From left, Melvin Chavez, Peter Macon and the Rev. Jorge Urrettia at St. Alban's. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

A long-term partnership between St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Davidson and a start-up sister church near San Jose, Costa Rica, has drawn a little tighter this summer as parishioners here have gotten to know a pair of Costa Rican visitors.

The Rev. Jorge Urrettia and Melvin Chavez are in town this summer studying English along with a colleague, Petro Mendez. The Rev. Urrettia and Mr. Chavez are being hosted at St. Alban’s, while Mr. Mendez is at St. Mark’s Episcopal in Huntersville.

After several weeks of study, the Rev. Urrettia will give a sermon – in English – at St. Alban’s this Sunday, July 25.

“This is a great opportunity for relations between the Church of Christ of the Resurrection in Heredia, Costa Rica, and St. Alban’s Church in North Carolina,” the Rev. Urrettia said.

Their visit is part of a five-year-old relationship between the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina and the Diocese of Costa Rica, according to Peter Macon of Davidson. Mr. Macon is senior warden emeritus of St. Alban’s and sits on the Costa Rica committee of the N.C. diocese.

St. Alban’s is one of a dozen Episcopal churches in North Carolina that have “companion parish” relationships in Costa Rica. The effort was begun about five years ago by Episcopal bishops in North Carolina and Costa Rica, and is part of an effort to develop the Anglican church in Costa Rica, where most people are Roman Catholic.

Mr. Macon, the Rev. David Buck, the Rev. Elizabeth Marie Melchionna, the Rev. Rebecca Yarbrough, and St. Alban’s parishioners have been traveling to San Jose over the past couple of years to build the relationship and also to oversee a St. Alban’s-supported project to build a day care and community service center serving children and mothers. Davidson’s Clarence Fox has been in San Jose for a year, and another delegation from Davidson is due to visit there beginning Aug. 25.

The $300,000 center will provide care and mentoring for about 150 mothers and children. It’s scheduled to open in March 2011. The Rev. Urrettia also hopes that his congregation eventually can build a church building, though at the moment, they view the mission’s “social presence” as most important.

“Our mission is a project to help children, particularly children of limited means, which is really the hope for the future – and actually the present – of our Costa Rican society,” the Rev. Urrettia said.

The Costa Ricans’ visit here makes it possible for parishioners in Davidson to better understand what’s going on at their sister church, Mr. Macon said.