Community

Calvary, the Downtown Church

Calvary Episcopal Church is a parish deeply rooted in downtown of Santa Cruz. Walk one direction and you are riding the wooden rollercoaster at the Boardwalk, buying fresh fish on the Wharf or boogie boarding in the waves. Walk another direction and enjoy downtown shops, cafes and entertainment, an urban corridor brimming with diversity and vitality. The beautiful University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) campus is thriving in the redwood groves a short three miles away. In our bustling seaside community, you will find surfing, hiking, biking, swimming, fishing and sailing combined with arts, music, theater, lectures, international cuisine, and book stores. Settle into a sidewalk bench with a cup of locally roasted coffee and chat with retirees, working professionals, students, street musicians, and outdoor citizens. The extraordinary environment surrounding Calvary is magical.

The opportunity for ministry, for growing more and more alive and engaged in the vision of Jesus, is limitless. Tourists mapping out historical landmarks are keen to stop by as Calvary is the oldest church in Santa Cruz County. UCSC students are drawn to the comfort and calm of our sanctuary. Calvary’s parishioners come from all walks of life and all economic classes; people of a variety of ages, backgrounds, politics and philosophies who take an active interest in each other, the church, and the community at large. Our contemplative liturgy appeals to some, our choral Eucharist resonates with others. On any given Sunday you are just as likely to greet visiting scholars as unhoused residents. We live and breathe hospitality and inclusion. We don’t stop at welcome. We cultivate relationships, embrace involvement and invite participation. We widen our circle for any and all. Really we do!