City: Tampa Bay, FL

Category: Worship

Telephone: (727) 822-4173

Description: The Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida, part of the Anglican Communion, was formed in 1969 when the Diocese of South Florida was divided into three parts. Today, the Diocese of Southwest Florida reaches from Brooksville in the north to Naples in the south and serves about 36,000 people in 77 parishes. The Diocese operates Dayspring Retreat and Conference Center in Ellenton (www.dayspringfla.org), just south of Tampa. The Right Reverend Dabney T. Smith was consecrated bishop of the Diocese of Southwest Florida in March 2007. The Episcopal Church has had a presence on or very near the site of its cathedral building in downtown St. Petersburg since 1889. Over the years, the original small, wooden mission chapel was expanded many times to its present cathedral-like size. The architecture, a style called “Florida Ecclesiastical” or “Florida Gothic,” has remained mostly consistent. The church lists nine schools serving only pre-elementary age children and seven schools serving children in the elementary grades and higher. Three of those schools include high schools. The Episcopal Church in the Tampa Bay area was a founding partner of and still supports three homes providing transitional housing for homeless families with children, an AIDS ministry, and other area services.