By Ann Clinton

The cloudless sky was a perfect blue and provided a clear palette for the gray spire reaching high into the sky. The red door stood in direct contrast to the somber dark gray edifice. The red door perhaps a signal to STOP and visit.

Riding along the busy thoroughfare one is aware of ethnic restaurants, antique shops, the ever popular cell phone stores, convenience stores and pizza places. Drive on just a little farther and you will be rewarded with what could be a scene in Oxford or Cambridge, England. But this is Staten Island and the building is St. John’s Episcopal Church with the tall spire and the red door.

Alongside the church is a lovely garden – small, yet seeming to include a diversity of flora. Sometimes hidden by the greenery are several statues, darkened with age, representing the biblical history of the church. The property includes a manse for the Rector. But, while aged both are strong, proud reflections of days gone by, still important today.

At the end of a long driveway which divides the church and manse stands a new building. Six stories of brick, an imposing structure with wide windows on each floor and over the main doorway the name on the building reads: Canterbury.

Oh, and if you happen to stop at the red door and go inside the church, you will find, among other things, a large interior with center altar, upholstered pews, stained glass windows and to the left Our Lady’s Chapel.

The congregation is as diverse as the many varieties of flowers in the garden.