministry.

>> Learn more about our International Family.