Wherever you are in your spiritual journey, St. Mark’s welcomes you.

In 1878, a group of Episcopal settlers gathered on the porch of a home in Rockledge to worship and form what would become St. Mark’s. Since then, parishioners have joined together on the banks of the Indian River Lagoon for Christian worship, fellowship, and outreach to the community.

When a Black Episcopal church on Merritt Island closed in 1943, Fr. William Hargrave invited those parishioners to join in the worship at St. Mark’s, and St. Mark’s has remained an open and welcoming congregation.

The congregation is a community of God’s people who seek to discover and experience Christ’s healing power in all aspects of life, and who spread His Light in the world through various ministries and outreach. Parishioners explore the meaning of their faith and engage in lively and thoughtful discussions, while discovering the wonders of God through Scripture, Reason, and Tradition.

The Rev. Stephen Pessah

Rector at St. Mark’s

Dear Friends:

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Eph. 3:20).

These words of Paul to the church in Ephesus have been a tremendous source of inspiration for me over the years and consequently they quite naturally find their way into this message of introduction. I say naturally because growing God’s kingdom in our lives and community demands that our focus be on the one responsible for making that growth a reality. Of course we are required to “participate” with God in this endeavour, but in the end it is He that shows us “the way” and enables us to walk in it. My journey began in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada, where I was born and raised by parents who provided for me a lens through which I began to discover and explore the wonder of God within the context of the Anglican Church. I suppose my “formal” Christian journey began when, at the age of six, I committed my life to Christ at a Vacation Bible School just down the street from where I lived. My Spiritual journey eventually led to a call to ministry which found its expression initially in the Church Army in Canada which is best known for its emphasis on Evangelism and Social Outreach. After 15 years of active service I discerned a further call to ordained ministry at which time I began studies at University of Toronto’s Wycliffe College where I received my M.Div. In 2005. I was ordained Priest that same year and have enjoyed several ministry opportunities in various Ontario locations both in the Diocese of Algoma and the Diocese of Toronto. It was in 2015 that Beth and I discerned a call to Florida where we presently minister. Beth is the Chaplain at Holy Comforter Episcopal School (Pre3 thru Gr. 8) and Associate Rector at Holy Comforter Church in Tallahassee, while I am Rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Monticello (approx.. 30 min. from Tallahassee) We have two adult sons Matthew and Nathan who is married to Lena.

Together with you, we now find ourselves in the midst of transition excited to see how our collective ministry will unfold at St. Mark’s. While we don’t know exactly what shape the future will take, we can be assured that as we continue to fix our gaze on Christ and walk faithfully with him, we will indeed be blessed in ways that surpass our wildest dreams. May God enable us to embrace the full measure of his goodness that we may faithfully walk this journey together. In addition, Beth, and I continue to cherish your prayers as we sell our home here in Tallahassee and look toward our relocation to Cocoa. We are grateful all the hard work of the Vestry, Search Committee and Wardens and we look forward to calling Cocoa Village home very soon.

Yours Faithfully,

The Rev. Stephen Pessah
Rector elect, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and Academy

Music at St. Mark’s

At St. Mark's music is an integral part of the worship services. Providing beautiful music to the glory of God unites and inspires our congregation. The 10:30 service enjoys the traditional, liturgical music of the Episcopal Church, including hymn singing, chanting psalms, choral offertories, and instrumental music. We have pipe organ, piano, and an ensemble (Mark III) of Flute, Cello, and piano that offers prelude and incidental music throughout the service. Our church choir sings every Sunday at 10:30. Since the church is blessed with an Academy (ages pre-K through 6th grade), there are also times when the Academy students participate in special services by singing, handbell playing, and pageant presentations. The church is grateful for all who participate in this valuable aspect of our worship.

candlelight service image

History of St. Mark's Episcopal Church

By Ben Brotemarkle, Executive Director Florida Historical Society

Today, parking in downtown Cocoa can be at a premium when services or special events are held at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.

When the church was first built in 1886, many in the congregation would arrive by water, mooring their boats on the banks of the Indian River. It’s just a few steps from the river’s edge to the front door of the church. Others would walk to church from homes along the river.

The first meeting of what would become St. Mark’s Episcopal Church was held on June 2, 1878. The Right Reverend John Freeman Young, Bishop of Florida, and Dr. William H. Carter of Holy Cross Church of Sanford, gathered the founding members of the church at the home of A.L. Hatch in Rockledge. Dr. Carter later moved to Tallahassee, but services continued to be held by various priests.

The church was originally called St. Michael’s, in recognition of St. Michael the Archangel.

In 1884, Mrs. Lucy Boardman, a frequent visitor to Cocoa and Melbourne from her winter residence in Sanford, donated funds to Bishop Young for the construction of Episcopal churches near the Indian River. Mrs. Sarah O. Delannoy donated the land where St. Mark’s sits today.

According to a historic marker erected by the Brevard County Historical Commission in 2010, Gabriel Gingras designed the board and batten Carpenter Gothic church. Early Cocoa residents William Booth and William Hindle designed and installed the church’s woodwork.

Dr. S.B. Carpenter, Rector of Holy Cross Church of Sanford, visited Cocoa once a month to oversee construction of the church. Although it was not quite finished, the first service was held in the new church on Christmas Eve, 1886.

The church’s tower bell, called “Michael,” was cast in New York in 1888.

In 1890, the name of the church was changed from St. Michael’s to St. Mark’s, in recognition of support provided by St. Mark’s Church in West Orange, New Jersey. Although St. Mark’s has undergone significant additions and renovations over the years, most of the original interior woodwork and stained glass remains intact. Many of the beautiful stained glass windows in St. Mark’s are dedicated to early founders of the church.

When St. Mark’s was renovated in 1925, great care was taken to maintain the integrity of the original structure of the church. Stucco was added to the exterior, giving the building a Mediterranean style very popular at the time. Where additional woodwork was added to the interior, it closely matched the original.

With the addition of its first rector, the Rev. William Loftin Hargrave, St. Mark’s was raised to “parish” status in 1938. Rev. Hargrave was later named Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese of South Florida and Bishop of Southwest Florida.

In February 1942, the Emma Cecilia Thursby Memorial Fellowship Hall was completed, providing space for community gatherings. Thursby was a popular opera singer in America and Europe in the late 1800s and a professor of music at the Institute of Musical Art, now the Julliard School, in the early 1900s. Thursby and her sister wintered in Cocoa.

The most recent renovations to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church were in 1994, when the worship area was expanded to its present capacity, and in 2012, when pews modeled after the originals were installed.

St. Mark’s Parish Day School, known today as St. Mark’s Episcopal Academy, was established in 1956. Since then, education has been a primary focus of the church.

While fewer people walk to church or moor their sailboats nearby as they did in 1886, the full parking lot and spaces around St. Mark’s each week indicate that the church is as vital a part of the Cocoa community as ever.