Mary Buford Hitz- Part Two

I have always been proud of the role of women in Emmanuel’s history. It was Nannie Harrison Garrett who made her dream of founding our church come true. Can you imagine the chaos involved in constructing a church while northern raids in both the Piedmont as well as the Shenandoah Valleys raged in 1862-63? The town of Crozet with its railroad prominence has got to have seen action since it was a lifeline of food and supplies to troops in the Shenandoah Valley via the Crozet Tunnel. Two other women, Phyllis and Nancy Langhorne gave the bell tower for the church in 1905 in honor of their mother. Later Nancy became Lady Astor of England and the first female member of Parliament. In 1914 together with their family, they gave the exquisite, simple, balanced, arched, four-sided English country courtyard that encloses the heart of Emmanuel today. To sit in the courtyard is to come as close to the peace that passes all understanding as is humanly possible.