History of St. Augustine Church

In the early 1980’s, nestled in the Bitterroot Valley of Western Montana, a small group of Christian believers gathered together to consider and pursue the hope of planting a church in the Hamilton area.  Their desires were to establish a loving, hospitable church, that was faithful to the Word of God.  Two members of this group, Marty Litvin and Richmond Grant, both teachers in the Corvallis School System, began to make plans on how to move forward with this exciting new adventure.  Rich Grant was a retired Episcopal Priest and with the urging of Marty he agreed to lead the worship services in their new church.  This was the inception of St. Matthias, which was fashioned in the Episcopal tradition.

In the early years the small group met in the Grant’s home located in Hamilton, Montana.  The growth and needs would soon require many changes to the location of their gathering.  This led to the congregation meeting at the Lutheran Church in the early morning before Lutheran services began, only to move again to the First Christian Church of Hamilton.  Father Grant retired in 2000 and St. Matthias closed its doors.  Little did anyone know of the plans God still had for His church.

Wonderously, their dream was re-ignited when encouragement came from outside sources prompting the disbanded St. Matthias congregation to reassemble.  A small group, including Virginia and W.C. Bolen, Tom Simpson, Mildred and Delbert Pike and Connie and Marty Litvin began contacting dioceses throughout the western part of the United States.  They were in hopes of finding one that might embrace them by providing a pastoral covering and a broader relationship with Christians who shared their similar beliefs.  Sadly, no diocese seemed interested in supporting this adventure because “they were too small and located too far away”.  Good news eventually arrived and the Diocese of the West of the Anglican Church in America with diocesan headquarters in Washington State agreed to help St. Matthias move forward in its desire to start up a new place of worship.  They sent a priest from Oregon, Father Sweney, once a month to celebrate communion.  Soon churches in Washington State began providing needed supplies to St. Matthias such as an altar, hymnals, Books of Common Prayer, a chalice, and other items often used in worship services.  When Father Sweney was not in town to officiate the service, a member of the congregation held Morning Prayer services.  Two of these members were Sub Deacon Tom Simpson and Vestry Member/Treasurer W.C. Bolen.  Father Sweney suggested the new formation of the former St. Matthias be called Saint Augustine and the congregation voted to accept this as their new name.  (St. Augustine was a missionary bishop who came to the shores of England in the 6th century.  He eventually became the first Archbishop of Canterbury).  The minutes of February 2003 referred to this meeting as “the first annual meeting of the Saint Augustine Anglican Church run by Father Sweney”.

Change for St. Augustine Church would continue.  They would meet in a coffee shop at a local motel, in  a bank, a local church and eventually a building behind Donalson Concrete which was located off of Highway 93.  This space was made available to St. Augustine by an active Christian ministry called Shiloh Ministries.

Father Sweney continued his monthly visitation from Oregon staying with members of the congregation while in the Bitterroot.  Father Sweney stayed with the Bolens most of the time when he was in Montana.

In November of 2003 Deacon Gene Smith, also from Oregon, replaced Father Sweney.  Deacon Smith commuted until 2004, when he and his wife, Gloria, set up permanent residence in the Bitterroot Valley.  Once again it was time to move and not long after Deacon Smith took over leading the services, the son-in-law of parishioner Connie Litvin offered the use of a building he owned in Victor, Montana.  

Many members of the congregation stepped forward and offered their time and skills to transform this new space into a place of worship.  Tom Simpson and Deacon Smith put to use their carpentry skills, while Connie Litvin and her daughter Whiteney added a fresh coat of paint to their new spiritual home.  Other women of the congregation sewed items for the church.  One hundred year old pews were brought over from Oregon.  The altar railings were provided by the Bolens.   A processional cross was crafted by a local cabinet shop in memorial to one of the early founders, Marty Litvin and it was Marty’s mother, Betty, who donated a stand for the church Bible.  Other items donated were a kneeler, new kitchen appliances and an electronic keyboard with hymns already programmed into it.

In January of 2007 Deacon Smith was ordained in Oregon to the Anglican Priesthood and was now able to celebrate Holy Communion and other sacramental duties at St. Augustine.  

In 2009 the owner of the church building in Victor needed the space for offices and the congregation was in search of another place to worship.  Erv and Maureen Lischke, who had joined St. Augustine three years previously, opened their home as a temporary place of worship.  The Lischkes eventually bought a house in Hamilton which would become the new home of the congregation.  Sub Deacon Lischke, Father Smith and member Earl Moss worked tirelessly to convert the house into a church, calling upon professionals when needed, and the transformation of their new space began.  Once the house was purchased, services were held in a part of the house that later became the coffee room.  This room was separated by sheets of plastic from the sanctuary, which was still under construction.  They stayed there until the renovations were completed.

In January of 2017 Father Smith retired to Oregon with Gloria.  About that time, Father Thad Butcher and his wife Lori, moved to Hamilton and began visiting St. Augustine.  Father Thad had recently retired from a full time ministry.  In consultation with the bishop of the diocese, and the request of the leadership at St. Augustine, Father Thad agreed to preach and celebrate Holy Communion twice a month, along with other pastoral duties or concerns that arose.  Sub Deacon Lischke then led Morning Prayer the other Sundays.  This arrangement continues today with Lay Person Dan Wright filling in for Sub Deacon Lischke as needed.

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Today our congregation continues to grow.  Our spiritual family includes members who have been with the church since its early years, along with children of members who have since passed away, and new members who have found St. Augustine and made it their spiritual home.

In this brief history of St. Augustine Church, we are reminded of a wonderful truth, which is, the LORD of heaven who chooses people from even small, unlikely places, and seeks to build them into his Church.  Jesus begins to work in the hearts of a few, in order to reach out to many, which is the real purpose of St. Augustine.  We are here to worship and love the LORD with our hearts, hands, and voices.  We are here to listen and learn so that we, like the saints of old, may know Jesus Christ and make Him known.  We are here to bring his message of salvation to the broken, the lonely and the stranger.  We are blessed to be a part of God’s great plan in the world by being His Family, His Body, His Bride and HIS CHURCH.

This information was gathered through the reading of old minutes, log books, a diary kept by Father Gene and parts of the history that was previously written up by W.C. Bolen.  Also, a large part of this history came from interviewing current congregation members who have been a part of the transformation of St. Augustine to what it is today.  This includes Connie Litvin, Virginia Bolen, Bettie Basacker, Jeannie Tishler, Erv and Maureen Lischke, and Father Thad Butcher.

Compiled by Sue Thackrey/Secretary 

October 2023