CHELSEA – St. Catherine’s Episcopal Church is in the process of its much-anticipated move to a new location.

Though the planned construction of a worship center has yet to begin, the donation of several modular buildings by another local church will allow St. Catherine’s to proceed with the move to its property at the intersection of Kings Home Drive and Shelby County 39 in Chelsea.

St. Catherine’s, which meets at the former K-Springs Church of God building, plans to build a home of its own about one mile to the west on 20 acres of land off Kings Home Drive that was donated by the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama.

“Up until now, we’ve been kind of just waiting to develop that property,” St. Catherine’s Rector the Rev. Eric Mancil said.

A master plan with multiple phases was developed by the church’s building committee along with CTSM Architects Inc. out of Hoover.

The first phase is a new worship space.

A capital campaign was launched in February and generated about $600,000 of the $1.5 million needed for the first phase, including site preparation.

Around the same time St. Catherine’s leaders were meeting to determine their next step, Asbury United Methodist Church off Alabama 119 in North Shelby County was completing construction on its new worship center.

While work was ongoing at Asbury, the church had utilized two large modular buildings, and then was looking to donate the buildings to another local church.

The timing was perfect for both churches, as St. Catherine’s was able to secure use of the modular buildings having only to pay for the cost of having them moved, about $20,000—a fraction of what the buildings themselves would have cost if not for the donation.

The buildings, encompassing a combined 14,000 square feet, now sit on St. Catherine’s property off Kings Home Drive and are undergoing renovations to prepare for the church to move there before the beginning of the new year.

“It’s going to take a lot of work between now and then, but we think we can get it done,” Mancil said.

Work will include painting, landscaping and paving. St. Catherine’s parishioners have contracting experience, so much of the work is being handled internally.

“What’s good about a project like this is everyone in the parish can help in some way,” Mancil said. “There’s a job for everyone.”

St. Catherine’s is currently limited in what it can offer its average of about 70 worshippers each week, and the church’s stairs are a challenge for some attendees.

Once completed, the modular buildings will offer space for worship (increasing capacity from about 85 people to about 120 people), fellowship, offices, classrooms, choir rehearsals, the church’s beans and rice ministry and more.

On the third Saturday of each month, from 9-11 a.m., residents are welcome to visit the church and take home non-perishable food that has been donated, with no limits imposed and no questions asked.

The modular buildings were placed to leave room for the planned worship center. After its construction, St. Catherine’s would likely continue to use the modular buildings for a time.

“This is still sort of a temporary situation until we can build our first building, which we hope to get started on as soon as possible once we’ve done a little more fundraising,” Mancil said.

Perhaps most importantly, the modular buildings will allow St. Catherine’s to establish a presence at the church’s permanent location.

Mancil extended an invitation to all those in the community to visit St. Catherine’s, especially once the church has settled into its new home and holds a special service to consecrate the space.

“There is a lot of energy and enthusiasm in our parish,” Mancil said. “For a lot of people, this has been a long time coming.”